TWO schools from Barrow have spoken about the benefits they saw after taking part in a space science experiment.

Rocket seeds that were kept aboard the International Space Station by British astronaut Tim Peake were given to the schools.

They were then asked to grown them alongside seeds that had stayed on Earth, and to measure how well each did.

But, they never new which seeds were from space and which weren’t.

Children from Newbarns Primary School and Ormsgill Nursery and Primary were then given seeds to grow and study.

Students from years one and three took part in the experiment at Ormsgill Primary.

Dawn Hubbold, assistant head at Ormsgill, said all of the children taking part had been captivated by the experience.

She said: “They loved it, because they didn’t know which seeds have been to space they just found it fascinating.”

It was feared that the children may lose interest over time, but in stead teachers found out that their interest for science spilled out into other subjects.

“The children wrote poems about space; they also kept up with Tim’s progress during ICT.

“Because they were doing it for Tim, it just made it more real.”

As well as the school at Ormsgill, students from years four, five and six from Newbarns Primary and Nursery School took part.

Eco Coordinator for Newbarns, Wendy Southworth said: “The children have really enjoyed the experiment.

“Every day we got them to measure the plants and analyse the results.”

Staff were pleased at the level of engagement the children had with the experiment.

Ms Southworth said: “The experiment has been a great vehicle for getting the children more interested in science.

“They’re now so interested in science and space, some have said they want to be astronauts.

“We’re so proud of our space biologists.”

Mr Peake will parachute into Kazakhstan at around 10.15am today.

To see some of the amazing pictures Tim took during his mission go to https://www.flickr.com/photos/timpeake/