Who Said Science was boring? Not the children involved in Imperial College’s Evolution Project

Bringing together children from 15 London schools and engineers from Rolls Royce and Imperial College’s Reach out Lab, the Evolution Project takes an innovative approach to delivering the government’s Science, Technology, Engineering, and Maths (STEM) agenda.

This year’s Evolution Project took place over a number of months, to great success. The children first visited the Royal Albert Hall in January to watch a live performance of the Cirque Du Soleil’sKooza. Experiencing the show first hand helped them to later understand the technical challenges faced by the production team and performing artists.

Their class teachers were then invited to partake in a staff INSET day held at Imperial College, where they received tips and guidance on how their classes should tackle the enormous feat of recreating a part of the show from Rolls Royce engineers, who mentored the projects back in the school settings.

After three months of sticking, bolting and wiring, representatives from each school were reunited at the Royal Albert Hall. Complete with powerpoint presentations, diagrams and numerous other planning materials, each school had the opportunity to present their final models to the other participating schools.
It was a fantastic sight. Proud staff and children talked confidently about their own models, reflecting on the challenges they came up against and describing what they had learnt and enjoyed throughout the project.

The engineers were a true inspiration for the children; they made the process engaging by giving fun examples of their work (which included blowing up and firing defrosted chickens into plane engines) enabling the children to contextualise the challenges of their own projects and feel a sense of camaraderie with the professional scientists.

Amazingly, Rolls Royce utilise the arts daily in testing their engines; components are taken into a soundproof room and played musical instruments to make sure they vibrate within a specific frequency range. Imagination plays an essential role in helping them design and create innovative new products. It was refreshing to see the children excited about the overlap between science and the arts and crossing the boundaries between subjects, engaging in STEM subjects with confidence and creativity.

Click here for more information on the projects run by Imperial College’s Reach Out Lab.

St Joseph’s RC Primary School’s final project