Shape Workshop

On Thursday 5 November, a team of specialists from the Royal Institution visited the Junior School and delivered a workshop to Year 6 pupils.

The workshop leaders provided the children with an evocative presentation aimed at the following:

• To provide an introduction to classification of 3d shapes - what does it mean for a 3d shape to be regular?

• To explore possible shapes that can be formed with only triangular, square or pentagonal faces.

• To use modelling equipment based on (1) faces and (2) vertices and edges to construct solids.

• To know about the names of the Platonic solids (including hexahedron as another name for the cube).

• To explain why there are only 5 items that can be made.

• To investigate Euler's formula relating numbers of edges, faces and vertices.

Pupils used cardboard shapes and sticky tape for assembling the shapes from faces, as well as straws and plasticine for assembling shapes from edges.

A day of fun learning was enjoyed by all participants; thanks to Ms Szemerenyi for organizing the event. VN