Upper 2 Catapult Day was a Booming Success
May 21, 2025
Wednesday 21 May quite literally began with a bang! Upper 2 took part in the eagerly awaited Catapult Day, a hands-on exploration that linked directly to the engineering and design elements of our curriculum—with plenty of opportunities to apply mathematical skills along the way. The day began with students measuring the size and mass of a variety of projectiles—from the humble golf ball to the impressively weighty shot put—developing their understanding of data collection, force, and motion.
Then came the real excitement: launching those projectiles! Starting by hand, pupils then progressed to an impressive arsenal of historical siege machines, including the Mangonel, Perrier, and Trebuchet. They also had the chance to try their hand at a composite bow and a crossbow, adding a dash of medieval flair to their practical investigations.
The day concluded with a suitably dramatic finale, as the younger pupils joined just in time to watch Jacob ignite the cannon—because, let’s face it, nothing quite wraps up a school day like a controlled explosion and the smell of gunpowder in the air!
Ali: 'Very fun and I learnt a lot. My highlight was when me and my team pulled the rope down on the perrier to launch the tennis ball!'
Tallulah, Darcy, Olivia: 'It was very exciting because we learnt stuff we had never learnt before and we got to try things we've never experienced before! Just don't ask Mr Love about breaking the perrier...!'
Oscar: ‘It was very fun and you got to have a go on cross bows, and a bow and arrow.’
Lucas: ‘It was really fun, we got into groups and fired catapults’
Muhammad Ameen: ‘I really liked the canon because when your put fire in it, it went boom.’




