STEM

Maths and Science have had a very busy Semester 1 with many learning opportunities for our students:

Chemistry students have done many hands-on pracs including looking at the reactivity of metals, conducting flame tests (always fun), creating galvanic cells and the composition of MgO just to name a few…

Biology students have been monitoring our shrimp who continue to breed, shed their exoskeletons and provide a lot of entertainment for all. They have also been creating models of antigen presenting cells and the digestive system and they separated  ‘DNA’ using our electrophoresis kits.

Psychology students created 3D models of the brain, using modelling clay to construct key areas which control motor function, personality and sensory perception including the cerebellum, cerebral cortex and the four cortical lobes on each hemisphere.

Physics students enjoyed an action-packed semester transforming classroom theories into real-world experiences. The Year 12 cohort visited Luna Park to feel gravity, g-forces, and centripetal acceleration firsthand on the rides. Back in the lab, they used solenoids to discover how moving magnetic fields induce electrical currents. Meanwhile, our Year 11 physicists successfully completed their electricity unit by investigating circuits, voltage and electrical currents.

And Maths well of course we have been busy, but we just don’t have photos to show exactly how much fun VCE maths is!!!!

Year 11 and 12 Chemistry Outreach Program University of Melbourne

National Youth Science Forum

By Georgia Beasley

Between the 6th to the 14th of January the annual National Youth Science Forum was hosted at Australian National University, Canberra. 

I found out about this forum in semester 1 last year, through Eki Chan. The application process wasn't too difficult, it involved writing an expression of interest in STEM. 

Beforehand I was quite nervous but it was worth it. During the week the most exciting part was making connections with others with similar interests from all over Australia. A few of the most memorable events were going to the ANU school of chemistry where we did titration, and some of the specialist lectures that took place.

The main takeaway from this experience was that there are a lot of areas of STEM that I had no idea about before.