Mrs Amudala’s Year 10 Science students have been seen recently, attempting to make a big bang on the oval.

With the science behind the reactions of certain chemicals having been explained in class, students were provided with a number of safe alternatives to play with on the oval to try and achieve an impressive reaction.  However, Mrs Amudala didn’t give clear instructions on how to achieve a dramatic result,  but asked students to think through the lessons they have had and determine how best to get a good outcome.  Some student’s thought clearly through and managed to get a fairly good result, but others showed that they needed to re-think their methods to improve the chances of a ‘big bang’.

Later in the week, Mrs A will prove just how good the results can be when all scientific principles applicable here are worked together.  The students have been promised an impressive display.

Science and fun, hand in hand.

College Laboratory Assistant, Dr Caroline Lucas has recently aided students in Mr Cleaver’s Year 8 Science Classes, to deepen their knowledge of the heart.

It’s not an ordinary experience to have a qualified Veterinarian as a school Lab Assistant, but at Cornerstone, this is the case and has recently brought enormous benefits to our students.

Students in the classes were divided into groups of three, and provided with a sheep heart for dissection.  Whilst watching Dr Lucas through a magnified camera generated view on the projection system, students were guided through the process of navigating their way around this important organ, with great details and precision provided.

Students were provided with a sheet which asked them to identify certain parts of the heart, and to note particular characteristics.

A wonderfully informative lesson.

Mr Cleaver’s Year 8 students have had a very delicious learning experience.

His two classes of Science students have been given the task of creating a model of a cell.  The cell could be plant or animal, and had to have all the components of a cell structure included.  The materials were not particularly specified, but the idea of the model being edible quickly caught on and this was the overwhelmingly popular choice for most students.  The results included chocolate cell walls, jelly cytoplasm, Clinker mitochondria and nucleus’ made from chocolate, ice cream, licorice or even different coloured jelly.  Components even went as small as ribosomes made from chocolate sprinkles.

During the construction period of the lesson, the cells weren’t the only recipients of the construction materials.  Students thoroughly enjoyed the tasty process of recalling what was needed to complete the project.  The students were sure to be quite energetic at recess.

One team decided to go against the popular choice, and sewed a model of a cell.

In the lead up to today, students were required to work in teams to plan their model, and to present a paper that showed their understanding of these microscopic structures.  Their assessment will be based on the cells parts and characteristics they recorded, diagrams, their procedure for construction, and finally their model.

A creative and thoroughly enjoyable way to re-inforce the knowledge students have acquired in recent weeks.

During Semester 1, Cornerstone had 30 students participating in the Big Science Competition.  Over 37000 students from across Australia took part.  It was a great way to scientific skills in a competitive situation outside of the normal school assessment framework.

Of the 30 students who participated, 4 were awarded Distinction Certificates with a score of between 85 and 94%.  These were Elizabeth Stinton, Jozef Meyer, Rebecca Mott, and Jordan Robinson.

Further to this, 2 students were also awarded a Higher Distinction Certificate, which was only given to students who obtained over 95% in this Australia-wide competition.  Jack Eli & Eilidh Lucas can be incredibly proud of their achievements in receiving this honour.

Next year, the College hopes to have even more students from Cornerstone competing.  Well done to each participant.

College teacher, Will Meyer, is passionate about Science.  His love for the mechanics of how scientific principles work, marries beautifully with his place at the College, and this week has found him particularly enthusiastic.

The reason?   It is National Science Week within Australia.  This initiative of the Australian Government is an annual celebration, and provides an opportunity to enjoy and explore the wonders and benefits of science.

The staff and students at Cornerstone have all been beneficiaries of a recent visit by Scitech.

Staff spent an afternoon, looking at the creative ways to further the Science experience of students.  This in-house Professional Development was then taken one step further, with our Scitech guest then spending time with the individual teachers and their classes on the following day.

When in the classroom, students were given specific age-appropriate activities and events that challenged them to consider the process of scientific analysis, and was a whole lot of fun as well.

In the Year 5 event, teams of students were asked to consider the properties of light and make assumptions about a series of events.  They were then given time to determine how correct their assumptions were.

A great time of education for both staff and students.

A mouse-trap car is a vehicle that is powered by the energy that can be stored in a wound up mouse-trap spring.  There are a number of scientific and physics based concepts that contribute to a successful mouse-trap car, and this has been explored recently by Mr Cleavers Year 9 Science students.

Over the first few weeks of term, the class has considered how best to utilise this stored energy, and the most efficient means of using it to drive their small vehicles.  Some students accessed the designs available on the internet, others researched through libraries, and in some cases, students used trial and error to determine which designs may work best.

On hand today, were the creations, and they went through the testing phase to measure which designs were most effective.  With the Year 11 Physics students on hand to assist, the Year 9 class took turns measuring the distance their cars travelled, as well as the speed in which they moved.

The designs were varied, and some truly creative and inventive forms were on display.  The result, was that first place went to Jozef Meyer and Harry Hartill, whose design travelled 19.3 metres.  A close second was Jack Wallace and Joel Ashworth, with their creation covering an impressive 18 metres.  Third place was a little further behind, but Rhys McKay and Tim Jennings still had their car cover 13.25 metres before coming to a stand-still.

According to Mr Cleaver, the desired outcomes were clear.

‘The idea of the project was to learn about simple machines by applying knowledge about the topic.  The students enjoyed constructing the cars in the Design and Technology room, and challenging themselves to achieve the greatest distances.  With only a single mousetrap providing the force, students had to consider a range of options to make their car travel further.  Some impressive designs were constructed.’

A very clever way of demonstrating the concepts of force, friction, torque, design and energy.  Well done to all involved.

The above shown students are some of those who were recently acknowledged as being amongst the best science minds in the Rio Tinto Big Science Challenge.

Their results, of High Distinction, put them in the top achievers of entrants.  Nationally, only 7% of students achieve results worthy of this award, but at Cornerstone, 27% of participating students achieved this outcome.  In every category, Cornerstone students exceeded well above the national averages.

A report on the results has been completed by Mr Martens, and can be found on the attached link.

Young Scientific and Engineering minds from Cornerstone Christian College recently participated in the Science and Engineering Challenge.

Students from a number of schools within the southwest region, participated in the annual event that is presented by the University of Newcastle and organised by WA Engineers Australia. The Challenge is designed to inspire young people, through fun and practical hands on activities, about the opportunities available in the science and engineering fields. The event is often labelled as Engineering Sports for students.

Students were able to complete a number of challenges within their teams. A total of 8 activities were on offer, which saw each school’s team of students competing for engineering glory.

Points were awarded for each activity, with Cornerstone Students finishing in third place on the day they participated. Whilst the team didn’t take away a prize for any particular event, their overall achievements led them to take third position out of the 8 who participated on the day. They were the highest placed Busselton team on the day, and only just beaten by Naturaliste College when the second day was taken into account.

According to staff, this event always has a positive effect on our students. This sentiment is backed up by the creators of the challenge. According to those who know at the University of Newcastle, it has been shown that participation in the event has significant positive and lasting effects on the students’ approach to science and technology when they return to school.

Harry Hartill, a Year 7 student at Cornerstone Christian College has recently been awarded with a High Distinction in the Rio Tinto Big Science Competition.  This is the top award presented to high calibre science students from across Australia and Asia – and to obtain it, Harry had to be in the top 2% of entrants. 

The Rio Tinto Big Science Competition began in 2005.  Student registrations from all states of Australia and neighbouring countries in Asia have increased steadily, with schools in Singapore, New Zealand and the Philippines being regular participants in the Competition.

The competition aims to enthuse students and encourage them to study science and consider science-based careers.  It tests student’s critical thinking and problem-solving skills, as well as their general science knowledge.  The competition was a one-hour paper that contained 30 multiple choice questions.  Different categories were provided, and Harry participated in the Junior section with his peers, as well as older Year 8 students

Whilst Harry’s result is quite spectacular, he is not alone with achieving great marks.  The second best possible result is a distinction, which indicates a result in the top 15%.  Cornerstone had 20 students compete across Years 7-10, and 6 more students qualified for this award.  Eilidh Lucas, Jamin Saw, Rachel Norris, Natasha Cross, Conor Egberts and WJ Meyer all came away with a mark equal to or higher than the 85th percentile.   A further 6 students narrowly missed out on receiving a distinction and lay claim to a Credit Award.  These students are Jozef Meyer, Dewi Anna Hanran-Smith, Tom Van Der Veen, Bruce Dykstra, Samantha Ivey and Kaleb Saw. 

In terms of percentages, 35% of Cornerstone entrants obtained results in the top 15% of the competition. 

Harry was presented with his award at a recent College Assembly, along with other Cornerstone participants.  He was obviously delighted with the acknowledgement, and the College celebrates his achievement.  The future of Science looks bright at Cornerstone.