It was a noisy morning at the West Oaks French Immersion Public School library on Thursday as a Grade 6 class claimed its prize from the Let's Talk Science Lunar Rover Research Challenge.
A group of three students from Mandy Lave's class pitched a space mission to a panel of judges, explaining how they would go about finding ice and water on the moon. Aydin Rahbari, Yisu Chen, and Matthew Yu, who called themselves the "Goofy Science Goobers," finished in the top five of over 100 teams in the competition.
Yu, Chen, and Rahbari receive certificates for winning the Let's Talk Science Lunar Rover Research Challenge. Photo by Cameryn Griffiths - Let's Talk Science.
Lave said the group attempted the mission four or five times and sought input from their classmates before sending their pitch to the judging panel.
Alexandra Kasper, Let's Talk Science staff and project manager, explained why the Goofy Science Goobers's pitch stood out from other submissions.
“One thing that really impressed us was their video," she said. "This group is really impressive because they’re actually a French immersion class, so going above and beyond, they did their submission all in French, including their video... To think that these Grade Six students are already working in both languages, working on their bilingual skills, which is so important, especially in our space industry to have those language skills in addition to those STEM skills, we were really blown away.”
Representatives from several space bodies visited West Oaks Public School Thursday, including Canadensys Aerospace Corporation, Avalon Space, and the Canadian Space Agency (CSA) which funds the Lunar Rover Research Challenge. Thanks to their win, the Goofy Space Goobers' entire class had the chance to drive a real lunar rover designed by Canadensys in a simulated space environment.
“They were hooting and hollering when they found out that they won the prize and were going to get this experience," Lave said. "And it’s pretty hard to believe they get to work with these real prototypes, it’s pretty neat.”
While the lunar rover that Lave's class operated isn't the exact model being sent to the moon in 2026, it is a real piece of space exploration equipment housed at the Canadensys testing facility in Stratford.
During the experience, instructors split the class into various groups that each served a specific, important purpose.
"We really wanted to demonstrate that it’s not just a handful of people, it’s not just the astronauts that are going on the missions. There’s hundreds and thousands of people working across Canada and also internationally to make these missions a success," Kasper said.
Leah Davis-Purcell, Avalon Space's technical systems and outreach specialist, helps walk classes through the Lunar Rover experience, and said every classroom has a different approach.
"They [almost always] complete their mission, but their path to get there is always 100 per cent different and the moments in which they become excited is always different for each class," she explained. "It’s really nice to see, even if it’s just for a second, where every single student is super engaged, super excited no matter where that comes throughout the mission.”
Grade Six students from West Oaks French Immersion Public School participate in a Lunar Rover Control Experience. Photo by Rebecca Chouinard.
Lave's sixth graders were naturals, according to the instructors.
"I was really impressed with this group today because they found their first crater actually faster than some of our Grade Nine winners even have," Kasper revealed. "It really shows their collaboration skills."
Lave supported the idea that this experience was a great exercise in teamwork, forcing young students to communicate, listen, and maintain a positive attitude.
"They had us do a survey after doing the first mission, and they asked the students whether or not doing the challenge increased their interest in a career in STEM, and 75 per cent of the class said yes," Lave said. "There’s a lot of kids here who like STEM to begin with. I don’t think anybody has particularly said ‘space,’ but talking to people from Avalon Space and the CSA is pretty inspiring."
Rahbari is one such student who was motivated by the mission.
"I want to be a robotic engineer for NASA. I’m very fascinated by space, and in my future I definitely want to do something in space," he told London News Today.
Chen, on the other hand, doesn't see himself working in the space industry, but says he was still fascinated by the experience.
"That’s exactly why we have programs like these. You want to give [kids] experiences where they can visualize themselves as Operators and Rover Controllers in the future," said Parshati Patel, program designer and education advisor in the Youth STEM Initiatives team at CSA. "They’re looking forward to what the future could be."
Kasper echoed that sentiment, saying outreach is a key aspect of the national space competition.
"It’s really important to stay in tune with that next generation, playing the long-game," she said. "We want to make sure we have this pipeline of engaged, passionate people with the right skills to be working on these problems. In another 10 years, these kids might be applying for jobs at Canadensys and Avalon.”