Skills Base and the Solar System

In Skills Base this half term we have learnt all about the Solar System. We can now recognise the planets in the Solar System. This includes our sun with its orbiting planets; Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune and Pluto.

Below is our model of the Solar System and some of our work on display. Some students have also completed individual research projects on the Apollo 11 Moon Landing, Rockets in Space and Life as an Astronaut.

Clarkehouse Masterchefs

Students at Clarkehouse Centre have come up with a range of culinary delights since September. They've been working hard learning about tastes, temperatures (including the odd burnt finger!) and healthy diets. Here are a few snapshots of our young masterchefs at work:

Clarkehouse Centre infested by a bookworm!

As part of their 'Famous British Authors' project, the students at Clarkehouse Centre have been given their own pet bookworm. The bookworm arrived in a box today with the following label attached:

"Bookworm (Peskius Bookwormus)

The bookworm is a common pest found in libraries and other places where books are stored.

The bookworm is flat and brown. It can grow up to the size of a large book, such as an atlas, and will eat up to one book per day when fully grown. The bookworm’s favourite food seems to be dictionaries.

It is usually a very secretive creature and will cleverly hide in the most boring books. However, it can be spotted by its droppings which are made up of undigested longer words."

This week we will be deciding on a name for the bookworm... watch this space!

Whirlow Hall Farm 'Bottle Greenhouse' project

Louise, our learning mentor based at Whirlow Hall Farm, is getting ready to start working with students on an eco-friendly plastic bottle greenhouse.

Instead of using new glass - which is expensive, easily broke and costly to the environment - a wooden frame will be filled with recycled 2-litre plastic bottles instead. The plastic bottles will do exactly the same job in keeping the inside of the greenhouse warm enough to grow plants.

All we need now is the bottles - around a thousand of them! So please start sending them in!

Sheffield Wheel Visits October '09

During the last week before half term each group got the opportunity to visit the Sheffield Wheel as part of their skills base lesson. Staff and students alike enjoyed the panoramic views of Sheffield, come rain or shine! We indulged in a much needed hot chocolate afterwards.

The wheel is over 60m high, weighs 365 tonnes and is secured by its own weight anchored by 40,000 litres of water.

If you get the opportunity you should try and take a turn on the Wheel before it leaves Sheffield.