News

'It’s cold, the Sun is small and far away, and you cannot breathe outside.' That was the situation for our Year 8 and 9 students last Tuesday and Wednesday as they found themselves 'stranded' on Mars. The students respectively filled the Barry Holmes Stadium for a day of problem-solving involving and using their wits and ingenuity to complete several challenges to harvest enough Oxygen to get to safety. They faced many challenges included building a 'rover' vehicle, launching small rockets and building satellites. Some teams did not quite make it from Mars with their rovers, some groups had low stocks of Oxygen and others having their rover falter in its journey back to base.

This was the third year that we have run a STEM day for Year 8 and 9 students and we see them as an excellent way for students to develop their collaboration, negotiation and problem-solving skills, as well as apply scientific and engineering principles learned in Science and Technology classes.

Jason de Nys | Science Coordinator and Mathematics Coordinator