GAPP News

International Chemistry Quiz 

Congratulations to the following students who achieved outstanding results in the 2026 International Chemistry Quiz. 

Diya A Year 10 – High Distinction  

Ethan L Year 11 – Distinction 

Sebastien G Year 10 – Credit 

Shree P Year 10 – Credit 

Joy T Year 9 - Credit 

Hedley W Year 10 – Credit 

Lingyu Z Year 9 – Credit 

8Z National Gallery of Victoria Excursion  

On Friday 14 August, 8Z visited the National Gallery of Victoria to participate in the ‘Artful English’ program and the ‘Explore NGV International’ program. 

The students explored thought-provoking works from the NGV Collections, using art as a springboard for developing visual literacy and creative writing. Through engaging with diverse artworks, students experimented with language, literary devices, and rich descriptive vocabulary to craft short written pieces, including poetry and descriptive writing. 

Student feedback: 

Celine G: I really like the activities we did based on ‘The Pioneer’ painting because we had to put ourselves inside the shoes of one of the characters in the painting which helped us to think outside the box. This allowed us to ponder on what the characters were feeling, why would they be going through this emotional journey and how that resonates with the viewers, which is a valuable skill for us to develop in order to create any type of creative pieces. 

Azaan A: I would recommend this to future students, as it ‘opens your eyes’ to the world of art and how art can convey many different messages it also teaches you to look deeper and put yourself into the artist’s shoes and wonder why they would have created that artwork and what they wanted others to think when they look at it. 

Marco L: No matter the appearance, all artworks in the NGV Australia portray deep meanings that are open to different interpretations. Because the artworks from NGV International are from different parts across the globe, it lets us explore different views on society in different areas of the world. In many artworks, especially the oil paintings, they are designed to look realistic while also integrating many symbolic elements that help convey its overall message. 

Olivia T: I would highly recommend this experience to future students, as this experience not only allows students to brainstorm ideas and explore the larger meaning of different artworks, but also helps students find inspiration and themes regarding poetry and ekphrastic poems. This experience was also extremely enjoyable as it allowed GAPP students to interact and have fun while also providing an educational experience. 

Tournament of Minds  

On Sunday 16 August, 19 students participated in Tournament of Minds at Deakin University, Burwood. Two teams participated in the Language Literature long term challenge where they had to create a modern radio play, and one team completed the STEM long term challenge which included creating a pitch for a science fiction film and making a working model. All teams also completed a spontaneous challenge which they were given on the day. 

Student feedback: 

Harkunwar B: Tournament of Minds was a very engaging opportunity. For the long-term challenge, my teammates and I worked to make a script about an evil algorithm who was planning on taking over the world, before our brave heroes stopped it. We had to use teamwork and our creative skills for this. We even had to use our teamwork skills in the spontaneous challenge. It was a very fun day in general; we ended up greatly enjoying the Tournament of Minds and will definitely do it again next year! 

Mohammad Z: Tournament of Minds was a great experience where my group members and I had all contributed to working through our long-term activity and our Spontaneous challenge on the day where we all worked through confidently to achieve our goal of completing our challenges to the best of our ability. Throughout the experience of the Tournament, we communicated our ideas thoroughly, with clarity and supported each other when we faced challenges. Tournament of Minds helped me develop my teamwork, my problem-solving and communication skills, while also teaching me the importance of staying calm and adapting to unexpected situations such as our spontaneous challenge. I really enjoyed TOM! 

GAPP Parent Seminar – Gifted Burnout 

On Tuesday 11 August, a seminar was conducted for the parents of our GAPP students on the topic of ‘Gifted Burnout’. This session was facilitated by Dr Alison Brown, a psychologist, an experienced teacher, and author. She was a committee member and Vice President of the Victorian Association for Gifted and Talented Children over six years, has presented at several state, national and international conferences in the areas of gifted education and psychology.  

Dr Brown discussed important topics including the causes of burnout, how to recognise the warning signs, and how to prevent burnout from occurring. During the discussion, she talked about many teenagers she has worked with and the strategies she has used to support them when they have faced these types of challenges. 

It was an interesting and engaging session which provided the attendees with important information about how to support their students.