Science Highlights
Kilvington Grammar School
Year 8 Reptile Encounter incursion
Louise Macfarlane, Head of Science
On 19 June, all four Year 8 Science classes took part in an exciting Reptile Encounter incursion. Our visiting creatures included a woylie, frog, turtle, python, crocodile, monitor lizard, stick insects and a red-tailed black cockatoo!
Students had the unique opportunity to hold, pat, and closely observe these animals while learning about their body structures and organ systems as part of their Body Systems unit.
Year 10 Girls in STEM 2025
Louise Macfarlane, Head of Science
This year, four of our bright Year 10 students - Nora Glowinski, Elise Song, Aanika Kumar and Millie Hurst - have been selected to take part in the Women in STEM 2025 Veski Mentoring Program. As part of the program, they have each been matched with a researcher from the prestigious Walter and Eliza Hall Institute (WEHI).
Their mentors include Dr Dionne Argyropoulos, a research officer investigating the infection processes of the malarial parasite, and Dr Diane Moujalled, Senior Research Fellow at the Blood Cells and Blood Cancer Division and The Brain Cancer Centre. These inspiring scientists will mentor the students throughout 2025 via a series of online sessions, culminating in a presentation to the VCE Biology class later in the year.
A recent visit to WEHI gave the students the opportunity to meet their mentors in person and tour the cutting-edge laboratories. They observed brain cells growing under a microscope and learnt about new drugs being developed to target and suppress brain cancer cells.
As part of the visit, Nial Geoghegah, a medical engineer, led a tour of the diagnostic imaging centre, offering students valuable insight into how engineering and science intersect in modern healthcare.
The day concluded with a session on coding, where Dr Argyropoulos demonstrated how data analysis plays a critical role in scientific discovery, showing students how, in science, the data tells the story.
We’re excited to see how this incredible mentoring opportunity will inspire and empower our Girls in STEM. We look forward to their final presentations in September.
Years 11 and 12 Chemistry excursion to Melbourne University
Louise Macfarlane, Head of Science
On 16 June, Years 11 and 12 Chemistry students visited the Chemistry laboratories at the University of Melbourne for a day of hands-on learning.
The day began with a lecture from Professor Mick Moylan, followed by in-depth training sessions led by PhD students in the use of advanced analytical chemistry instrumentation.
Kilvington students had the opportunity to work with industry-grade equipment such as Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR).
After the laboratory sessions, students were taken on a guided tour of the university’s facilities by undergraduate science students.
This tour offered valuable insight into campus life and provided plenty of inspiration to work toward their academic goals, with the hope of returning one day as university students themselves!