Science, technology and amateur radio was put to practice and came alive at on Hoërskool Jeugland on June 15.
Jeugland Radio Club held its open day at the school and those interested in electronics and radio communication satellites attended.
The radio club, with the call sign ZR6JRC, is a youth-based amateur radio club operating from this local school and was established four years ago.
The school’s head boy, Cameron Eales (18), was the co-founder of the club and was among those who facilitated the open day that saw 15 youngsters who were very eager to learn and participate join in the day’s activities.
Cameron’s father Guy helps supervise and mentor at the club. “This is all about making science and technology fun. During the meetings children get to apply and make practical what they are taught in school and they get to see and learn how and why certain things work in physics,” said Guy.
“For example, to build the antenna for the radio you need to know the frequency you are going to be operating on and trigonometry in order to know how long the antenna and wire must be, which is mathematics. The common universal language used is English.
“A touch of geography is also there because if someone calls me and say ZS1, I know immediately that it is the Western Cape, and if they say VK51, then I know it is Namibia.”
In order to give the children real-life experience of making a call using the High Frequency (HF) radio, the organisers set up stations within the school and each got a turn to make calls, using the proper format and call sign.
“We were also lucky to chat to a few people from outside the school, like ZS4, which is in the Free State. The children were excited to experience what the club was all about,” said Guy.
“This is also one of the best ways to explain electronics to children and to popularise science and technology among the youth. We also try and do projects and build things using electronics.”
Koos Fick, youth coordinator for the South African Radio League, was also present and assisted the youngsters in making calls.
The club operates from Hoërskool Jeugland and is affiliated to the South African Radio League. Meetings are held every second Saturday from 3pm to 5pm and activities include electronic kit building, micro controller programming, radio station setup and radio operations.
Also follow us on:
