Gelli Pupils take on Formula 1 challennge

Our pupils at Gelli Primary School are hoping to follow in the footsteps of Lewis Hamilton and become Britain’s next Formula One champions.
Year Six pupils have spent months designing and building their own mini F1 racer ready for a national competition.
They went head to head against 24 schools from across the country today in the Welsh final of the F1 in Primary Schools competition.
If successful, the pupils will enter the UK-wide finals in Birmingham in January to compete for a place in the world final held in Malaysia next summer.
Mrs. Fraser, our Design and Technology subject leader, who is helping the children with the project, said: “They have learnt a lot of different things. Not only have they learnt valuable new ICT skills, such as using computer-aided design (CAD) to design the cars, they have also learned how to be part of team, working together and running and managing a successful business.”
Year Six pupils formed a team of seven children taking part in the project. Lucy and Holly were the Team Mangers, Alicia, Shauna and Gemma the Designers and Rebecca and Jack the Computer Designers. The team is called the Rhondda Rollerz.
Mrs. Fraser added: “The children have spent most lunchtimes working on the car for the last month and a half. They’ve also stayed behind after school a couple of times a week, so it’s been a huge effort. This is the first time the competition has been run for primary schools and I’m lucky to be working with some really bright pupils."
The mini F1 car is made from balsawood and uses a gas canister to power it along at speeds of up to 60mph.
Cars will race against each other and the pupils will also be judged on a presentation they give to the judges at the finals. You can see more on our website by clicking on the school website site map and clicking on the F1 in Schools link