Bright sparks in charge at Dowerin District High School

Dowerin District High School students are helping to create the town’s first solar-powered bench, which will be placed at the Dowerin GWN7 Machinery Field Days site next year.

The materials to build the bench have been funded by a $2500 grant from the Field Days twice-yearly funding round, and when finished will be installed at the oval for locals and visitors to charge their tablets and phones.

The new bench will be about two metres long and one metre wide with enough seating for four adults, and wireless and USB connection charging capacity.

Year 9 and 10 students have been busy creating their own, smaller solar bench prototypes through their design and technology class, some of which will help inspire the final design.

Their prototypes — which are about a metre wide and half a metre tall — will be made with a steel frame with a wooden insert to hold the mini solar panels.

“We wanted to teach the kids how solar works and how it can be used in the real world,” design and technology teacher Aron Hall said.

“This is about putting STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths) into real life practice and giving them a taste of what a real job in STEM might be like, and what they might have to create.

“The students have been really interested in the project so far.”

Western Power has agreed to give the students some feedback on the effectiveness and appearance of their prototype designs, which may be used around the school.

Members of the Dowerin Men’s Shed have been called in to lend their expertise and have already created the frame for the bench, which is in the school’s Design and Technology building.

Solar panels will be placed on top and the students will learn about the wiring process and how solar technology works. The students will also need to consider the weather proofing, security and safety features of their bench.

The bench may be new to Dowerin, but it is not an Australian first with similar benches installed in Perth, including at Victoria Park and Ellenbrook.

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