Hands-On, Minds-On: Discovering Science Through Play!

Hands-On, Minds-On: Discovering Science Through Play!

At IQRA College, we believe that the best learning happens when our students are actively engaged, inquiring and having fun. This term, our Junior Primary students have been exploring the wonders of science through exciting incursions and an action packed ‘Science Week’ that brought learning to life. By experimenting, building, and exploring, they’re not just learning facts—they’re developing a deep understanding of the world around them. Learning through doing fosters curiosity, critical thinking, and a love for discovery that will last a lifetime. 

We’re thrilled to share with you some highlights of these hands-on experiences. 

Bubble, Bubble...POP!

Reception explored bubbles: big ones, small ones and absolutely HUGE ones! We had some amazing scientific theories based on our observations. 

‘Bubbles blow high, they are light!’ Fatima 

‘Some bubbles have rainbow colours in them’ Zaviyar 

‘Grass and trees make bubbles pop’ Manal 

‘I can catch bubbles if my hands are wet’ Jannah 

‘Bubbles ALWAYS pop’ Kinan 

‘Bubbles can be BIG or very small’ Abdul Hadi 

I'll huff, I'll Puff...I'll Blow Your House Down!

Reception had a great time letting their imagination and critical thinking run wild and building exciting things, just like the 3 Little Rabbits in our focus story! Students created a city of houses, takeaway shops and cars.  

‘I loved building stuff and playing in the mud’ Tahia 

‘I build a house with Ali, Rayaan and Abdulmajeed’ Ahmad 

‘Put the flowers in places’ Maria 

‘I build house’ Yousef 

‘I had fun playing with the mud’ Soran  

‘We had so much fun’ Leena 

‘I loved playing in the tubs and building a new house’ Kamil 

‘I like to build a car’ Zakaria  

Flutter by Butterfly

We discovered in our Friday afternoon clubs sessions that different plants that can attract wildlife and especially butterflies into our school environments. The children have loved watching their seedlings grow and have learnt that seedlings need water and sunlight to flourish.

“Butterflies live in their house and they have a little mouth and little eyes and fly higher than we can catch them” Rayan 

“Butterflies fly fast so we can’t catch them” Zoya 

“ Butterflies have things in the middle called antennas” Asiya 

“Butterflies live in flower gardens” Mardiyah 

Devouring Delicious Damper

Year 1s learnt about bread around the world and the importance of wheat as a source of food. We consolidate our learning by making damper bread with a first nations man and cooking it in a fire pit. 

“We made our own damper bread and cooked it in the fire.”  Izaan

“I really liked honey on my damper bread.”  Luthfya

“I can smell the damper bread cooking.”  Aaron

“I enjoyed eating damper bread while listening to the didgeridoo being played.” Izaan

Magnificent Magnets

Do you know how magnets work? Year 1 sure do! They spent the afternoon wondering, testing and making thier thinking visual. 

“Look! It sticks!” Aya

“I can make it move!” Musa

“I wonder why this sticks?!” Milaf

‘It sticks to the metal. I made a smiley face, look!” Intisar

Balloons and Bicarbonate

As part of Science Week, we had fun making balloons inflate using bicarbonate of soda and vinegar to create carbon dioxide. The students were amazed that the balloons grew bigger right before their eyes!

“It’s getting bigger and bigger” (Deya) 

“Ahh! move back mine is getting bigger” (Umar) 

“Look, it’s going to explode” (Parishay) 

Shadow Time

Year 2 student investigated shadows. The students shadow changes in length and direction over the course of the day. 

'WOW!! Look how long my shadow it now!' Waleed

'My shadow has moved. It was over there before' Salam

'The sun has made my shadow move' Noura 

Journey to the Stars!

Year 2s had an incursion from the SciWorld mobile planetarium. We enjoyed a hands-on experience learning about Earth as a planet in the solar system and watching patterns in the changing position of the sun, moon, planets and stars in the sky. 

“The planetarium was a cool big black dome. They used an air pump to make it inflatable.” Noor 

“It was so cool when we stood up and touched the moon with our hands. I also liked watching the planets orbiting the sun.” Ziyad 

“I loved the illusions of the moon and planets changing across the big dome roof. I loved learning about the constellations.” Lila 

“The planetarium showed us planets and space and constellations on the roof inside the dome.” Amina 

“I liked how the presenter took us on a rocket into space. It looked realistic especially when we saw Saturn.” Ayaan 

“I liked when we saw all the planets. I liked the cool realistic animations especially the animal pictures of the constellations.” Noura S 

“We discovered that Jupiter has rings that are invisible to us. We also learned that Jupiter is a gas giant made out of clouds.” Abood