In partnership with House of Science (HoS) children will be able to have a play with science kits similar to this Nano Chem kit, at the Royal Society's Hawke's Bay branch 105-year celebration.
In partnership with House of Science (HoS) children will be able to have a play with science kits similar to this Nano Chem kit, at the Royal Society's Hawke's Bay branch 105-year celebration.
In September of 1874, the Hawke’s Bay Philosophical Institute, now known today as the Hawke’s Bay Branch of the Royal Society Te Apārangi, held its first meeting in Napier.
Founded to advance science, literature, and art and develop the colony’s resources, the group was formed by a list of prominent Napier citizens.
Some of those founders included the superintendent of the province, JD Ormond, the Right Reverend the Bishop of Waiapu William Williams, botanist William Colenso, William Spencer, and Friedrich Sturm.
Now, 150 years later, the institute continues to thrive, actively promoting public understanding of science, technology, and the humanities.
Athenaeum building where the Hawke’s Bay Philosophical Institute, now the Hawke’s Bay Branch of the Royal Society Te Aparangi, held its first meeting in Napier.
Royal Society Te Apārangi, Hawke’s Bay branch president Antony Steiner said the group tries to excite students of all ages, but “particularly the young, with a wondrous interest in science and technology”.
To mark the group’s milestone, they are hosting a mini science expo in collaboration with the House of Science (HoS) on September 14, which will be exactly 150 years since the Hawke’s Bay branch was founded.
The science expo is free to the public and will be an opportunity for primary and intermediate students, their teachers, and whānau to learn about House of Science resource kits and participate in some science activities from the kits.
Steiner said, “Since the Hawke’s Bay branch of HoS started in 2021, we’ve supported it to empower primary and intermediate school teachers to raise the scientific literacy of their students.”
HoS do this by providing teachers with access to a library of comprehensive, bilingual, hands-on science resource kits on a broad range of topics.
Students using the Electric Future kit learn about electricity and how to make electrical circuits.
“Supporting and promoting a programme [HoS] with this degree of positive impact on our children is a no-brainer,” Steiner said.
He added that inviting HoS to run a mini science expo for the Royal Society Te Apārangi, Hawke’s Bay branch 150th anniversary celebration is an opportunity to “share the excitement that happens in the classrooms of 36 schools around the region with the whole family and teachers and students at schools that currently do not participate in the programme.”
The House of Science Expo is free and will be held on Saturday, September 14, from 9am to 12pm at the Small Exhibition Hall, Napier War Memorial Conference Centre, Marine Parade.
At the expo, teachers, parents, and whānau will have the opportunity to talk with Chris Duggan, the founder and CEO of House of Science, and several of the staff behind the Hawke’s Bay branch of the Royal Society Te Apārangi.
Primary and intermediate-aged children will be able to do hands-on science activities from some of HoS’s resource kits.
One of the special guests at the expo is a female rocket scientist from Rocket Lab at Mahia, who will be going through some HoS rocket science kits with kids who attended.
Steiner said, “We’re looking forward to having a room full of very excited children, doing hands-on science and loving it.”
There is also another event, including speeches and dinners to mark Hawke’s Bay branch’s 150 years. If you are interested in attending, more information can be found on the group’s website: rsnzbranch.org.nz
Maddisyn Jeffares became the editor of the Hawke’s Bay community papers Hastings Leader and Napier Courier in 2023 after writing at the Hastings Leader for almost a year. She has been a reporter with NZME for almost three years and has a strong focus on what’s going on in communities, good and bad, big and small. Email news tips to her at: maddisyn.jeffares@nzme.co.nz
