Schools Outreach

The School of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Southampton values the key role that primary and secondary schools have in motivating and enabling their students to pursue higher education. We are keen to help science teachers inspire their students; to this end, we are committed to delivering a wide-ranging outreach program. Please explore the appropriate Key Stage activities to see how we can support you and your students.

Our aim is to encourage more students to study physics at A-level and beyond. The University of Southampton is part of SEPnet, the South-East Physics Network, which enables us to do more promotion of Physics throughout the region and offer support to those teaching Physics in the South East.

Key Stage 1 & 2 Find out about 'Light Wave': - hands-on optics experiments for Primary school children and our amazing Astronomy talks.	Key Stage 3 Find out about our Summer Schools for Year 8 students and Extra Solar Planets talk.
Key Stage 4 Summer Schools, The Light Express Roadshow, and Speakers for Schools.	AS/A Level AS/A Level: - free ebooks, posters, CD-ROMs and the travelling laser light show.
Talks for the General Public/Astronomy Societies Find out about our talks on X-rays, Jets and holography demonstrations. Year of Astronomy Activities	General Support for Teachers Ask the Experts, Freebies, and work experience for your students.
The Light Express Road Show is a FREE travelling roadshow which visits schools and colleges across the South of England. It consists of a 'Christmas Lecture' style show which is very visual and interactive. The show is aimed at GCSE or A Level Physics students, containing demonstrations and activities featuring the physics of light and the science behind the Internet. The show links in with several units of the national curriculum for GCSE and A Level physics and provides a unique opportunity for students to see powerful lasers, that are not generally found outside research labs, in action. The Light Express website includes an online booking form that can be used to arrange a visit from the road show. www.lightexpress.soton.ac.uk	The mobile planetarium is a FREE travelling inflatable astrodome, which visits schools and colleges across the South of England. Shows consist of an interactive guided tour of the night sky including the mythology of the constellations and the life cycle of stars. The guided tour can be tailored to the syllabus and is suitable for all ages. We can also offer the award-winning 'We Are Astronomers' show which is aimed Key Stages 3-5. The astrodome shows are run by Astronomer Sadie Jones and a team of postgraduate astronomy students at the University of Southampton. Further information can be found at www.astro.soton.ac.uk/~s.jones. To make a booking please contact Sadie Jones.

Our Space - where space becomes personal

Richard Garriott - computer games guru, adventurer and astronaut - visited the International Space Station in 2008. Now Richard is sharing some of his amazing experiences with you through the videos on this website. You can explore the clips, find extra facts, images and explanations, and download the material to use in lessons and projects.

And for schools in the UK, Richard is setting a special challenge: can you turn all of this fantastic space stuff into your own amazing 'space story' to win some out-of-this-world prizes? The competition closes 1st July 2010 and there are two top prizes of a visit to NASA Centres in Texas and Florida to be won....Now space can be your adventure too.

www.our-space.org

Download the flyer.

Ask the Experts

Do you have a physics or astronomy question that you have always wanted to know the answer to? Are you stuck with a physics homework question? Do you want some ideas for your physics project? Is there part of the Light Express Roadshow that you want to know more about? Please e-mail us and ask!

If you are a school principal or science teacher and would like any additional information, please don't hesitate to contact our Schools Liaison Officer. We would also like to hear from you if you would like to establish a closer link with our department or if you have any other questions or comments.

Contact:
Pearl John
School of Physics and Astronomy
University of Southampton
Highfield
Southampton SO17 1BJ
Tel: +44 (0)23 8059 2159
Fax: +44 (0)23 8059 3910