8 June 2011

Pupils set for Festival of Chemistry

Photo opportunity: 2.15-3pm on Wednesday, 15th June at Carnelly Building, University of Dundee. High school pupils will be treated to a 'Chemical Magic Demonstration'.

Dozens of high school pupils from the Tayside, Fife and Grampian areas will take part in a chemistry challenge at the University of Dundee next week.

Forty-eight pupils from nine schools will participate in the Salters’ Festival of Chemistry, which is being held at the College of Life Science’s Carnelly Building on Wednesday, 15th June. The pupils, all at the end of their S1 year, will form teams and undertake a series of tasks in an attempt to impress the panel of judges.

During the morning the teams will take part in a competitive, hands-on, practical activity, The Salters’ Challenge, entitled ‘There’s been a Murder!’ in which they will use their analytical chemistry skills.

In the afternoon, they will compete in the 'University Challenge', a practical activity chosen by CLS staff, in which they will be required to combine Universal dyeing solution, which changes colour at different pH values, with hydrochloric acid and sodium hydroxide solutions to produce small samples of six different colours.

This will be followed by a ‘Chemical Magic Demonstration’ from CLS staff at the Festival, with students providing a helping hand.

The day will end with a prize-giving at which all participants will be given individual fun prizes and participation certificates. First, second and third-placed teams in both the Salters’ and University challenges will be awarded prizes for their schools.

The Festivals are a series of one-day, fun events to take place at universities throughout the UK and Ireland. They are a Salters' Institute initiative to promote the appreciation of chemistry and related sciences amongst young people.

The event will be hosted by Dr Liz Lakin, who said everyone at CLS was looking forward to welcoming the pupils to the University.

'This is a fantastic chance to take part in fun chemistry activities and experiments and learn from students and staff here,' she said.

'Hopefully we will encourage them to take up science as a career and may even see some of them back here as students in the not too distant future. I’m sure they’ll enjoy their day and will get a flavour of the type of work that takes place within a university science department.

The Dundee event is one of 53 Festival taking place in 2011. During the last 10 years, over 28,000 students have experienced the fun of practical chemistry through the Salters' Festivals.

Teams from the following schools will take part: Albyn School (Aberdeen), Arbroath High School, Forfar Academy and Monifieth High School (all Angus), Auchmuty High School (Fife), and Grove Academy, Dundee High School, Menzieshill High School and St John’s High School (all Dundee).

Notes to editors:

1. The Festivals are one-day events for schools held at Universities throughout the UK and Ireland. The first series of Festivals was held in 1991. Festivals were then held in 1992, 1994, 1996, 1998 and 2000. Since 2000 Festivals have been held every year. In 2011 there will be a series of 53 Festivals being hosted by 40 universities between March and June. The aim of the Festivals is to make chemistry more exciting, more relevant and fun to students aged 11 to 13 years and to encourage schools to set up their own chemistry clubs.
2. Competing schools are represented by a team of four students from years 7 or 8 (or equivalent in Scotland, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland). Prizes for the winning schools are awarded at each Festival and all participants receive fun prizes and certificates. During the last ten years, over 24,400 students have experienced the fun of practical chemistry through the Salters' Festivals of Chemistry.
3. Since 1991 sponsorship support of the Festivals has been raised from over one hundred companies. Many of the Festivals are also sponsored by local companies.
4. The Salters’ Company is one of the Great Twelve City of London Livery Companies and was founded in 1394 for the medieval trade in salt. The Company’s activities today are centred on charitable and educational giving. The Salters' Institute, established in 1918, and now the Flagship Charity of the Salters' Company, aims to promote the appreciation of chemistry and related sciences among the young and to encourage careers in the teaching of chemistry and in the UK chemical and allied industries.
5. The Institute’s three core activities are the Salters' Festivals of Chemistry for 11 to 13 year olds; Salters' Chemistry Camps for those aged 15, in partnership with other scientific institutions, and Curriculum Development, undertaken at The University of York, including Twenty First Century Science and Salters-Nuffield Advanced Biology, Salters Advanced Chemistry and Salters Horners Advanced Physics.

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Grant Hill
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University of Dundee
Nethergate, Dundee, DD1 4HN
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