Learning about the invisible

Understanding forces and the micro world can be a challenge.  Some of Maestro's final few weeks of Science work (from Sonlight's Science 4) has involved learning about the microscope and other 'invisible' things.

A recently aired program called "Richard Hammond's Invisible Worlds" has been showing at a most appropriate time. Discussions about forces, especially, help put the visual into the bookwork. They are presented in a fun way, taking advantage of special photography effects to help us see what was right there in front of us all along.

Here's a sample about flight, and how a bee manages flight despite what seems like an impossible proportions:



Of course, now that we've whet our appetites watching these, the children want to see more!

If you see any of these dvds at the library, they are worth checking out. The photography is amazing. Maestro said seeing these programs really did help him understand the concepts in the books more clearly.

We've also found Richard Hammond's dvd on Engineering Connections and marvelled at his wonderful report on the construction of the Sydney Opera House. All sorts of scientific information is shared in a fun way which captivates the audience.