Stacey was voted the winner of the Apprentice Zone in March 2015. We caught up with her to see what she’s been able to do over the last year with her £500 prize money…
On the 15th October 2015, I invited Year 8’s from the Cavendish School to participate in an engineering-based activity day. The day was split into 2 halves, 60 students participating in the morning session, and 60 students participating in the afternoon session.
The activity programme was called Making Knexions, created by Young Engineers. It is a STEM programme that enables students of all abilities to explore and engage through hands on design and build activities. The particular session I chose to run was based on Wind Turbines. The aim of the session was to encourage students to work together to create a solution to a problem, to learn new skills and to learn about potential future careers in engineering.
Above are some pictures of a few of the amazing wind turbines built on the day!
Awards were given to teams who had the fastest turbines, the best team communication, and the most interesting design. From this day, 12 students (6 boys and 6 girls) who stood out were selected for the top prize, being taken on the trip to the Shard!
The prize money from I’m an Engineer funded the trip into London on the 5th November. Not only did the students get to see the breath-taking views from the Shard, but many of the students experienced the underground for the first time and even got to see a Lamborghini up close (which distracted the majority of the students).
All of this was important, however, as the teachers and I explained to the students the engineering involved in all the things that they were looking at!
The students were full of excited descriptions: surreal; amazing; a special experience; breathtaking views. Stacey also chatted to the students about the excitement of working in construction and engineering and helping them understand that curiosity and ambition are key drivers to career success. Mrs Shaw, Careers Coordinator at Cavendish School
I would like to thank I’m an Engineer for offering me this opportunity. I have enjoyed the experience and I really believe that those 12 students, and others from the STEM day, have been positively influenced by gaining an understanding of engineering and will now consider it as a potential career in the future!
Read the Cavendish School’s report on the competition and tour of London here: Learning London at the top of the Shard.
