We are detectives!
Upton Hall School Year 7 pupils investigate...
Year 7 pupils visited Liverpool John Moores University to help solve a murder mystery on Tuesday 12 May 2009.
As part of the national Salters' Festival of Chemistry programme, our girls were invited to take part in a special LJMU-devised 'who-dunnit' murder mystery, conducting forensic science experiments to find the culprit.
Pictured at LJMU from the left are Year 7 pupils Georgina Scregg, Helen Corris, Jade Spence and Molly Hanlon.
The pupils analysed five different chemical samples taken from the clothing of five main suspects to establish who committed the murder.
The day, designed to encourage more young people to consider science as a school subject option and possible career path, was a great success , with another 14 schools from across the North West also participating.
Dr Ian Bradshaw who organised the event felt it was a great opportunity for the next generation of potential scientists to see how science affects their daily lives and have some fun at the same time. The pupils got the chance to have a hands-on go with real science and learnt how to solve problems using chemistry.
Ms Haf who teaches the Year 7 girls said "The children found it very interesting , there were lots of different activities for them adn everyone enjoyed the day. The range of experiments, laboratories and equipment gave them a real insight into what science is like in the world of work. In addition to learning more about chemistry, they have learnt that university is not a daunting place and they feel higher education is something they can achieve".
Molly Hanlon, 7S said "The murder mystery was really fun and interesting. I liked it because it was a different and new way of learning science."
"Doing the experiments to find out who committed the crime put Chemistry into a real-life context which gave me an idea of how science is applied in the real world."
The Salters' Festival of Chemistry programme is an initiative of The Salters' Institute which aims to promote the appreciation of Chemistry and related sciences among the young.