Science Inquiry Focus

At MCC we are fortunate to be a K-10 school on one campus, and sharing facilities, resources and expertise allows for a richer science experience for all. If you were to pop your head into the Science Labs on any given day you might see Year 3 students looking at bugs under a microscope, Year 7 students earning their Bunsen Burner license and testing parachutes (not at the same time!), Year 8 students investigating indigenous fire -methods, Year 9 students busy with chemical reactions galore and Year 10 students extracting DNA.  And that’s a quiet day!

Science is best understood by doing – observation, inference, hypothesis testing and the resilience that comes with facing the unknown are key skills for scientists. In recent weeks secondary students have shown how well students embrace opportunities and challenge.

Year 7 students have all experienced the challenge of Questacon activities, designing, testing and refining crafts to hover in wind tunnels. Girls were positive in responding to this challenge, and many pushed themselves to try the extension tasks.

STEM have been investigating marine ecosystems, and have undertaken rocky shore transect and quadrat studies, as well as working as a marine scientist on the Penghana (the Marine Discovery research vessel). Girls now have first hand experience of managing complex equipment and investigating human impacts on systems. 

Friday saw success in the Science and Engineering Challenge with 21 Year 10 students and 10 Year 9 students winning their southern heat to be invited to the State Final in Burnie. Great team work led to 1st places in Confounding Communications, Grasping at Straws, Hover Frenzy and placing highly in all other sections. 

MCC:Science is always keen to connect to scientists within our community, and we welcome any opportunity to foster these connections. Please get in touch.