Mechanical Advantage talk by David

This afternoon, David (Breanna's Dad) was kind enough to come and talk to us about some of the forces involved in rescuing rock climbers. He is very knowledgeable and has been rock climbing for over 35 years.

David talked to us about Mechanical Advantage. He started by showing us what it would be like with no mechanical advantage - a simple tug-of-war. He then changed the ropes so that 1 person could 'out tug' 2 people. He kept going so that 6 people were able to tug against 1 person and the single person was still able to win. By looping more ropes around more pulleys the mechanical advantage increased. This means that if someone was stuck at the bottom of a cliff, and you knew how to set up the ropes correctly, a small person could pull up a big person up to safety.

Some of this is a bit tricky to understand but if you want to look further into this, have a look at the following websites:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9T7tGosXM58 - This is a great YouTube video that explains the concept in child friendly language

http://www.ropebook.com/information/pulley-systems - This has some great images and explanations of 1:1 - 6:1 pulley systems

Some of us were also able to experience what happens when a rope slips between our hands - Friction. OUCH! Thanks for taking the time David, to help us understand this.

Cardboard Challenge

Yesterday was the Cardboard Challenge. We got some good ideas from a variety of locations at the Come Out Festival. Connie's class and ours, being buddy classes, worked together to build a theme park. The results were stunning! There are Ferris wheels, a first aid station, a mega drop, a number of roller coasters and lots more.

These are just a taste of photos that I took yesterday however there are more to come so stay posted.

/td>

Come Out Children's Festival (Wednesday)

Today was our last day at Come Out. We were lucky enough to see The Carnival of The Animals and I can not recommend it highly enough. I think I enjoyed it as much if not more than the children. It was an hour of animal antics represented by acrobatics and aerial skills. Unfortunately we were not able to take any photos inside.

After this we had recess in The Blue Hive. We then went for a stroll along the river to the zoo. Along the way we had a treasure hunt where we had to find as many bikes, benches, birds, prams, dogs, runners and bridges as we could. We walked to the weir, crossed the river, had lunch and went back to the Popeye platform to catch our ride back to the festival center.

One last trip home on the train. Thanks to Jen Lush (Again!), Laura Garrett, Kylie Dawson and Anneka Skirrow for coming along today. And again, I need to acknowledge Cath and Anneka for the great photos

/td>

Come Out Children's Festival (Tuesday)

We went into come out again this morning. We bumped into Susannah which was fortuitous as she fit us into the silent disco as well as going to see I Think I Can and Robot Story Time.

Our first stop was I Think I Can which was in the railway station foyer. It brought together model trains, puppetry and technology. The students were put into groups of 4 and then had to answer a range of questions on an ipad in order to determine their character. Upon selecting their character, they were given a miniature character that was then placed in the 'city'. The groups chose where it would go, what it was doing. A puppeteer then animated it and it was filmed and projected onto the large screen. Each group then had to write an article about their character and what it was doing for The Adelaideville Post. Throughout the week they have the opportunity to come back and move their character, interact with other characters and watch the headlines about their character change. One group was the queen, another a riot policeman. There was even a sword swallower. To have a look at the newspaper please go to the following website. http://ithinkicanonline.com/adelaide/

After this, we were able to go to the silent disco, a highlight for many. Everyone was given a set of headphones with 3 channels to listen to. There was dancing, singing and it was far from silent although no one could hear any music except that coming from their headphones. What a great addition to the day - Thanks Susannah!

Reluctantly we left the disco to head upstairs and meet Radius, a legless robot who read us stories and listened with plastic ears (we had to make sure we answered him loudly enough so he could hear us!) He told us a couple of stories and asked us various questions about the stories - a great way to engage children in story telling.

A tired and happy group of students returned on the train. Thank you to Bridget Partridge, Kate Greeneklee and Louise Bruten for coming along today.

/td>

Come Out Children's Festival (Friday)

On Friday, we went to the first event of Come Out. We saw the 26 Storey Tree house which we have been reading in class. The play was very funny and enjoyed by all. After this we were lucky enough to see the opening ceremony and some of the other Eden Hill's classes sing Eagle Rock and walk across the bridge. The sun was out and it was a beautiful day. We walked around the river and then to the Women's Memorial Park (Recommended by Tracey) where we had lunch. After lunch there was an impromptu leaf-pile competition followed by a leaf fight. A lot of fun was had by all. Thank you to Tracey Rankin, Jen Lush and Amanda Kelly for coming along with us. Thanks also to Cath for the great photos too.