Extension Programs

Aitken wins in the Maths Games Day

Well done to all of the Aitken College students who recently participated in the Year 5, Year 6, Year 7, Year 8 and Year 9 Mathematical Association of Victoria Maths Games Days. Select students from each of these year levels participated in the online state-wide competitions, engaging in problem-solving and fast paced Maths challenges with students solving challenging problems against the clock and fellow teams. Our teams produced outstanding results, with both our Year 5 and Year 6 teams finishing 1st and 3rd in their category. Congratulations to all the students involved!

Year 5/6 Team A	Aaryan K (5A), Alana O (5A), Archer H (5A), Tim C (5A)
Year 5/6 Team B	Frederick O (6K), Kisali P (6T), Rafael B (6K), Ronan K (6T)
Year 7 Team A	Georgia D (7S), Harry D (7I), Joel L (7D), Sienna D (7S)
Year 8 Team A	Alexander H (8M), Alejandro Y (8P), Manaan B (8M), Suveer C (8P)
Year 8 Team B	Alex M (80), Declan F (80), Jay P (80), Sanvi B (80)
Year 9 Team A	Ceejay C (9S), Harrison C (9G), Johann M (9S), Luke G (9P)

Student reflections:

Aaryan K, Alana O, Archer H, Tim C

We had a good first experience in this competition since we did it online. We enjoyed the challenges and loved working as a team to solve each problem. Though it was challenging we learnt new techniques to support our mind adapt to new problems. This competition was fun and we are looking forward to participating in future events.

Frederick O, Kisali P, Rafael G, Ronan K

Today was a fun day, with challenges that were unanticipated. We had a lot of fun playing and completing the quirky and fun challenges they had in store for us, such as drinking 250ml of water with a teaspoon and wearing 22 layers of t-shirts. There were also mathematical challenges which required logic and a tad bit of luck. Such as Mathematic Tac-Toe, which required clever thinking to outsmart the concerningly good robot. Overall, today was more than the average day and we had an amazing time.

Sanvi B

The Maths Games Day was an opportunity for me to extend and challenge my mathematical reasoning skills. I enjoyed working as a team with like-minded students to solve maths problems. The maths problems were challenging and encouraged me to think in different ways. Overall, the Maths Games Day was a great chance for me to better my mathematical skillset and work in a group setting.

Johann M

I very much enjoyed this competition. It was fun solving various sorts of puzzles and working as a team to complete problems. I would definitely recommend others to take part and not miss out on this event.

Maths Challenge 2021

Select Year 4 students participated in the Maths Challenge Program conducted by the Australian Maths Trust. During the 4-week program, students completed a series of questions that involved problem-solving, reasoning and critical thinking. Congratulations to the following students who participated. These students were awarded certificates based on their performance:

Tamanna S (4M) - Credit
Ethan L (4A) - Credit
Ronell M (4M) - Credit
Laksh C (4M) - Credit
Elmar M (4A) - Proficiency
Charlie D (4A) - Proficiency

Tournament of Minds (TOM) 2021

Aitken College entered two teams in this year’s Tournament of Minds Program. This is a competition where teams of seven students compete using their inferential, innovation, problem-solving, critical thinking and creative skills within a given category. Despite the many difficulties and restrictions put in place, both our teams showed resilience and flexibility as they transitioned from a live presentation to an online presentation. Each team worked creatively and collaboratively exploring possibilities and experimenting with ideas, producing a video of their challenge solution. The judges were impressed with elements in Team 1’s movie trailer, in particular, the promotional material and the music they used, and the development of historical characters in Team 2’s presentation.

Congratulations to the students who participated.

Team 1 (Year 8-9) – Language Literature Challenge	Aoide A, Amaya C, Khalia C, Madison H, Mustapha Z, Paige R, Rianne E

Team 2 (Year 7-8) – Social Science Challenge	Karthika R, Maia K, Manaan B, Olivia H, Ryan G, Spencer C, Suveer M

Student reflections:

Suveer C (8P)

Tournaments of Minds was a great and enjoyable experience as I was able to improve my problem-solving and teamwork skill. Collaborating was hard over Zoom, but we managed to put a video together. Solving this long-term challenge was interesting as we were able to look through the perspective of famous historical figures.

Amaya C (8S)

Tournament of Minds was a great experience for me to work with others in my team. We had many challenges due to the change of situations, but we eventually got through it, and we were able to present our solution. I really enjoyed Tournament of Minds as I was able to meet and work with others in Years 7, 8 and 9. Even though we were not able to present our solution in front of the judges, we had lots of fun creating our videos on Zoom.

Chess Tournaments

During Term 3, both our Primary and Secondary Chess teams competed in the Northern Star Chess online tournaments. Our Primary team consisting of Ethan L (4A), Ronell M (4M), Aaryan K (5A), and Rafael B (6K) performed well, maintaining their 9th position in the tournament. Ethan held his top place in the team, taking down some strong opponents. Also, well done to our Secondary team consisting of Harry D (7I), Aaron P (7I), Suveer C (8F) and Aoide A (9M) for competing in their first ever chess tournament. We are proud of all students for giving their best and for playing in good spirits!

Student reflections:

Aoide A

Participating in the Northern Star Chess Tournament was definitely a challenge, but I also learnt a great deal from it. Not only about chess, but also about perseverance, problem-solving, and most importantly, how to be a good sport when I inevitably lost some of my matches. I greatly look forward to next year’s contest!

Rafael B

The last two Saturdays, I participated in the Northern Star Chess online tournament. I really enjoyed the chess tournament and was placed with difficult opponents and really enjoyed the challenge. I really enjoyed the chess tournaments and would definitely do it again.

Aaryan K

This Chess tournament has been a new experience for me since we have not had an online chess tournament before. It was a good learning experience. I am looking forward to playing in the future.

Ethan L

I like chess because it is fun and helps with logic and strategy. The tournaments were very fun as they had other good players to play chess with. I would participate again if I could because I think it is fun to play with other people in games.

Mrs Mary Ann Di Martino

Head of Faculty Extension Programs