Recently, the students and staff at PTP took a field trip to the Ontario Science Centre.

To prepare for this trip, we sent emails to the staff members to see if everyone was on board with it. We also had to make sure that everyone agreed to a set date. After it was agreed upon, we prepared a poster for the bulletin board in the school hall with a sign up sheet. The cost was only $2 per person.

We decided that some students, because some of us had never been before, would meet at different subway stations. We had three meeting places to ensure that students got to the Science Centre for the trip. Some instructors and students met Kipling Subwayand some met at Pape Subway. We took the #25 bus to the Science Centre. A few went directly to The Ontario Science Centre. We arrived at the Science Centre at 10:30 a.m.

We saw many interesting exhibits including the space exhibit. This exhibit had facts about stars and the universe. We also saw an exhibit about the human body. It showed the inner workings of the human body. It was very interesting. Also, some of the students tried the ‘Aging Machine’ that would take their picture and show what they would like at age 75!

Around lunch time, we all ate in ‘The Market Place’ cafeteria where some of us bought lunch and others had brought their own. After lunch, we saw the ‘electric show’ demonstration where they explained atoms and electrical currents. People in the audience got the chance to volunteer to go on stage and put their hands on an electrostatic ball called the Van De Graats ball. When they placed their hand on the ball, it would make their hair stand up in the air! A few students tried it. One of the instructors at PTP did this and her hair stood straight up! She looked like a ‘rock star’!

On the way to the ‘Rain Forest’ exhibit, there was a circular stage that was surrounded by glass. This exhibit was called Shake hands with a tornado. This exhibit was neat. If you stepped onto the stage and ran in a circular motion, a fog like substance came up through a whole in the floor and spiralled into a ‘tornado’.

We also walked through the ‘Rain Forest’ exhibit where we saw some of the plants and trees that grow in a rain forest. There were some snails, ants and three different types of Dart’s poisonous frogs of different colours in glass tanks inside this exhibit as well as fish in a man made stream. There was a waterfall and a bridge you can walk across, we took pictures together on the bridge. Just outside of this exhibit, there was information about ecosystems and a tank with fish in an actual ecosystem to view.

A good time was had by all and we highly recommend a trip to the Ontario Science Center to anyone who would like to go.

By Tracey and Barb

Below are photos from the trip. Click on a photo to see a larger version.