Physics trip

The year 12's went on a trip to Canterbury University last term to experience the Physics department in action.

On 4-5 September, some of our senior students went to Christchurch for their Physics Camp. We were lucky enough to experience Physics in action through some fun activities and experiments at University of Canterbury. Trips like this bring the learning to life and give us an opportunity to experience things that cannot be done in the school laboratories.

During the Year 12 Physics trip, we went ice skating and go-karting. First was ice skating, it was really fun, but extremely cold. Many students ended up flat on the ice, “PHYSICS!” There were definitely some laughs. After the ice skating we went go-karting - a few of us were nervous, because we had never done something like that before, but others were beyond excited. To my surprise, I was awarded the fastest lap time out of all three races. WHOOP WHOOP!

We drifted, we crashed, we hit each other and we fell on our faces, but in the end, we all had major fun.

The second day of the Year 12 Physics trip we visited the University of Canterbury. Here, we learnt about Rutherford’s gold foil experiment, and many other things. We got to explore the university, and found out that the library is 10 stories high! It had amazing views. We got to do a few experiments like sitting on a swivel chair and using our arms to speed us up and slow us down, “PHYSICS!” Another experiment was to sit on a massive disc, with a leaf blower attached to it. We turned the leaf blower on and we turned into a giant hockey puck. We all had major fun, and I'd definitely go again.

A huge thank you to Ms Brownie for being available to come with the class for the trip and taking the photos of what we got up to. Also, thank you to University of Canterbury for the engaging and interesting activities. These trips only happen with the support of others. Ngā mihi nui!

Samantha Rasmussen (Year 12)