MOLECULAR gastronomy, a working jet engine and fish heads helped Oxford pupils to celebrate British Science Week.

Students, staff and even parents at Rye St Antony school took part in the British Science Association’s annual celebration of science, technology, engineering and maths.

A wide range of special activities and hands-on lessons kicked off with Year 12 A-Level biologists donning their lab coats to lead lessons for their Year 4 peers, dissecting fish heads under their expert guidance in an interactive class.

There was also a special visit from the RAF, giving Year 8 pupils a guide to the physics of flight, bringing a working jet engine with them and a virtual reality simulation of a rollercoaster.

The school’s food department, meanwhile, hosted a molecular gastronomy workshop making parsley spaghetti, while the science department’s Year 6 and 7 classes formed their own forensic investigation teams to solve an unknown ‘crime’.

A group of Year 12 biologists and psychologists also visited the Brain Research Unit at Oxford University to get a look at the latest neurological breakthroughs.

Years 7 and 10 took part in an engineering challenge and, not to be missed out, parents were also welcomed to the school for an evening science show in the chemistry lab.

An invitation to parents promised: “Colour, flame, sparks, explosions and anecdote, very lightly sprinkled with equations (for those who like that sort of thing).”

To end the week of events, which took place between March 12 and 16, pupils in the prep school, aged between five and 11, presented a range of projects for the school’s very own science fair, with posters on display for staff and pupils to enjoy.

The school’s head of science David Williams said: “The week was a fantastic opportunity for the whole school to be involved in a number of fascinating interactive activities which promote the importance of scientific study.

“The range of events also allowed for older pupils to take on the responsibility of sharing their knowledge with their younger peers while we also welcomed a selection of parents to take part in their own classes as part of British Science Week.”

Oxford, which has a reputation for being at the heart of science, also saw a range of free events put on by Oxford University, the city’s museums and other local schools.

These included a talk about the black hole at the centre of the Milky Way by astronomer Patrick Roche at Cheney School and pupils from St Nicholas Primary School in Marston taking part in an experiment about taste.

The youngster were asked to extract cheek cells from their mouths and stain them on a slide with blue dye, before viewing them with a microscope.

Find out more at britishscienceweek.org