Digital Technologies 

STEM MAD Competition

Is your child STEM MAD?

STEM MAD (Make a Difference) is a project where teams of up to four students work together to invent a solution that solves a problem in the world around us using Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths. Teams then present a 1.5 minute video pitch of their idea. 

We are looking for any students from Years 7 to 10 who might be interested in forming teams and entering this competition. 

More details (and past winners) can be found HERE.  

If you have any questions or need further details, please email me at adrienne.donoghue@kilbreda.vic.edu.au 

Year 9

During Term 1, the students in Year 9 Emerging Technologies have been busy creating their own Spreadsheet Tracker. They have created a variety of different trackers to record everything from finances, sleep patterns, hours spent learning instruments or exercising, and even music and movies. 

To create their spreadsheets, they used a variety of formulas and functions, such as COUNTIF, SUM, MIN, MAX, AVERAGE. They also included conditional formatting to highlight patterns and validation rules to reduce chance of user input errors. Students then used Adobe Illustrator to create a logo for their tracker.  

Towards the end of the term students were introduced to the BBC micro:bit and the 'Move Motor' robot. They programmed the 'Move Motor' to follow lines, make sounds, set the colour of the car lights and draw shapes. 

The students are currently programming their BBC micro:bit using Python. This term they will be presenting on an ICT in a Global Society topic of their choice to the class and getting creative using the green screen.

STEM Room - Flashforge 3D Printer

There’s been an exciting buzz in the STEM Room recently with the arrival of the new Flashforge 3D printer!

Students in our Year 10 PGW (Programming, Gaming, Web Design) class, who were working on designing games/toys, took full advantage of the new 3D printer to print prototypes for their ideas. 

Our Year 8 students have also invented 3D products to solve everyday problems around us, using tinkercad.com. We can’t wait to start printing some of their work too. Who knows what amazing invention is just around the corner here at Kilbreda! 

Year 10 PGW 

As students in Year 10 Programming, Gaming and Web Design, Roxy and I have both worked through many interesting projects in this very hands-on class. To kick off the year, we first began on the topic of programming. While we had previous knowledge of programming skills, this was the first time that most of us had looked into a specific programming language. Python is one of the most popular programming languages used all around the world, used for both school aged people and professional programmers. Within this topic we’ve learned a plethora of different programming terms and skills such as how to use functions, internal documentation, unicodes, and modules. 

After completing a portfolio demonstrating the skills we developed from Python, we then went on to Gaming. During this topic, we incorporated some of the terminology used in Python. The main focus were the microcontrollers, (called micro:bits) that all used within our games. A micro:bit is a small, microcomputer that contains basic software and hardware, as well as 5X5 LED light screen, buttons, sensors, and multiple input/output features. When it came to our games, all the groups incorporated their micro:bit in their game, whether they were doing a Pinball Game, 'Whack A Mole', 'Bop It' game or Magic 8 Ball.

The game we decided to program, and engineer was a Magic 8 Ball. We coded it so that when the cardboard cube is shaken the micro:bit will display an answer to your question. All groups would agree that the best part of this topic was working in teams and engineering these games according to our plans as it gave us a chance to do something more hands on than regular coding. 

Attached are some photos of our completed game/toy prototypes.

Angelique Vargheese 

and Roxanne Johnstone

Year 10

Year 11 and 12 -                         VCE Data Analysis Work

Our Applied Computing VCE students, both Unit 1 and Unit 3, have been fine tuning their data analysis and data visualisation skills throughout Term 1. For their most recent SAC they downloaded and manipulated real data, found interesting patterns and trends in this data, and then presented their findings as eye-catching infographics. 

Here are some excellent examples of the work they’ve been producing on a range of topics!

Amazing Achievement Award!

Congratulations to Sam Hubeek (Year 10) who achieved a perfect score in an online Python Programming Competition. This is a very tough competition that requires you to be not only good at programming but also have resilience and perseverance to keep up with the weekly tasks. We are very proud of this fantastic achievement. 

Well done, Sam! 

Adrienne Donoghue

Learning Leader: Digital Technologies