Meteoric success for Academy pupils at Rotary Awards

That was the task set to students who competed in the Rotary International Technology competition at a Big Bang Event in Ulster University Jordanstown.

Ballymena Academy emerged the winners from the 16 teams from secondary schools across Northern Ireland who were challenged to create a device which could disrupt the meteors projection and save the world.

The tools in their inventors kit included a tennis ball, wood, rubber bands, straws and string and they were challenged come up with a solution to save the world in a short space of time, during just one school day.

The winning team from Ballymena Academy stood out from the crowd by completing a task to design a wooden pulley system able to lift the ball, securely and swiftly. Made from lenths of timber, the device featured an intricate pulley system which the students had learnt the basics of in their Year 10 technlogy classes. The project required the students to use the theory they had learnt and put it into practice, all under time constraints and working as a team.

Peter Reid, Technology Teacher at Ballymena Academy, said: “I am immensely proud of our Year 10 pupils who worked so well as a team and have shown that they have the operational and manufacturing skills required to do well in this subject. They produced their project quickly, with efficiency and a real flair for design.”