2017 STEM (6-11) Conference

9:00 AM

1 Hour

The greatest challenge in education is finding ways to ensure meaningful student engagement. Science and maths present this opportunity. They are disciplines that are important lifelong skills, transferable to virtually any career and have a direct and profound impact on our current lifestyle. This presentation will explore how science and maths are taught and discuss what options now exist in a content rich world. There now many options where students direct their own learning and this provides a much great level of ownership. We will explore how tailored study plans, now common in the US, ensure that students appreciate the relevance and usefulness of their programs and hence how the sector is providing the education and training required for successful careers. A new approach to deliver first year chemistry will also be discussed. Finally, a discussion of the integration of science and maths into the total curriculum will be examined.

Presenter: Professor Joe Shapter

Organisation: Flinders University, School of Chemical and Physical Sciences

10:40 AM

1 Hour

This brief seminar looks at how integrated teaching can cater for diverse tasks that inspire and challenge young learners. It promotes the importance of STEM, Design Thinking or other Solution Fluency models that provide students with the opportunity to discover, dream, develop and design solutions to challenges that are relevant and creative. It focuses on the importance of high quality evidence and the evidencing of work. It provides examples of student Evidence Folios and highlights how the packaging of information helps students to unpack knowledge.

Presenter: John Dimitriou

Organisation: Adelaide High School

Target Audience: Middle school (yr. 6 - 9) teachers, Senior school (yr. 10 & 11) teachers

10:40 AM

1 Hour

We all know the relevance that integrated STEM directions grant to 21st century education. But where do we start? How do we zoom in from such a grand vision? This workshop will inspire you to be the ‘agent of change’ at your site by providing you with practical tools and resources to initiate STEM implementation through interdisciplinary learning design. We will collaboratively explore opportunities for staff, students and the community to engage and embrace STEM learning.

Presenter: Feresh Agahi Pizarro

Organisation: Australian Science & Mathematics School

Target Audience: Middle school (yr. 6 - 9) teachers, Senior school (yr. 10 & 11) teachers

10:40 AM

1 Hour

Many students may excel at understanding the content of STEM subjects but may struggle with expressing their ideas at an appropriate level of formality and sophistication. This workshop will help participants identify areas for development in student writing and explore ways to address them.

Presenter: Lauren Haggis

Organisation: The Australian Science and Mathematics School

Target Audience: Senior school (yr. 10 & 11) teachers

10:40 AM

1 Hour

A world in a box! Breakdown the walls maintaining the silos. True science is a tapestry of the different disciplines. STEM is the weft that enables delivery of engaging curriculum. This workshop takes participants through the Year 9 Mini-Worlds project where learner’s knowledge of ecosystems is put to the test by creating their own mini-world in a self-designed and created terrarium. The final project enables an exploration of the terraforming nature of photosynthetic life. This is a repeat presentation of Mini-Worlds presented at the recent International Astronautical Congress.

Presenter: Sam Moyle

Organisation: Brighton Secondary School

Target Audience: Middle school (yr. 6 - 9) teachers, Senior school (yr. 10 & 11) teachers

10:40 AM

1 Hour

The CSIRO Sustainable Futures schools education program combines the latest in climate science with education for sustainability. The program equips teachers with the knowledge and skills to help their students understand the science behind sustainability and the need for communities to live, work and play in a more sustainable way. The program enables students to develop skills in the processes of inquiry and literature research, as well as developing their experimental, investigation and critical thinking skills. It aims to support and empower students with the skills to identify, plan and drive sustainable change in their school and the wider community. The program is designed to facilitate collaborative learning with a critical and action based approach to problem solving. Sustainable Futures is an educational program developed by CSIRO Education and Outreach with funding support from Bayer. In this hands-on workshop, participants will have the opportunity to share ideas for best practice in educating for a sustainable future, as well as undertaking some fun STEM rich sustainability-themed activities that can be easily replicated back in the classroom.

Presenter: William Flynn

Organisation: CSIRO

Target Audience: Middle school (yr. 6 - 9) teachers

10:40 AM

1 Hour

With my passion for all things ICT, I knew that I would be a teacher that embraces the technologies curriculum. However, knowing a subject area well is very different from knowing where to start when attempting to plan successful learning experiences. I want to share my learning journey as I learned how to break down the Technologies curriculum. I learned how to focus my teaching on core concepts and gained a much better understanding of the essence of digital technologies. I learned to communicate my new found understanding not through complex explanation but through discovery and exploration. I want to share a variety of learning activities that I believe teach concepts from the technologies curriculum through a hands on way. I would like to share how I opened up my learning tasks by encouraging students to look at real world problems. Building my confidence in this way of teaching enabled me to really open up my tasks and allow students to take charge of their STEM investigations.

Presenter: Matt Jessett

Organisation: East Adelaide School DECD

Target Audience: Middle school (yr. 6 - 9) teachers

10:40 AM

1 Hour

Have you ever wondered whether it is possible for Spiderman to save a falling lift? Or how you would compare in the basketball count to an NBA professional? In this workshop I will explain how the Maths’ faculty developed students’ interest and creativity by enabling them to identify and try to solve problems. Crucially, these were not just problems the teachers found interesting, but questions that the students themselves wanted answers to. You will also see how we enabled the students to have the skills to present their findings and demonstrate their learning in a range of different ways. Furthermore, we will look analyse the data that shows what the students found to be the biggest impact on their learning during the project.

Presenter: Angela Phillips

Organisation: Westminster School

Target Audience: Middle school (yr. 6 - 9) teachers, Senior school (yr. 10 & 11) teachers

10:40 AM

The first part of the presentation will be about how STEM fits within Le Fevre High School Naval Engineering courses. To illustrate how STEM principles are incorporated in middle school, the rest of the presentation will be centred on middle school programs such as flight Data analysis for water rockets, an IDU were STEM principles are used to optimise the range of catapults, gliders and gliding ratios. The last part will touch on the engineering of woomeras, plus flight analysis of spears, from a unit developed for ATSI students where they design, make and test their own woomeras. Time permitting, hands on activities will be organised for participant to experience first-hand STEM pedagogical opportunities.

Presenter: Thierry Herman

Organisation: Le Fevre High School DECD

Target Audience: Middle school (yr. 6 - 9) teachers, Senior school (yr. 10 & 11) teachers

10:40 AM

This workshop concurs with the belief that, “STEM values include curiosity, confidence, creativity, persistence and imagination. If disciplines continue to be taught in isolation eg. S.T.E.M we will not be generating the STEM professionals of the future, nor will we foster the capabilities that our community needs" (Professor Tom Lowrie). Focusing on those STEM values, we will take you through a hands-on workshop using Design Thinking tools to address a real industry problem and come up with solutions. Expect an energetic, brain hurting, messy, fun session that provides a different approach to STEM.

Presenter: Nick Jackson & Brett Whittaker, Sam Pearse

Organisation: Wirreanda Secondary School & DECD

Target Audience: Middle school (yr. 6 - 9) teachers, Senior school (yr. 10 & 11) teachers

10:40 AM

1 Hour

At our site students only study SACE, VET or the New Arrivals Program and as such STEM comes in many different forms; from introducing professionals in STEM fields through the Women in STEM Breakfast & STEMsessions to exploring with drones at Summer STEMfest. Stefania and Allie are both senior science/maths teachers sharing as STEM project manager; our future is in equipping students with STEM skills through problem based learning & inspiring more of our senior students to pursue STEM careers. This workshop will discuss both the positive outcomes and challenges faced while we share our STEM journey. Time will be given to formulate ideas to take back to your own school, while also allowing for hands on opportunities with Ozobots.

Presenter: Stefania Pulford & Allie Campbell

Organisation: Thebarton Senior College

Target Audience: Senior school (yr. 10 & 11) teachers

11:45 AM

1 Hour

The team will introduce you to some of our favourite teaching pedagogies. The Learning Menu, 5 Fingers, The Flipped classroom and Entry and Exit cards, our very faves! Those that we feel are useful, engaging, flexible and that assist teachers working in an interdisciplinary and self-directed learning environment. Pedagogies that allow for greater student choice, engagement and ownership. We will show the practical applications of these pedagogies but most importantly the team will work with individuals and teacher groups in a workshop setting so that you can apply a chosen pedagogy to a unit of work Please bring: Laptops and a unit of work or lesson that they plan to create or adapt – to apply a chosen pedagogy to!

Presenter: Charlotte Twizell, Lauren George and Alicia Coleman

Organisation: Australian Science & Mathematics School

Target Audience: Middle school (yr. 6 - 9) teachers, Senior school (yr. 10 & 11) teachers

11:45 AM

1 Hour

This workshop will highlight the unique approach and content of the new SACE Earth and Environmental courses that can provide awareness and pathways to a range of careers.

Presenter: Len Altman

Organisation: Geoscience Pathways project

Target Audience: Senior school (yr. 10 & 11) teachers

11:45 AM

1 Hour

This workshop is designed to show how to implement, from both a teacher and student perspective, the use of video and images to analyse motion within the classroom. Using the free software "Tracker" from the Open Source Physics project out of Canada, students are able to collect calibrated measurement data from recording/photographing practicals for post analysis. Laptops with the installed software will be provided and participants will process video footage recorded during the workshop individually.

Presenter: Paul Gavini

Organisation: Marryatville High School

Target Audience: Middle school (yr. 6 - 9) teachers, Senior school (yr. 10 & 11) teachers

11:45 AM

1 Hour

The methodology of Mind Lab through Accelium accelerates the teaching and learning of overlapping and complimentary skills. This workshop will demonstrate our problem based integrative approach which immerses students through a blended learning experience. Simulations of real life problems and fostering generalised problem-solving abilities will be showcased together with the important competencies of critical and creative thinking and personal and social capabilities so needed for people to flourish and grow today and towards the future. The holistic, and constructivist approach transcends subject boundaries meaning concepts can be grasped and transferred much quicker facilitating accelerated interdisciplinary learning.

Presenter: Chris Ramsden

Organisation: Mind Lab Australia

Target Audience: Middle school (yr. 6 - 9) teachers

11:45 AM

1 Hour

YouTube has won the war on the “cult of seriousness” in science education, however at what cost? Secondary students struggling with difficult concepts can have them explained simply and beautifully at the click of a button. Consequently, pupils are watching more and reading less. Science knowledge is more accessible than ever, however students are less able to attain and communicate subject expertise. This workshop is a push back on the “Youtubeification” of science education. A range of explicit strategies that measurably improve student reading and writing within the structure of the Australian Curriculum will be highlighted, empowering students to step away from the screens and take control of their learning.

Presenter: Ashleigh Schofield

Organisation: Prince Alred College

Target Audience: Middle school (yr. 6 - 9) teachers, Senior school (yr. 10 & 11) teachers

11:45 AM

1 Hour

A STEM approach to exploring sources of alternative energies will see participants designing, making and testing a solar to race across the floor! Who can design and build the fastest car? The approach used involves students conducting a scientific investigation to gather data on relevant variables (such as sun angle) to improve performance of the car. The results are incorporated into the design, development and testing of the vehicle. These activities are well suited to any studies of forces and energy but fits well with Year 7 Unbalanced Forces and Year 8 Forms of Energy as well as senior classes studying alternative energies.

Presenter: John Cadogan

Organisation: Scientrific Pty Ltd

Target Audience: Middle school (yr. 6 - 9) teachers, Senior school (yr. 10 & 11) teachers

11:45 AM

1 Hour

Come and join the fun as we turn your graphic calculator into robot. That's right, the worlds most popular calculator the TI-84Plus CE can become the brains behind a robot that your students can program. Participants in this workshop will be some of the first teachers in the world to experiment with this new development by Texas Instruments.

Presenter: Peter Fox

Organisation: Texas Instruments

Target Audience: Middle school (yr. 6 - 9) teachers, Senior school (yr. 10 & 11) teachers

11:45 AM

1 Hour

UniSA Connect programs engage with secondary schools and the community to inspire further STEM study and educational attainment. In this workshop, the range of UniSA Connect programs will be outlined, and you will learn how you can use UniSA Connect programs to complement your classroom teaching and support student learning. All participants will also engage in a hands-on investigation using equipment from the UniSA Connect 'DSTG Radar Technology' program.

Presenter: Nathaneal Scherer

Organisation: UniSA Connect

Target Audience: Middle school (yr. 6 - 9) teachers, Senior school (yr. 10 & 11) teachers

11:45 AM

1 Hour

Students are leaving the STEM subjects. Research (For example Archer et al., 2013) suggests students often have little idea about what a career involving STEM can look like. This keynote will provide practical ways of developing community and industry links and partnerships to inform and inspire students in the many and diverse STEM career possibilities.

Presenter: Mark Feetham

Organisation: West Lakes Shore School / Flinders University

Target Audience: Middle school (yr. 6 - 9) teachers

11:45 AM

1 Hour

This units is based on students designing boats that can be used to rescue ducks of varying weights. The boats are powered by RC drones. The maths component of the unit is linear equations and graphing, the science component is energy, the engineering component is boat designing and the technology component is drones.

Presenter: Swati K. Salvi

Target Audience: Middle school (yr. 6 - 9) teachers, Senior school (yr. 10 & 11) teachers

11:45 AM

1 Hour

The NBN rolls its way across the country and binary coded information zooms along an ever-expanding network of optic cable and other media. An understanding of the building blocks necessary for the engineering of our communications industry calls upon all four components of STEM education. This workshop examines the science and design process and shares ready-to-use worksheets that coach students through the process of coding their own ASCII – Binary converter.

Presenter: Brian Lannen

Organisation: Wodonga Institute of TAFE

Target Audience: Middle school (yr. 6 - 9) teachers, Senior school (yr. 10 & 11) teachers

1:35 PM

1 Hour

Is it possible to teach Chemistry, Physics, Maths and Digital Technology all at once? Yes, we say! Through Internet of Things study at ASMS students were emerged in a real STEM subject. See what worked well and what could be improved.Can new pedagogies combined with known curriculum engage students?

Presenter: Maja Williams

Organisation: Australian Science and Mathematics School

Target Audience: Middle school (yr. 6 - 9) teachers, Senior school (yr. 10 & 11) teachers

1:35 PM

1 Hour

Two “heroes” take you through their class’ journey of a cross curricular unit where two worlds of English and Science collide to deepen student engagement through scientists’ capacity to change the course of human nature and literature’s potential to track that progression. Scientists have changed the world through their “human endeavour” and every innovation has seen a hero travel through a quest in order to deepen our “science understanding”. “It’s dangerous to go alone” so we will equip you with handouts, links to resources and our own humble advice that will allow you to go forth and attempt your own journey.

Presenter: Nic Tubb

Organisation: Brighton Secondary School

Target Audience: Middle school (yr. 6 - 9) teachers, Senior school (yr. 10 & 11) teachers

1:35 PM

1 Hour

Through collaboration, communication, critical and creative thinking STEM learning evokes innovative pedagogies and new ways to identify evidence of learning. In this workshop we will explore how to design integrated science, mathematics, and technologies learning using the engineering process to solve problems involving complex thinking. Using a trans-disciplinary approach we can endeavour to build learners dispositions in learning STEM.

Organisation: DECD

Target Audience: Middle school (yr. 6 - 9) teachers, Senior school (yr. 10 & 11) teachers

1:35 PM

1 Hour

A partnership between NewSpec and Hitachi High Technologies has developed a service to support schools-based STEM learning. Access to quality research equipment can be cost prohibitive. By 2018, there will be more jobs in STEM related occupations than new graduates to fill them. Our mission; to inspire new generations of innovative pioneers through providing classroom based hands-on access for all learners to world class equipment and expertise in the areas of STEM. See our mobile Learning Lab in action. Hear about our service development, the possibilities, capabilities and applications of our programs, and contribute to shaping a service that could transform the way you teach STEM subjects at your school.

Presenter: Jessica Jones

Organisation: NewSpec

Target Audience: Middle school (yr. 6 - 9) teachers, Senior school (yr. 10 & 11) teachers

1:35 PM

1 Hour

A STEAM approach to exploring wind energy will see participants designing, making and testing their own windmill to lift a load weight or build a sail car to race across the floor! Who can design and build the most efficient machine? Can you design a functional yet aesthetically pleasing device? These activities are well suited to any studies of forces and energy but fits well with Year 6 Alternative Energies, Year 7 Unbalanced Forces and Year 8 Forms of Energy. There will also be an opportunity to explore wind turbine construction for senior year levels with the option of collecting energy and power data in an electric circuit.

Presenter: John Cadogan

Organisation: Scientrific Pty Ltd

Target Audience: Middle school (yr. 6 - 9) teachers, Senior school (yr. 10 & 11) teachers

1:35 PM

1 Hour

The University of Technology, Sydney & the Australian Association of Mathematics Teachers have developed videos and classroom resources examining the maths behind CSIRO’s science and technology research. Colony collapse disorder in bee populations has the potential for disastrous effects on plant pollination. Australian scientists are fitting bees with electronic chips to build up a picture of the behaviour of a healthy hive. Two of the six classroom resources available in the ‘Bees with Backpacks’ suite of resources will be examined. Counting Bees (collecting data) is suitable for students in Years 7 – 9. Clever Bees (networks) has been designed for Year 11 General Maths students. The other resources cater for students from Years 7 – 10.

Presenter: Ann Ruckert

Organisation: The Australian Association of Mathematics Teachers

Target Audience: Middle school (yr. 6 - 9) teachers

1:35 PM

1 Hour

What if you had 4 “patients” rock up to your classroom with their urine samples? How can you use Mathematics to foster a Growth Mind Set and introduce Neuroscience at the same time? How can students learn about genetics so they can make informed decisions in the future? The answers to these questions and more about problem based learning will be explored in this workshop in trying to make Science learning more real. These three different problem based learning tasks are linked to years 8, 9 and 10 Science (and some Mathematics!) Australian Curriculum and the purpose, preparation, differentiation, management and assessment in my real classroom – warts and all, will be explored.

Presenter: Caroline Dean & John Rowe

Organisation: Wirreanda Secondary School

Target Audience: Middle school (yr. 6 - 9) teachers, Senior school (yr. 10 & 11) teachers

1:35 PM

1 Hour

What is in the box? This box can control motors and lights, read temperature, detect motion and much, much more. This little box can connect to a computer or your TI-Nspire calculator making it a portable, accessible and inexpensive STEM solution! Come along and play as we explore a collection of easy and engaging investigations written and used by classroom teachers. All equipment will be provided and no experience is necessary. See what all the excitement is about. The TI-Innovator really is a STEM solution in a box.

Presenter: Brian Lannen

Organisation: Wodonga Institute of TAFE

Target Audience: Middle school (yr. 6 - 9) teachers, Senior school (yr. 10 & 11) teachers

2:40 PM

1 Hour

Geometrically complex shapes play an increasingly important role in contemporary architecture. This workshop will bring together ideas from architecture, science, and engineering, and include aspects of the Year 9 and 10 Australian Curriculum geometry to explore the construction and design behind some of the world’s most innovative buildings. Become inspired by the creative use of mathematical designs in shapes and spaces which transform their use and function. Design your own geometrically inspired structures using technology or low-tech options, to take your students on a geometrical adventure exploring built space.

Presenter: Vanessa Fay

Organisation: Australian Science and Mathematics School

Target Audience: Middle school (yr. 6 - 9) teachers

2:40 PM

1 Hour

This is the STEM Solution you’ve been looking for! Participants will be introduced to the Solution Fluency Framework that utilises the 6D model (Define, Discover, Dream, Design, Deliver and Debrief) to support a problem solving approach to STEM activities. Using resources that scaffold the 6D solution fluency model and promote student thinking, participants will complete a STEM challenge as an example of how this flexible routine can be applied to STEM learning opportunities. Workshop resources will be available for participants in digital format so they can be easily modified for use across R-10 year levels.

Presenter: Anthea Ponte

Organisation: DECD

Target Audience: Middle school (yr. 6 - 9) teachers

2:40 PM

1 Hour

Formative assessment is that which is specifically intended to generate feedback on performance to improve and accelerate learning and is a process to help instructors understand their students’ day-to-day learning and develop appropriate interventions to improve that learning. Education Perfect provides a platform that allows students and teachers to be informed and provide feedback to adjust ongoing teaching and learning. In this session, you will be provided with a demonstration that shows how Education Perfect allows teachers to customise content or find Australian Curriculum aligned content, set and assess tasks, create competitions, build assessments and track student progress. This can inform teachers on their teaching, assessment and reporting cycle of the differentiated classroom. Students are therefore provided with contextual, competitive activities that can make a positive impact on their learning journey.

Presenter: Antonio Fazzini

Organisation: Education Perfect

Target Audience: Middle school (yr. 6 - 9) teachers, Senior school (yr. 10 & 11) teachers

2:40 PM

1 Hour

Australia has responsibility for the largest area of ocean of any nation on earth. Our local seas are unique and feature the world’s highest levels of endemic marine plants and animals. We are world leaders in aquaculture and home to some the world’s best marine scientists and marine science institutions. This presentation will explore our local marine habitats. It will look at the unique animals and ecosystems and at current issues including pollution, fishing and climate change. It will examine how science and technology are helping us understand and manage these fragile areas. This is an exciting time for students to explore and learn about our extraordinary oceans.

Presenter: George Evatt

Organisation: Marine Life Incursions

Target Audience: Middle school (yr. 6 - 9) teachers

2:40 PM

1 Hour

This workshop is designed to show how to implement, from both a teacher and student perspective, the use of video and images to conduct experiments on 1) Rate of reaction and 2) Beers law through colorimetric analysis. Laptops with the installed free scientific software “Tracker” will be provided for participants as they process video and image footage recorded during the workshop. Participants are required to bring their own camera/phones (with cables, adaptors …) to process the media that they record.

Presenter: Paul Gavini

Organisation: Marryatville High School

Target Audience: Middle school (yr. 6 - 9) teachers, Senior school (yr. 10 & 11) teachers

2:40 PM

1 Hour

The M in STEM is fundamental to any study of the other three areas, and it is often overlooked! To apply mathematics properly requires sound concept development rather than a rote application of rules and methods. This workshop will concentrate on mathematical skills and understanding of concepts so that they readily transfer to other areas. I will show some different approaches to a variety of tasks such as algebraic factorisation, completing the square, trigonometry and the unit circle, each of which will aid student conceptualisation and application.

Presenter: Carol Moule

Organisation: MASA

Target Audience: Middle school (yr. 6 - 9) teachers, Senior school (yr. 10 & 11) teachers

2:40 PM

1 Hour

‘Doctor for a Day’ is a PBL geared towards Middle School Biology students, but the basis could be used for any online activity. In class they learn about microbes, get a single disease to study, and create a poster of their disease. The students then do a 'test' by being a doctor working through case studies. They can walk around to find out information from the posters. Once they have identified the disease they sit at their computer, enter in the symptoms, their diagnosis and the treatment. The computer calculates their results, which are displayed live. This competition has been run at Pulteney and as an inter-school competition through the Gifted and Talented Association. This workshop will discuss set up, and run the 'Doctor for a Day' competition for attendees.

Presenter: Jarrod Johnson

Organisation: Pulteney Grammar

Target Audience: Middle school (yr. 6 - 9) teachers, Senior school (yr. 10 & 11) teachers

2:40 PM

1 Hour

Taking the impetus of gamification of the classroom, in this activity, digital assets are created to use virtually in the Augmented Reality application -Augment. This workshop will take participants through an AR activity that epitomises STEM through interdisciplinary application of knowledge, problem solving and computational thinking approaches. Participants will undertake a Pokėscience Hunt to identify where Equipėmon are hiding, capture them and compile them into an Equipėdex. Participants will also have the opportunity to explore different CAD programs such as Sculptris, Fusion 360 and 123D Sculpt to create their own Equipėmon as digital assets. Gotta catch them all!

Presenter: Sam Moyle

Organisation: Brighton Secondary School

Target Audience: Participants will need a device (preferably iOS) with Augment installed.

2:40 PM

1 Hour

A year long interdisciplinary project on Fresh Water literacies has involved academics from UniSA and teachers from 3 primary schools based near the River Murray and wetlands. Initial steps involved provocations around developing a curriculum for the Anthropocene. The teachers participated in workshops on critical praxis, place based literacies, citizen science, futures and transdisciplinary approaches to STEM and arts education. The professional learning model involved action research by the teachers focusing on an aspect of their pedagogy. In this presentation, teachers from two of the schools will talk about the unit they developed and implemented, the learning that occurred and the issues associated with teaching a topic about water.

Presenter: Joanna Whitehead & Jarrad Kilsby and Bernadette Haggerty & Marj Francis

Organisation: Burton Primary School & Barmera Primary School

Target Audience: Middle school (yr. 6 - 9) teachers

2:40 PM

1 Hour

Overview and rationale of STEM projects developed that enable students to investigate, design, analyse and create through real world applications. Individual and collaborative tasks are required to finalise project briefs. Activities require problem solving, application of geometry, trigonometry, scale, ratio and spatial reasoning to make appropriate decisions. Multiple solutions to the problem are possible, requiring students to justify and reflect on their decisions. Patricia & Lara teach Physics & Maths to Y12 in addition to Y8 & Y9 Maths & Science to the SHIP classes. Lara is a certified trainer in collaborative learning (CMS) and SHIP co-ordinator at Seaton High School.

Presenter: Patricia Curtis & Lara Golding

Organisation: Seaton High School

Target Audience: Middle school (yr. 6 - 9) teachers

2:40 PM

1 Hour

This workshop will demonstrate a highly effective and engaging STEM activity for multiple year levels and abilities, where students design an experiment to test unfounded claims found on the internet. Did you know that you can wrap glad wrap around banana stems to keep them from going off? Highlighters can apparently remove permanent marker stains. Salmon is supposedly good for hair growth. One website even claims that you can tell how charged batteries are just by dropping them! With a seemingly endless supply, these ‘tips’ known as Life Hacks, are supposedly effective advice to help solve everyday problems. But do they actually work? That’s up to the students to test.

Presenter: Shane Meegan

Organisation: Christian Brothers College

Target Audience: Middle school (yr. 6 - 9) teachers, Senior school (yr. 10 & 11) teachers