19 June 2018

Newsletter Articles

Principal’s Report

In recent weeks, staff at the school have attended a number of professional learning sessions aimed at improving outcomes for learners at Quorn Area School. These days essentially place the teacher in the role of the learner and their work, beliefs and thinking are often challenged. Our most recent day was held at Port Augusta Secondary School where we worked alongside teachers from our region to challenge our ideas and practice around Learning Design Assessment and Moderation (LDAM). Teachers assessed the tasks and marks of their colleagues in order to share best practice and ensure that we have a shared understanding of what standard is required to prove a learners achievement against the standards of the Australian Curriculum.

We have also been exploring the potential of ‘The Learning Pit’ which is increasingly being used across the world to help learners embrace challenges, accept challenge as an unavoidable part of their learning journey and ultimately understand that learning is hard work. The Learning Pit aims to equip learners with the language to explain their struggle and an awareness of the actions required to secure new learning. Essentially it builds the capacity of learners to persevere and be resilient when faced with new challenges. If you would like to learn more about this strategy please follow the link below.

Finally, this week work will be commencing on the removal of over thirty trees and essential maintenance on a number of others. Please be mindful of this if you are visiting the site outside of normal operating hours.

Andrew Gilsenan-Reed

Middle School Report

Year 5/6 Report

This term in Science we have been learning about animal adaptations and endangered species. We have been making connections to other learning areas through exploring the concepts of sustainability and the environment. Students completed a research task where they selected animals from different environments and compared and contrasted their structural and behavioural adaptations. Students had free choice to pick whether they would like to present their finding in a PowerPoint, poster or an oral presentation and they really enjoyed the flexibility this gave them in their learning. It was exciting to see the creative ways in which students chose to exhibit findings on their chosen animals.

In Design and Technology, we have been focusing on food and fibre production. We have been concentrating on sustainable technologies and features of farms and have been creating dioramas which illustrate their learning. Students have relished the opportunity for ‘hands-on’ learning experiences.

In HASS this term, students have been looking at the history of migration to Australia and exploring the different countries from which we originate. Students explored migrants from different corners of the globe and concentrated on what their migration experience was like, including physical and emotional impacts of migration. In the Civics and Citizenship component we have been looking at the idea of citizenship and what it means to be a global citizen. Students have created their own citizenship certificates and rewritten the citizenship pledge to reflect what they feel it means to be an Australian. They are currently working on speech for world hunger and it will be interesting to see their different opinions and ideas on the topic.

Fiona Black
Year 5/6 Teacher

7/8 Media Arts

In Media Arts this term, students have been learning about and creating film trailers. Students have spent weeks analysing film trailers, learning about the conventions of different genres. Students have learnt how to use video editing software in class to create short clips adding music and text to their videos. As the Semester draws to a close they will be putting the finishing touches on their own movie trailers which they have spent weeks planning and preparing for.

Year 8 English

Meanwhile, the Year 8’s are finishing up a book study of S.E. Winton’s The Outsiders. Students have been reading the book for several weeks familiarising themselves with 1950’s slang and learning a little about gang culture in the process. As the term comes to end they will be conducting a survey and making an expository presentation about gang culture focusing on why people join gangs. The Year 8’s will also have the chance to show off their artistic side as they summarise a chapter from the book in a comic strip.

Brad Forkert

3D Printing in full swing

Quorn Area School acquired two 3D Printers earlier this year and we have been busy getting to grips with the dos and don’ts of 3D printing. The school owns an UPBOX+ which can print objects 20cm by 20cm (base) up to 25cm tall and a smaller UP Mini 2, capable of printing objects 12cm cubed. Both printers are now fully operational and can be seen in the classroom opposite the Reception class.

This classroom is also used for our Edison Robots and Raspberry Pi 3 computing projects and has become our defacto STEM room.

The UPBOX+ has been busy printing a Wind Turbine for Tom Millington’s Research Project. The design incorporates a large number of components and will be able to recharge a mobile phone or similar device when camping, or during the loss of normal power (albeit, there still has to be some wind). The Wind Turbine has been printed using PLA Plastic, and although it is not waterproof, the material can be painted to protect it from the elements. PLA is the preferred medium for the Primary School as it is safe to use and non-poisonous in case a child decides to take a bite out of their design. We have purchased a number of different colours to make the children’s designs a little more adventurous. (But they will still taste the same, apparently.)

Both printers are also capable of using a more durable plastic – ABS. This is commonly used on a wide range of consumer products and is waterproof. It can also be painted or coated. ABS is restricted to the Secondary School as a requirement from the Education Department.

Now it will be up to the students to create designs which they will be able to realise in plastic. It will allow them to explore a variety of avenues from historical figures, to working models of science experiments and engage their imaginations in a new, ‘hands-on’ experience. This is the start of our journey, with teachers attending special sessions for the printers and software which the students will use. The printers will be employed across the Primary and Secondary Schools and will allow teachers to employ models which students can touch and see, adding a new dimension to their classrooms.

Students have already undertaken basic projects using Makers Empire (Primary) or Sketchup (Secondary). Their initial project was the design of a name tag, which was printed using the UPBOX+. We are looking forward to joining Tech Studies with 3D Printing and enabling students to print a scale model of their final project. Students will learn how sketches and ideas can be transferred to CAD (Computer Aided Design) and finally to the physical form.

The journey has begun in earnest.

Joe Pilz
Design & Technology

Parents and Friends

Miscellaneous Reports

CSIRO STEM Summer School