Curriculum

STEAM

Our new STEAM Centre was bursting with energy and excitement throughout the first term. We were thrilled to add STEAM to our rich curricular program at the beginning of the year and it has been wonderful to see how enthusiastically our students have engaged with it so far. Our STEAM Specialist, Mrs. Nestor has been working tirelessly to design fun and engaging challenges to stretch students' thinking, requiring them to work collaboratively to problem-solve and think creatively. 

What is STEAM?

STEAM is an educational approach to learning that uses Science, Technology, Engineering, the Arts, and Mathematics as access points for guiding student inquiry, dialogue, and critical thinking. The end results are students who take thoughtful risks, engage in experiential learning, persist in problem-solving, embrace collaboration, and work through the creative process. Many of the challenges and projects that students embark on in the STEAM Centre will be based on the concept of 'design thinking'. This is a structured problem-solving approach that involves understanding the needs and perspectives of users, brainstorming creative solutions, and prototyping and testing those solutions to refine them. It's a valuable process for students to learn because it encourages them to think critically and creatively and to approach problems in a systematic and empathetic way. 

Some Highlights from Term 1

Year 5/6 Electrical Energy Challenge

Challenge: Design and build a prototype of a structure that incorporates circuits

Foundation Beebot Challenge

Challenge: Program the Beebot robots to follow a sequence of steps and decisions

Victorian High Ability Program

The extension, enrichment, and continued growth of high achieving students is of prime importance at Skye Primary School and we were delighted to see the hard work of five Year 5 students acknowledged with selection in the Victorian High Ability Program this term. The selection process is managed by the Department of Education and draws on a combination of teacher judgment and NAPLAN data to identify high-achieving students in Mathematics and English. Congratulations to the following students on their selection: Natasha B, Zane K, Piper M, Rafael R-W, and Tarni W. Throughout this term, the selected students will join Virtual School Victoria for one hour a week (as well as pre and post-lesson work) where they'll engage in tasks designed to stimulate their critical thinking, problem solving and creativity – enriching their understanding of Mathematics and English.

Timothy Bernau

Assistant Principal