Bears vs Gravity! with Isabel Thomas

Isabel Thomas brings Bears vs Gravity! to the National Centre for Writing on Saturday 20 February 2027, a STEMM workshop for kids that asks them to bring their favourite soft toy along for the ride. The session draws from Thomas's picture book Emily vs Gravity, and the whole thing is co-programmed by the National Centre for Writing and the Norwich Science Festival.

It's a mix of interactive storytelling and science, with a hands-on engineering project at the heart of it: the audience builds their own bear-launching contraption to take home. So, the soft toy isn't just for show — it's the test subject for the morning. The session is suitable for ages four and over, which puts it right in the sweet spot for younger kids who're just starting to ask why things fall down instead of up.

Isabel Thomas is an award-winning science writer, presenter and educator who's written plenty for young audiences, including the bestselling The Bedtime Book of Impossible Questions series, and she writes for The Week Junior and BBC Bitesize. She studied Human Sciences at the University of Oxford and holds an MPhil in Educational Research and a PGCE in Science with Chemistry from the University of Cambridge, so there's a fair bit of proper science backing up the storytelling.

There are two sessions to choose from: 10.30–11.30 and 13.30–14.30, both at the National Centre for Writing in Dragon Hall, Norwich. Tickets are £8.00 per child, with one accompanying adult included per ticket.