A Jensen Model 51 Goes to Work

Cedge · A Jensen Model 51 Goes to Work

Many might not be aware of it, but my daughter is teaching her year first of elementary school, after having gone back to school and getting her teaching credentials. She went through the program with several others who became good friends, not only with her but us, her parents.

One of the other girls is also in her first year of teaching general sciences. She called me today and asked me if I'd be willing to bring a steam engine or two to her class to help demonstrate simple and compound tools. You know the stuff, axles, inclined planes, levers etc. as well as combinations of them used to perform work. As we talked she mentioned the next part of the studies would include some basic electrical theory.

The upshot is that my model 51 will be doing about 3 days of classroom demos instead of gathering dust on its shelf. A model 100 workshop, perhaps my Beam engine and possibly the Cretors as well should make a pretty interesting display. I'll be spending the day sharing live steam and chatting with what appears to be about 200 sixth grade students. It should all be a lot of fun.

Oddly, her school is in a smaller more rural ajoining county to where I live and they are excited about having such an unusual resource. My own much larger county school has never even responded to the offers I've made to them not once but twice.

Steve

James

Sounds great Steve!!

How about coming to a school in Lincolnshire?? It's a good one, not rough or owt

Plllleeeeeaaaaassssseeeee, oh aye, and bring a 51s with you, for me

I wish

johnreid

Wow that is great Steve,I am sure that the kids have never seen such an item and interests will be sparked.

Nick

Graham-Jilly

thats great Steve hope it goes well for you

Steve_S

That sounds good, and fun too. I'm sure you'll be a well received.

Griffin

Thats great news Steve. The sights and sounds of those engines will most likely stay with those students for the rest of their lives.

Cedge

Nick
Those potential sales will probably happen on the next guy's watch, when some of these kids go looking for that long remembered steam engine, as an adult. I really don't try to push engine sales with such demonstrations unless one of the teachers shows an interest in acquiring one.

I do these demos for the fun of sharing this hobby and getting to interact with the kids. If I capture the imagination of just one or two of them, I've achieved a success that supercedes any amount monetary reward. If my meager effort can give the hobby one more generation of steam lovers, I've fulfilled my purpose.

Steve

Les Marsh

It is nice to hear that there are still young people interested in steam and want a demonstration in school without shouting about H & S.

Enjoy your time as I did the same with the children at my school and they all loved it and asked plenty of questions.

johnreid

Cedge, I could not think of a more noble deed too. The real young love things that go hiss and spit steam and move as if by magic. I also envy you as I am sure that you will be the cause of many wide eyes and as those kids grow up they will remember that man that showed them Steam engines in real life. Plus, that 51 is HUGE especially on the eyes of a small child.

Les Marsh

P.S. they liked the steam whistle on mine, but do not know if you have any.

tmuir

Wow, I wish we had something like that come to my primary school when I was younger.

redryder

Great stuff Steve!!!!

More schools should take a similar interest. As you said, a couple of inspired kids can do wonders for our hobby in the next generation.

And..... you get to have all the fun of the process.

Gil

steamyman

that's wonderful Steve.

Nick

Sandman

I've always admired people who give of their time to promote our hobby.

I have had so much fun and learned so much since I took it up recently, and I wish I had done so much earlier.

Planting that seed is one of the most important parts of our hobby and youngsters are the ones who will breath new life into it.

I take my hat off to you Steve.

Minor1PJG

This was just the way that I was inroduced to toy steam

At the end of term, my primary school teacher brought in a Mamod SE3 and with the fire, steam, noise and the smell of the fumes I knew what I wanted for Christmas that year.

Good work, Sir

IndianaRog

Steve, I did the same thing with my young grandson's pre-school recently...didn't think I could get the 51R in the door, so took a Jensen 20, a modified Wilesco Old Smoky and a tiny Lilliput engine that fits on your thumb (when cold)...

Honestly the kids love the Wilesco roller most of all...they sat in a big circle on the carpet and I adjusted the roller so it swept about 3 feet in front of them as they sat...they loved it and asked all sorts of questions.

Such efforts not only energize the next generation of steamers, they energize US!!!

Heartily recommend doing such demos to anyone with the chance, you will be an instant hero!

Rog

Nick

Glad it went well Roger.

I can just see one kid getting a little steam on their skin, oil stain on their clothes, or smoke in their lungs
and a parent getting mad at you.

pauly

hope it goes well

at least their letting you do it what all the HaS concerns about extremely dangerous steam bombs

Les Marsh

How did your back to school go??