Join us for our annual STEMFest event, from 29th September – 3rd October 2025!
STEMFest will take place at the National Marine Aquarium and will provide a variety of activities to inspire and engage. Our theme this year is Ocean Friendly Homes, and we will be exploring the impact of decisions and practices in the home, on the Ocean, and how it ultimately affects the climate.
STEMFest has been designed for students in Upper Key Stage 2 & Key Stage 3, with a day dedicated to Home-Educated learners of this age on Monday 6th October. Each day will run from 10am – 2pm, and includes an introduction, tour, workshop and show. It costs £8 per student (incl. VAT) with free spaces available for supervising teachers (ratios dependant on age of learners).
What will my day look like?
Introduction: All groups will meet in the morning to be introduced to the team and get excited for the day ahead!
Show: The day will begin with an interactive show, delivered in front of our huge Eddystone tank. The assembly style show will be for all participating students that day and will introduce some important theory around the cause and effect of climate change, delivered through audience participation and jaw-dropping demonstrations!
Tour: Our tour will focus on three key exhibit spaces at the NMA and will allow time to meet some of the 5,000 animals that live there, as well as learn how they are impacted by climate change. We will spend time in Plymouth Sound, the Atlantic Ocean and the Great Barrier Reef!
Workshop: Hosted in our dedicated learning centre, this workshop will explore the actions and structures of our homes, and the innovations along the years which have helped them become more “Ocean Friendly”. Guided by our OCT Learning Team, your students will get hands on, designing and making their very own product which they can then take home!
Please see below an example of your day, the order/timings of your activities may vary.
| 10:00-10:30 | 10:30-11:00 | 11:00-12:30 | 12:30-13:00 | 13:00-14:00 | 14:00-14:15 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Class A | Arrival & Intro | Show | Tour | Lunch | Work- shop | Depart |
| 10:00-10:30 | 10:30-11:0 | 11:00-12:00 | 12:00-12:30 | 12:30-14:00 | 14:00-14:15 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Class B | Arrival & Intro | Show | Work- shop | Lunch | Tour | Depart |
This year, the fun doesn’t stop at STEMFest. Each class that participates in STEMFest will be eligible to continue with our “Ocean Friendly Innovation” project at no extra cost!
Ocean Friendly Innovation Project
Home Audit – After STEMFest, we will provide each student the tools to complete a sustainability audit of the behaviours, processes, structures and facilities within their own homes.
Follow up session: Once your students have completed their home audits, a member of the OCT Learning team will visit the class for a follow up session to guide deeper conversations with students, based on the results of their research, and provide up-to-date city-wide benchmarks for comparison and goal setting within the classes.
Project Briefing: The lessons learned at STEMFest, and the data from the home-audits will give students the knowledge and confidence to be able to identify key areas within our homes where improvements can be made. During the follow up session we will launch our citywide competition for students to design their own “Ocean Friendly Home Innovation”. We encourage you to help the students work on their design throughout the Autumn term, working either individually or in groups.
STEMFest Finale: A winning innovation will be selected at the start of the Spring term, and that/those students will be invited to work in partnership with Plymouths manufacturing community to finalise their design and then produce it. The winning design will be distributed to all STEMFest participants across the city of Plymouth!
This opportunity will give your students not just an improved understanding of the impacts of climate change but also inspire them to know that they have the power to make a significant difference. STEMFest is about aspiration and action, and we hope that you will be a part of it.
If you have any further questions, or wish to book your space, please contact learning@oceanconservationtrust.org or call us on 01752 275233.
If you are a home educator you can book directly through the link below.
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