Specialist Report - STEM

STEM

STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering & Maths)

All of our communities have made great strides in being critical thinkers, problem solvers and collaborative students through this whirlwind Term 1. Let's do a recap of what's happened in STEAM 2 this term.

 

The Achilles community have been working hard learning about instructions and how they need to be in order for them to make sense. We've played games using arrows, rearranged classic stories like Goldilocks and the Three Bears using pictures and learned the order in which a plant grows from a seed. 

 

The Argus and Xenica communities have been working closely with two teacher candidates from RMIT University - Nik and Estelle - and we thank them for spending time with our 1/2 communities. We have been learning about algorithms, sequences of steps that achieve a function, through following Origami instructions and more recently experimenting with our new set of Blue Bot coding robots.

The Ulysses community have progressed their knowledge of data storage and presentation by creating their own databases by surveying students in their class. After this we have looked at the world of virtual reality and how this can be a great way to show data in more visual ways. Students have explored the University of Melbourne, brand new display homes and even MARS using virtual tours and iPads.

 

The Icarus community collaboratively work through logic problems using flow charts and logical sequencing this term.  This has progressed into learning how to put block codes into logical sequences using the app CodeSpark.

 

Aaron - STEM Teacher and leader of the Specialist team.