Mini-Professors NI Visit: Exploring Forces Through Play and Story
Today we were delighted to welcome Adam from Mini-Professors NI to our Nursery for an exciting, hands-on workshop all about forces. The session was cleverly themed around The Three Little Pigs, giving the children a familiar story to anchor their scientific thinking.
Adam invited each child to design and build their own bridge structures, encouraging problem‑solving, creativity, and early engineering skills. Once completed, the children used the force of air to test the strength of their constructions — discovering how a push can make an object move, wobble, or fall. This playful experiment helped the children see how push and pull forces are part of their everyday world.
To deepen their understanding, the children watched a short video on forces, learning how we use pushing and pulling during daily routines such as opening doors, tidying toys, or climbing outdoor equipment.
The workshop also included a lively story session and a spectacular science demonstration. Using menthos and a bottle of cola, Adam created an exciting volcano effect, helping the children observe how carbon dioxide (CO₂) builds pressure and creates an explosive reaction. This was a highlight of the morning, sparking awe, laughter, and lots of curious questions.
Overall, the visit offered rich opportunities for scientific inquiry, language development, and collaborative learning. The children were fully engaged from start to finish, and we are already looking forward to welcoming Mini-Professors NI back again.
