Have You Met My Neighbour Totoro? with Anna Jahjah
Years 1 and 2: Language and Literature
UNAVAILABLE IN TERM 2
Do you have a vivid imagination? Is your heart as pure as gold? Then you might be one of the lucky ones granted the chance to meet my neighbour, Totoro! Imagine a massive teddy bear, with a beaming smile on his face, who loves nuts and can grow plants overnight. That’s Totoro, also known as “the keeper of the forest”. Hop on our cat-bus and come join the adventures. Chase the cheeky sprites makuro kurosuke and play sweet melodies on the ocarina. Take your imagination to whimsical heights as we enter the world of this much-loved Japanese children’s fantasy and discover just what has made it so popular. You’ll be so inspired by film director Hayao Miyazaki’s fantastical world that you’ll end up creating your very own whimsical sprites for other children to enjoy!
Anna moved to Australia after studying Drama and British, American and Arabic Literature and Civilisation in France. She has been teaching drama, storytelling and creative writing techniques to French and Australian children for over 10 years. She also owns her own theatre company which gives a voice to characters and stories that are rarely heard in Australia. She loves working with children and discovering what unexpected ideas they always seem to come up with!
The Incredible Adventures of Super Baby! with Aleesah Darlison
Years 1 and 2: Language and Literature
UNAVAILABLE IN TERM 2
Create a dashing, daring and hilarious Baby Superhero just like Jack-Jack from The Incredibles! Give your character a special superhero name, throw in some unbeatable super powers, and design an awesome outfit before drawing your superhero in full colour. You’ll then create a quick narrative plan so you can write a short story featuring your Baby Superhero character in your own time.
Aleesah is the award-winning author of the hilarious League of Llamas series where the main characters are llamas … and secret agents! From an early age, Aleesah was surrounded by animals on her farm and in the bush. That’s why loves them so much and why she feels compelled to write about them now that she’s a grown-up author. Aleesah has written over fifty books for children, many of which feature humour or champion the cause of animals, the environment, and child self-empowerment. She has won, and been short-listed, for numerous awards for her writing.
Journey to the Centre of the Moon with Thomas Burke
Years 1 and 2: Language and Literature
UNAVAILABLE IN TERM 2
In June 2019, scientists discovered a mysterious mass five times the size of Hawaii’s biggest island buried beneath the surface of the moon. Using advanced satellites, experts detected this object far below the bottom of the moon’s largest impact crater, suggesting that whatever is down there must have crashed and embedded itself a long time ago. Our mission: to assemble a team of highly skilled astronauts and lead them on a dangerous expedition to the dark side of the moon, where they will descend below the surface and investigate the unknown object. Inspired by the works of Jules Verne and H. G. Wells, we will tell the tale of intrepid explorers facing unexpected challenges, using their courage and combined intelligence to overcome the odds, achieve their goal and (hopefully) return safely to Earth. Your itinerary might be planned down to the smallest detail but how will your responses to unexpected events change the course of the mission?
Thomas studied education at the University of Technology Sydney, where he received first-class honours and was nominated for the Laurie Brady Prize for teaching excellence. Thomas is also a professional illustrator and has taught visual arts to children of all ages.
The Proof is in the Pudding with Pete Wolstenholme
Years 1 and 2: Maths
UNAVAILABLE IN TERM 2
Imagine a pudding called Albert – a magic pudding – that could walk, talk, constantly replenish itself, and even change its flavour. That would be pudding worth having… but the problem is that the ‘Puddin Thieves’ know this too and they’ll do anything to try and steal him. They’ll turn numbers back-to-front, words upside-down, sums upside-rightside-flipside-down and spin logic on its head. Can you see through their plot and help Bunyip Bluegum, Sam Sawnoff and Bill Barnacle save Albert?
Pete is a Master of Teaching student at Monash University, whose passion for finding new and exciting ways of engaging students has led him to his current role with RethinkPD. He has loved all things digital since he got his first Nintendo DS as a child, and he still regularly gets together with mates for all-night PlayStation sessions. He believes that developing digital technologies like AR, VR and Robotics have the potential to completely revolutionise the way students learn. Having benefitted from a gifted program when he was at school, Peter is keen to ‘pay it forward’ and provide a new generation with enriching and challenging learning experiences.
Rescue Flight with Jacob Pini
Years 1 and 2: Science
UNAVAILABLE IN TERM 2
Oh no! A group of hikers are stranded on a mountain and one of them is injured. Emergency services are planning a rescue mission and you have been called in to fly the rescue team in a light aircraft to a nearby airstrip. You’ll have to call on all of your knowledge and expertise of aerodynamics and meteorology to make sure the mission is a success. It is important to get to the hikers as quickly as possible but if you fly in dangerous meteorological conditions, you will put yourself and the rescue team in danger! You’ll have to consider the lurking hazards that could impact on the mission. How will the light aircraft perform? How will you perform? You’ll be putting your training to the test as you are forced to make quick decisions to complete the mission safely. Good luck Captain! The hikers are depending on you!
Jacob has completed a Bachelor of Aviation and a Masters of Teaching at the University of Melbourne. He has a strong passion for mathematics and digital technologies and believes firmly in firing imagination and interest in STEM education (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) with hands-on learning. Jacob considers himself an amateur yogi, an avid cyclist and a keen gamer and he is looking forward to sharing his experiences with, and creating exciting new learning opportunities for G.A.T.E.WAYS students online!
Alice's Adventures in Circleland with Katrina Sims
Years 3 and 4: Maths
UNAVAILABLE IN TERM 2
Oh! Down the rabbit hole Alice tumbled. As she plummeted, the hole became narrower, constructed of smaller polygrams making even smaller polygons and larger polygons. Then – whew! A soft landing.
Imagine her surprise when she bumped into two quarreling circle shaped characters - “Circlesmall and Circlelarge”, each carrying a different size geometric shaped key and standing before a small and a large door with very weird locks! Have you ever tried to find your way through a maze? If not, here’s your chance to have lots of fun following either Circlesmall or Circlelarge along a maze, passing through a series of doors leading from one to the next, until finally arriving at your destination. But before you can pass through a door you will have to work out how to construct the geometric key that fits the lock. Take care! Is information technology a better way for managing this maze?
Katrina has a master’s degree in Gifted Education and a wealth of experience teaching gifted children. She has received a National Excellence in Teaching Award for her contributions to gifted education and a BH Neumann Award for contributions to Mathematical Enrichment for Australian Students. Katrina has a keen interest in teaching science and was instrumental in preparing her students for entries in national science competitions, including the BHP Science Competition.
Alice in Numberland with Allen Dickson
Years 3 and 4: Maths
UNAVAILABLE IN TERM 2
*Please read EQUIPMENT LIST before enrolling
We all know of 'Alice in Wonderland' but have you ever heard of 'Alice in Numberland?' You will have to help Alice find her way through a world of mathematical mayhem...White Addits, Mad Hatter's Divisibili-tea Parties and a somewhat nutty Queen of Hearts who seems obsessed with subtracting people's heads. Covering the four essential Numberland operations - Ambition, Distraction, Uglification and Derision - Alice will discover a multiplication of improbable probability problems and try and find out who is guilty in 'The Case of the Take-Away Tarts'.
This online Journey is designed to make students 'curiouser and curiouser' about the four mathematical operations through sorting according to Carrol diagrams, recognising challenging patterns involving number sequences, and to help students through the looking glass at connections between factors, multiplication and division.
Allen is an educator and speaker with a passion for ensuring learning is innovative, practical and enjoyable. For over 20 years he has combined classroom teaching with appointments in various extra-curricular organisations where he uses a diverse range of skills to instil confidence, extend abilities and initiate change in classrooms. A regular presenter with G.A.T.E.WAYS since 2012, Allen also runs his own educational consultancy – RethinkPD – where he speaks on a range of specialist issues in literacy, numeracy, thinking curricula, extension and enrichment, both in schools and at conferences around Australia.
Deadly! with Laura Jade Hindes
Years 3 and 4: Science
UNAVAILABLE IN TERM 2
Imagine you are face-to-face with an animal so poisonous, so deadly, that it could end your life with a single bite. Would you have the presence of mind to consider your anti-venom options? Possibly not, but in this workshop, we will have the time to explore what makes some creatures, from poisonous reptiles to paralysis and necrotising bugs, so deadly. We will find out what happens to the nervous and cardiovascular systems when we introduce venom. We will investigate how the body reacts to the anti-venom used to counteract it and whether anti-venom preserves life in all instances. We will also discover why venom is so important for an animal’s survival and how medicine is transforming poison into cutting edge elixirs of life!
Laura has many years of experience in leading science workshops for primary schools, as well as experience mentoring youths and undergraduates through intensive project-based courses. She has a multidisciplinary background, holding a Masters in Illumination Design, a degree in Fine Art and further studies in biology, science communication, curatorial and museum studies. Laura is looking forward to working with eager young minds with a passion for science.
From Tundra to Taiga: The World's Biomes with Rengen Parlane
Years 3 and 4: Science
UNAVAILABLE IN TERM 2
We’ve looked beneath our feet. We’ve looked up among the clouds. But we cannot miss the many and varied landscapes that are found across the globe. In this session, we’ll join Dr Annika Robinson as she uncovers how varying climates and ecological processes contribute to the formation of different environments and ecosystems, otherwise known as biomes. We’ll investigate the factors that influence global climatic distributions and produce a map of the world’s biomes, identifying each biome using vegetation and climatic data, before having the opportunity to produce a model of the world’s biomes.
*Please read EQUIPMENT LIST before enrolling
Rengen is studying the Bachelor of Science (Advanced)/Doctor of Medicine at the University of Sydney. He is passionate about both disciplines, and how they inform us about the world around us. Rengen has tutored young learners for the past four years, as well as being a Brainwaves Club leader and Eureka presenter with G.A.T.E.WAYS and loves sharing the inspirational world of science with eager young people.
Just Passing Through! with Robyne Bowering
Years 3 and 4: Science
UNAVAILABLE IN TERM 2
Did you know that approximately 60% of our body is made up of water? Have you ever wondered what happens to the water you drink or why our bodies even need water? Then ‘urine’ luck! Join us as we explore the excretory system and the answers to some of these questions and more. We will conduct experiments to investigate how water moves around our body, how it is filtered in the kidneys, stored in our bladders and then eventually flushed away down the toilet! Along the way we’ll discover how astronauts go to the toilet in outer space, how dialysis machines are used to help patients with kidney failure and why soldiers were advised to use urine-soaked rags as gas masks during World War 1. This workshop is sure to have you ‘busting’ to know more!
*Please read EQUIPMENT LIST before enrolling
Robyne is a passionate and enthusiastic educator with over twenty-five years of experience teaching primary, secondary and tertiary students. Robyne is particularly keen on providing bright students with multiple opportunities to creatively explore their ideas and thinking through a range of hands-on, minds-on activities.
Never a Dahl Moment with Kim Edwards
Years 3 and 4: Literature and Creative Writing
UNAVAILABLE IN TERM 2
Greetings to you, the lucky finder of this Golden Ticket from G.A.T.E.WAYS! I shake you warmly by the virtual hand! Tremendous things are in store for you! Many wonderful surprises await you!
For now, I do invite you to come on this Journey and be my guest for two whole amazing writing and literary sessions that takes us travelling into the wondrous world and words of Roald Dahl – you and all others who are lucky enough to find my Golden Tickets! Mystical and marvelous surprises in one of his most famous novels will entrance, delight, intrigue, astonish and perplex you beyond measure… and inspire you to write more charming, cheeky, churlish, challenging and chocolaty-good fiction than you’ve ever written before!
Kim teaches English literature and creative writing to university and high school students, and drama and theatre skills to both adults and kids all over Melbourne. She has run book clubs and cabarets, performed Shakespeare and written sonnets, dabbled in Dickens and is best buddies with the Brontes, and while she loves a ripping good yarn, she is still convinced everything we get to read and write in our lives is always a thrilling new adventure!
Things That Go Bump in the Night with Jo Henwood
Years 3 and 4: Language and Literature
UNAVAILABLE IN TERM 2
To chill the blood when darkness falls is one of the great rewards of story making. Do you want to use your words to drive your readers mad with fear, to stretch their nerves with suspense and make them jump with shock? Then you want to write stories of ghoulies and ghosties and long-leggedy beasties and things that go bump in the night.
Ghost stories are so much more than a “Boo!” scene. For the one who is haunted, it is a mystery. Who is this ghost and what is it trying to achieve? Is it vengeance, a caution or a threat? How will the haunted and the haunter transform each other? Can a ghost story ever have a happy ending? Inspired by classic ghost stories such as Charles Dickens’ The Signalman and Oscar Wilde’s, The Canterville Ghost, students will write their own ghost story; considering characters, motivations, transformations, structuring the rising tension and choosing the most atmospheric and tantalising words…. If they dare!
Jo is an Accredited Storyteller with the NSW Storytelling Guild. She is also an Education Officer, museum theatre creative, public speaker, and the co-founder of the Australian Fairy Tale Society. Jo has a Master of Cultural Heritage and qualifications in library science, museum studies, tour guiding and gifted education.
Tiny Inventions: Series 1: A Micro-Coding Adventure with Jess Buchanan
Years 3 and 4: Technology
UNAVAILABLE IN TERM 2
Ever wondered how your TV remote can talk to the TV, or how your remote controlled toys actually work? Maybe you have some ‘smart lights’ in your house that you can activate with your voice? How do these small everyday items know how to follow your instructions? You can thank the power of micro-controllers, tiny computers embedded in hundreds of everyday objects you regularly encounter. They’re in your dishwasher, in your car and in that cool toy robot your got for your birthday. We can program these tiny computers with code - and if there’s one language of the future we should all be fluent in, it’s CODE. Not spy code - although that’s cool too - Computer Code! This Journey will take you through the concepts of a micro-controller using the popular MicroBit. We’ll work entirely online to explore what a micro controller can do and how to use basic programming to make it perform a range of tasks.
Jess is a technology educator and instructional designer with a passion for the Maker movement. She has spent the last fifteen years designing and teaching technology programs catering to all areas of the community including kids, teens, teachers, parents and seniors. She has worked as a technology integrator in numerous Sydney schools, and produced the 2016 and 2017 Maker Expos at Double Bay Library, a festival of technology and innovation. Since becoming a parent, she has become increasingly passionate about preparing our kids for a STEAM enhanced future. As an instructional designer and curriculum developer at Coder Academy she enjoys designing education programs reaching out to schools, parents and communities, helping to ensure all kids have access to the tools they need to be confident and creative with technology.
Tiny Inventions Series 2: Journey into the MicroWorld! with Jess Buchanan
Years 3 and 4: Technology
*Students must have completed Tiny Inventions Series 1 before enrolling in this program.*
UNAVAILABLE IN TERM 2
If you’ve flexed your coding powers in ‘Tiny Inventions: Series 1’ and you’re looking to to explore more of the Mighty Microbit, then step right up! ‘Tiny Inventions: Series 2’ has you covered! Now you’re an experienced micro coder you’re ready to extend your coding know how and explore the new world of Variables and Conditions!
It’s great that we can use code to instruct the Microbit what to do, but what if we want it to make decisions automatically, based on different circumstances? Can we code it to make decisions independently? Pop your inventing hat on, set your mind to curiosity and get ready to have a go at making your very own weather display and even your own virtual pet!
This Journey assumes a basic knowledge of the concepts of block coding and micro-controllers from our Tiny Inventions Series 1 program. Using the popular MicroBit we’ll work entirely online to explore what a micro controller can do and how to use programming to make it perform a more advanced range of tasks.
Jess is a technology educator and instructional designer with a passion for the Maker movement. She has spent the last fifteen years designing and teaching technology programs catering to all areas of the community including kids, teens, teachers, parents and seniors. She has worked as a technology integrator in numerous Sydney schools, and produced the 2016 and 2017 Maker Expos at Double Bay Library, a festival of technology and innovation. Since becoming a parent, she has become increasingly passionate about preparing our kids for a STEAM enhanced future. As an instructional designer and curriculum developer at Coder Academy she enjoys designing education programs reaching out to schools, parents and communities, helping to ensure all kids have access to the tools they need to be confident and creative with technology.
Under Pressure! with Simon Matheson
Years 3 and 4: Science
UNAVAILABLE IN TERM 2
Did you know that a sheet of A4 paper resting on a table top has over ½ a tonne of air pressing down on it? This amazing downwards force is created by air pressure. In this session we will have a look at what air pressure is, what causes it, and just how strong it actually is. We’ll also explore how air pressure is related to flying, learn a bit about Bernoulli’s principle, and make some of our very own (hopefully identified) flying objects. Finally, we’ll see if we can’t make use of a bit of this pressure to break some things, squash some things, and force a few objects into tiny openings.
Simon is a physicist and educator with over 20 years’ experience who believes that all citizens of the modern world need a firm grasp of the principles upon which science (and, by extension, the world around us) are built.
Can you Weather the Weather? with Katrina Sims
Year 5 and 6: Science
UNAVAILABLE IN TERM 2
You are so excited. At long last you are off on that much anticipated holiday to New Zealand. But isn’t it odd? According to your return ticket it takes approximately twenty minutes longer to fly from Auckland to Sydney than from Sydney to Auckland? How could this possibly be? The mystery factor is the prevailing wind across the Tasman which blows from the west. But what exactly are prevailing winds and how do they and other weather movements, rising up and down, affect flight times? How can we tell if a storm is brewing? What different meteorological phenomena and aeronautical principles impact on an aeroplane’s motion? Could your flights arrive on time, or possibly arrive late or even early?
Katrina has a master’s degree in Gifted Education and a wealth of experience teaching gifted children. She has received a National Excellence in Teaching Award for her contributions to gifted education and a BH Neumann Award for contributions to Mathematical Enrichment for Australian Students. Katrina has a keen interest in teaching science and was instrumental in preparing her students for entries in national science competitions, including the BHP Science Competition.
Fractals and the Art of Code with Sanjin Dedic
Year 5 and 6: Technology
UNAVAILABLE IN TERM 2
Session 1: Programming shapes with Python
In this session we are going to write programs that create shapes using the turtle library in which the program moves a turtle on screen leaving behind a trace. We are going to start off by using loops to repeat patterns of moving and turning which draw squares. We will learn how to combine this with variables create a function that can draw any polygon: triangle, square, pentagon, octagon
Session 2: Drawing Trees, Shells and Fractals
Every day video games and animated movies move closer to resembling reality, this is made possible in great part through our understanding of fractals which are self similar patterns that occur everywhere in nature: shells, clouds, plantlife, river systems etc . . . Fortunately for us we can create a great variety of spectacular fractal shapes using only turtle and a process called recursion where functions that draw shapes call on themselves.
Sanjin is a teacher and a robotics engineer with a background in product development. His main passion is presenting programming and robotics in a way that can be embraced and understood by everyone, especially primary school students. In doing so he hopes to inspire young and imaginative minds to join in the creation of the hi-tech world that is developing around us.
Gaia Radio with Dimitiri Douchin
Year 5 and 6: Science
UNAVAILABLE IN TERM 2
There are approximately five million animal species on our Earth. For our ecosystem to run like a well-oiled clock, surely these species must communicate together in one way or another. But how? How do animals communicate between members of a species? Across species? How can the human animal communicate with other animals? Do ants have a sense of smell? How can spiders hear without ears? What's the structure of a cricket swarm? Can we communicate with species that we don't know exist? Get ready to explore different aspects of animal communication by understanding the biology and cognition of various species. We will investigate why species need to interact with one another and how they do this with all their eight senses. The human animal communication will also be examined through a variety of quirky games and the exploration of animalic behaviours. Turn all your senses on for this interspecies program!
Dimitri has travelled from France, where he studied physics, to Australia where he graduated with a PhD in Astronomy and Astrophysics. He shared his passion for the wonders of space and the Universe as an educator at Sydney Observatory. Dimitri now devotes his time in researching and teaching children and adults how humans can live harmoniously on our Earth... and on other planets!
Here Be Monsters with Dr Kim Edwards
Year 5 and 6 : Language and Literature
UNAVAILABLE IN TERM 2
Here Be Monsters: Exploring Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein!
Take one strange dream, add an extraordinary teenage author, drop in a ‘mad’ scientist, stir up a ‘monstrous’ creation, pour over three strange tales, and combine vigorously with a remarkable narrative structure – and you get one of the most famous and fabulous gothic novels of all time! We’ll be compounding ‘recipes for disaster’ as we create our own fictional monsters, go in search of the ‘real’ monster lurking at the end of this book, and experiment in our own creative writing laboratories to try and reproduce Mary Shelley’s remarkable narrative shape – what might YOU find yourself unleashing before the story (and this Journey Online) is through…?!
Kim teaches English literature and creative writing to university and high school students, and drama and theatre skills to both adults and kids all over Melbourne. She has run book clubs and cabarets, performed Shakespeare and written sonnets, dabbled in Dickens and is best buddies with the Brontes, and while she loves a ripping good yarn, she is still convinced everything we get to read and write in our lives is always a thrilling new adventure!
Imagine That! with Ruth Birmingham
Year 5 and 6: Maths
UNAVAILABLE IN TERM 2
We can count for as long as we like and break numbers into fractions and decimals. We are even able to use irrational numbers like Pi which have never ending decimal places. But do these numbers really exist or are they just ideas in our heads? There is another type of number called an ‘imaginary’ number, come and meet i, an unreal number, that actually makes mathematics easier and extremely elegant. Join us as we use imaginary numbers to make patterns and find out how the combination of ‘real’ and ‘imaginary’ numbers, called ‘complex numbers,’ changed mathematics completely and brought a new tool to the fields of electronics and quantum mechanics.
Ruth is an experienced high school Maths Coordinator and Gifted and Talented Coordinator. Her love of teaching both primary and high school students allows her students to develop an appreciation, understanding and confidence to explore the world of maths. Ruth has taught maths to gifted and talented students as well as sessional maths teaching at Macquarie University. She has also trained school teams for the da Vinci Decathlon. Ruth is looking forward to continuing and extending her passion and enthusiasm with G.A.T.E.WAYS to motivate and inspire tomorrow’s mathematicians
Let's Go Back to the Future with Anna Jahjah
Year 5 and 6 : Language and Literature
UNAVAILABLE IN TERM 2
In the 19th century, H.G. Wells imagined the concept of time travel. His Time Machine allowed whoever used it to travel back and forth in time. In the British series Dr Who, the doctor goes a step further and creates a machine to travel through time AND space. You think it’s impossible? This is exactly what people said about trips to the moon before the rocket was invented... Join our ultra secret lab where we create the future of humanity and turn the unbelievable into believable! But the course is selective and only the most creative minds make it through...
Anna moved to Australia after studying Drama but also British, American and Arabic Literature and Civilisation in France. She has been teaching drama, storytelling and creative writing techniques to French and Australian children for over 10 years. She also owns her own theatre company which gives a voice to characters and stories that are rarely heard in Australia. She loves working with children and discovering what unexpected ideas they always seem to come up with!
Location, Location, Location! with Michelle Emsley
Year 5 and 6 : Critical thinking
UNAVAILABLE IN TERM 2
Have you ever heard the expression, 'they've bitten off more than they can chew’? We use it when people have taken on more than they can handle. The staff at 'Devine Developers' have done just that. They're currently considering multiple sites for the building of several new developments. Each site will attract residents with different requirements. They cannot decide what to do and the director, Marvin Magnificent, is threatening to sack them all if they cannot come up with a plan soon. They really need your help! You'll need to consider a range of factors relating to an individual site, so that you can advise the staff about what types of homes and leisure facilities would most suit prospective residents. Be warned – you will need to think outside of the box as each site has some particularly challenging issues you'll need to overcome!
Michelle worked as a local newspaper reporter and a radio producer in London before completing her teacher training, in 2009. She has taught at a number of schools in London and in the greater metropolitan area of Sydney. Michelle regularly contributes to an education magazine and she enjoys writing short stories for children and young adults. She developed a passion for working with gifted and talented students while teaching in the mainstream classroom. Michelle finds it thrilling to observe students tapping into their potential while completing open ended inquiry tasks. She has enjoyed facilitating these types of challenges in the mainstream classroom and she is delighted to be taking this further with G.A.T.E.WAYS.
Lost and Found with Florence Kermet-Florens
Year 5 and 6: Critical Thinking
UNAVAILABLE IN TERM 2
What do Bill Chang, Joyce and the Robinson’s children have in common? All our heroes got lost in a foreign environment and looked for an escape from their perilous adventure! For some, it happened in the space; for others, in another country, in the Australian bush or a foreign tropical rainforest. Some even found themselves out of place in what could be your own home!
This program invites you to trade places with lost children from real and imagined stories and paintings. The Duff children, the Chinese ‘Paper Sons’, the girls from the infamous Picnic at Hanging Rock saga, and children from the Stolen Generation are just a few of the characters in peril who we will explore. Why does the theme of the lost child captivate the reader or viewer? Join us as we employ dramatic tools to write our own powerful narratives. You will learn to advance a story rich with danger and suspense, engendering fear for your protagonists’ survival, and ultimately one which results in rescue. Your imagination will take flight as you overcome all odds - utterly lost initially and then liberatingly found!
Florence holds a Masters of Literature and Civilization degree from Southern France, a Post Graduate Certificate in Education from London and an Advanced Diploma of Arts in Stage and Screen Acting from Sydney. In addition to her fascination for intercultural communication, she has a passion for sharing her love of learning and helping children express themselves via creativity.
Money, Money, Money Series 1 with Leslie Marsh
Year 5 and 6: Maths
UNAVAILABLE IN TERM 2
The world has always been obsessed with money-making! It’s a game of mathematics that everyone wants to play and mad Professor Currency is no different. He’s been tinkering around in his lab again and has built a quantum machine that allows you to step through space-time, and now he’s recruiting budding mathematicians to travel through history and help him make his fortune! En route, you’ll build on your computational skills, pick up tips and tricks to trade, develop your understanding of why and how we use money the way we do in the current era and attempt to grow your assets from mere pocket money to a billionaire’s bank balance. WHOOSHAA! The wormhole has opened – it’s time to go forth and make money multiply!
Leslie has worn many hats in his career: he has been a film editor, a cinematographer, a drummer, and now an economist. He has a passion for maths and statistics and for the last few years has been teaching economics and econometrics (the statistics economists use) at the University of Sydney. When not teaching, Leslie can be found researching machine learning techniques, and turning maths into body percussion with the dance group Junkyard Beats.
Money, Money, Money Series 2 with Leslie Marsh
Year 5 and 6: Maths
*Students must have completed Money, Money, Money Series 1 before enrolling in this program*
UNAVAILABLE IN TERM 2
You hear the familiar buzz of the time machine and suddenly find yourself in a bright world of flashing lights and dollar signs. The time machine has brought you to 1960’s Las Vegas! The home of extravagance and mindless spending. Paper money has been introduced now, so you can spend to your heart’s desire. Or can you? What happens if we print more and more money? Do we get richer - or do things just get more expensive? Head to the casino and place your bets in games of memory of strategy. What is the probability of coming up aces? Test your memory, there are only 52 cards in a pack! We’ll delve into statistics and use probability to increase our chances of winning, calculating the odds as we go. Will you hedge your bets and play it safe or risk it all for the big bucks?
Leslie has worn many hats in his career: he has been a film editor, a cinematographer, a drummer, and now an economist. He has a passion for maths and statistics and for the last few years has been teaching economics and econometrics (the statistics economists use) at the University of Sydney. When not teaching, Leslie can be found researching machine learning techniques, and turning maths into body percussion with the dance group Junkyard Beats.
You Can't/Shouldn't Say That! with Layla Sacker
Year 5 and 6: Language and Literature
UNAVAILABLE IN TERM 2
It’s all about time! We will be winding our way back through the past and exploring moral tales for children across the decades. But ask yourselves if these good tales for children – meet Conrad, who sucked his thumb until the Scissor Man came to chop it off; Good grief! Even more awful is the story of Flying Robert, who played outside in a storm and was never seen again; and Harriet, whose kittens witnessed her setting fire to her apron while playing with matches. Terrifying! Are these really stories that you would read today? They don’t look much like stories we like to read to our little brothers and sisters and buddies– but they’re a lot of fun to write, and very entertaining, while still imparting important messages to the audience. What might be important to teach children to do, or not to do in this day and age? Twenty years ago? Fifty? A hundred? We will be exploring the poetry of the past, familiarising ourselves with the language and purpose and get than getting our imaginations going and writing our own politically incorrect moralising poems that will teach those youngsters a jolly good lesson about the consequences of behaving badly.
Layla teaches English Literature to both primary and secondary school students. She is passionate about the need for writers to have the time to develop their writing skills by exploring a wide range of written and spoken texts from the past and present. She exhibits her own paintings and applies her training in the Arts to enable her writers to use art as a further source of inspiration. She has a firm belief in the capacity of children to think outside the box and her creative writing students from primary school to university have done just that. She delights in using technology and multimedia as texts as well as drawing on traditional literature.
