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Posted on March 20th 2024
STEM Kart Grand Prix
The theme of this year's British Science Week was Time. The main activity for our students at Harris Academy Peckham was the STEM Kart.
This project is run by Big Bang Promotions and gives students the opportunity to experience driving electric go-karts. We selected 30 students from each KS3 year group to take part in the activities. Spectators were as excited as the participants.
Students were taken through theory sessions and then given the opportunity to drive. The classroom sessions taught them about ergonomics and aerodynamics in car design. One student commented: "It's important to consider the proportions of the human body when designing a car."
An inflatable track was set up in the sports hall and students took turns driving the go-karts, recording the time it took to complete the circuit. "The go-karts are quite fast and we even drifted," said another student. The track was nothing like Silverstone, but the excitement on their faces was as good as any F1 race.
Cars of the future
As the karts were electric, this was an excellent opportunity to demonstrate the benefits of clean energy and what the cars of the future might look like. The students were also able to see the link between STEM and new technologies as the world of engineering continues to evolve.
After the ride, the students were challenged to design their own go-karts using all the knowledge they had gained. When asked about their experience, one student concluded: "I love it so much I want to do it during half term." We hope that this project will spark an interest in engineering or mechanics in our students.
Mr Tate, Teacher of Science
Learning about ergonomics and aerodynamics: "The go-karts are quite fast and we even drifted."
