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On Friday, the 20^th of October, all STEM Extension students in Years 3-6 went to Christ the King Primary School in Braybrook. In addition to our two schools, there were also students from St Charles Borromeo Catholic Primary School in Templestowe. Students all brought projects they had been working on from either the Smart Home, Smart Agriculture or Smart City kits. These kits use Micro:bits and a bunch of different sensors to make homes, farms or cities more automatic or sustainable.

Some of the projects our students made included house alarms that would go off if you opened a door or stole something; devices to deter insects or shade plants on farms; and automatic lighting or watering systems for basketball courts or soccer fields. We brought models and presentations and shared them with the other schools.

At the end of the day, students from all three schools mixed to form 20 teams, who competed in a Sphero Battlebot competition. Spheros are little robots shaped like a ball, and they can be controlled by an iPad. To create the Battlebots, students put a paper cup on top of the Sphero, tied a balloon to the back of it and added a pin, some paperclips and some paddlepop sticks. Then all the Spheros battled each other to see if they could knock each other over or pop each other’s balloon. It was a really fun way for students to practise design thinking, play with robots and collaborate with other schools.

At the end of the day, Antonine College was awarded a plaque for our participation, and students also received individual certificates. We are grateful to Sammat Education for facilitating this great opportunity for students, and to the parents and staff who came along for the day.

- Ms Mori Milholland