News, Week 6, Term 2, 2026

This issue

1. Principal’s Message
2. Important Dates
3. Curiosity in the Community Week Part 1
4. Reconciliation Week
5. Brains or Bots?
6. Order from Chaos
7. Enrichment News
8. Open Night May
9. Biggest Morning Tea
10. Pathways
11. Library News
12. Sports Report

Principal’s Message

Celebrating Excellence in STEM Education: National Honours

We are thrilled to announce that the ASMS has been shortlisted as a 2026 Excellence Awardee: Best STEM Program (Street Science) at the Australian Education Awards! Congratulations to every member of our school community for this outstanding collective achievement. Details on the full list of shortlisted schools, programs, and individuals can be found at: 2026 Excellence Awardees | Australian Education Awards.

On a personal note, I am humbled to be shortlisted as the School Principal of the Year (Government). The Awardees will be announced in Sydney August 7; I’ll keep you posted. Thank you all for your continued support; none of this is possible without our ASMS community.

The Importance of Punctuality

A timely start to lessons ensures students benefit from the entire learning experience and shows respect for classmates and teachers. Arriving punctually sets the tone for focused, engaged learning, supporting everyone’s success. We appreciate your support in promoting punctuality with your young people and please let us know if there is any support we can offer to make this happen.

Staffing Updates

Kay Gillett resigned from the ASMS at the end of Term 1 after many years at the ASMS in a wide variety of valued roles. Simrat Gill has also resigned for family reasons after six years of service to the ASMS. We thank them both and wish them all the best for their next chapters.

Semester Two

As we approach the midpoint of 2026, we prepare for the Semester 2 changeover on Monday, 22 June. Balancing our semesters in this way gives every student consistent learning time. Year 10 and 11 Central Studies students will experience new classes and meet new teachers, an opportunity to experience a different aspect of the ASMS.

Find Opportunities on the Engagement and Enrichment Portal

Our Engagement and Enrichment portal page is your gateway to the many extracurricular activities and programs available. To explore current and previous opportunities:

1. Visit the school’s portal page.
2. Select the “Extracurricular” button at the top of the page.
3. Browse current offerings and see archived activities to anticipate future events.

This resource is updated regularly; I encourage everyone to get involved! Click on the link here to see current opportunities.

Applications for ASMS 2027 Now Open

Do you know a student who would love to join the ASMS in 2027? Applications (Round 2) are now open for next year. Please encourage interested families to apply and discover what makes ASMS a unique environment for STEM education and student agency.

Important Dates

Curiosity in the Community Week Part 1

Port Lincoln

Forty-three students and four teachers made a very long bus trip to Port Lincoln on Tuesday and settled into our comfortable with sea and hills views. Wednesday involved half a day of ASMS students leading Port Lincoln Junior Primary and Primary School students in a variety of science, mathematics and technology activities. Highlights included rescuing bottle rockets from neighbouring roofs and a highly engaged and appreciative response from our hosts. The other half of the day involved a visit to Oyster HQ at Coffin Bay, learning about, learning to shuck and braving eating oysters.

Thursday was a day of exploring Tumby Bay where our students worked with Junior Primary and Primary students at Tumby Bay Area School alternated with touring the town on foot and seeking out the numerous wall murals. In the afternoon, students thoroughly enjoyed the adventure and competition of learning to lawn bowl. A long, wet bus trip home did not fail to maintain the exemplary conduct and friendliness of the entire group; an excellent week out in the community.

Sharing the Science

During CiC week, the ‘Sharing the Science’ group travelled to local primary schools in the area to deliver science and maths workshops to younger students. Students worked in small groups to deliver some sort of scientific experiment to the students in an engaging way, and were instructed to create demonstrations for the kids to interact with. Activities ranged from Marshmallow Towers to DIY Lava Lamps and film cannister rockets. Students visited Kangarilla Primary School, Ascot Park Primary Schools, Bridgewater Primary School, Paringa Park Primary and Forbes Primary School. Our students enjoyed taking on the role of the teacher for a change, and were met with a range of very enthusiastic primary school students. 

Work Experience

Students found placements across a variety of industries including engineering, biomedical research, microscopy, pathology, architecture and education. Students had the opportunity to see cutting-edge technologies used in their chosen fields, connections to community applications, where research is going, day-to-day duties and make connections to their own pathways.

Students represented the school extremely well, with all employers being impressed with student behaviour, curiosity in the field, professionalism and work ethic. The ASMS thanks all of the industry employers for their time and care in nurturing our students in their respective pathways. 

Naracoorte

This year’s inaugural Naracoorte Camp was a huge success. Our students loved visiting both the Victoria and Alexandra Cave systems with our incomparable guide Andrew. These not only have exceptional natural beauty and fascinating speleothems, but the Victoria Cave showcases a diverse collection of fossils and bones from extinct megafauna and other taxa. Our students provided a highly appreciated Science and Technology Roadshow sessions to students of Penola Primary, Naracoorte Primary and Naracoorte High Schools. Not only did our hosts get the chance to engage with and learn about a diverse range of disciplines, but our students deepened their conceptual understandings by teaching to younger students.

Swan Reach

ASMS students and staff once again enjoyed their visit to Swan Reach Area School (SRAS) for Curiosity in the Community Week. Students prepared science learning activities focused on geological topics within a very short timeframe and should be proud of their ability to organise and turn ideas into reality so quickly. Monday was spent practising and refining lessons, while Tuesday was a busy day of travelling to Swan Reach and engaging in learning activities with SRAS students.

Students also visited Ngaut Ngaut Conservation Park, where they learned about Ngan­gu­raku culture and history, viewed significant rock art, and explored the site of Australia’s first archaeological dig. But that was not all. The day also included dinner at the Swan Reach Hotel, a visit to the River Murray International Dark Sky Reserve for an astronomy session that continued late into the evening, and some downtime in the SRAS gymnasium before ‘crashing’ on the floor for the night.

On Wednesday, staff and students returned to ASMS. Thursday saw students visit the Mawson Lakes Planetarium, while Friday was dedicated to reflecting on their learning and reviewing this year’s camp, with suggestions for making next year’s experience even better.

The students represented ASMS brilliantly throughout the week. They were polite, enthusiastic, inquisitive, and respectful at all times. ASMS staff commend them on such a successful and rewarding week.

Biodiversity

During CiC Week, the Biodiversity group explored the natural world through a range of hands-on experiences focused on biodiversity and conservation. Students took part in the ASMS Pokedex Challenge, using iNaturalist to document local species and contributing to more than 1,000 observations, 489 species and engaging 155 identifiers from around the world. They also visited the Adelaide Botanic Gardens and Belair National Park, learning about native plants, wildlife, and ecosystems, before finishing the week by planting vegetables and native plants in the community garden. Through citizen science, fieldwork and practical conservation activities, students developed a deeper appreciation for the biodiversity that surrounds them.

Stay tuned for more CIC Week recaps from each group in the Week 10 newsletter.

Message from Andamooka Primary School

Fiona Wilson, Principal of Andamooka Primary School sent us a letter thanking our ASMS students for their time along with a handmade card from the primary students. Here are some excerpts from her letter, and messages from the Andamooka community for our CiC week group:

“Your students were enthusiastic about their work and engaged fully with our children, explaining things in a simple way, without talking down to them. Your students gave positive feedback and helped out when needed to ensure that our students achieved success. All the comments at the end of the day were about how much ours had enjoyed spending the day with the ‘big kids’.”

“Congratulations for fostering such a positive environment that produces students of such a high calibre. They were all outstanding examples of how to be responsible and generous members of society” – Fiona Wilson, Principal, Andamooka Primary School.

Reconciliation Week

During National Reconciliation Week, our cohort watched the documentary called ‘In My Blood It Runs’ which asks us to consider the harms of systemic racism and highlights the need for reform and protection of First Nations children’s rights to learn their own culture and language. Students were very respectful and thoughtful in their engagement with this learning program and make many insightful comments on our final day in our discussions about the film themes. 

Eight students proudly represented our school at this year’s Reconciliation Breakfast held at the Adelaide Convention Centre. Students heard from keynote speaker Eddie Betts and enjoyed performances by Casey Donovan and Nathan May. The breakfast provided a valuable opportunity for students to deepen their understanding of Australia’s shared history and consider their role in creating a more respectful and inclusive future.

We were also very privileged to be loaned MOIETY, a portrait of Ethan Johnson, by Aboriginal photographer and filmmaker Colleen Strangways which was displayed in our foyer during National Reconciliation Week. Students were able to view this striking portrait this week, giving everyone the chance to stop and reflect on what it means to them, and consider the broader concept of how we all see each other.

Image: Colleen Strangways, ‘MOEITY’, 2019.

Brains or Bots?

Students in the Brains or Bots module have recently been thinking and working like scientists. In both the diffusion and electrochemistry specialisations, students deconstructed potential investigations before designing and refining their own investigations. They collected and analysed data, identified trends, evaluated the reliability of methods, and suggested improvements to increase accuracy and validity. Through this process, students have developed important scientific inquiry skills while deepening their understanding of how chemical reactions and processes can be controlled and manipulated. It has been fantastic to see students collaborate, problem-solve, and apply scientific thinking to real-world contexts.

In Brains or Bots students have moved into their final module: Tech Drivers. Sticking with The Matrix references from earlier in the Central Study, students go down the rabbit hole exploring the causes and effects of major scientific discoveries and innovations of the 20th and 21st centuries. They focus on this from both a historical and scientific perspective and build the research skills along the way. They also consider the question of how scientific knowledge can be more effectively communicated and apply their solution by communicating their findings in considered, entertaining and informative ways (think podcasts, YouTube videos, Brian Cox documentaries and any other amazing new communication forms the students come up with). 

Order from Chaos

With semester 1 coming to an end, the students are putting all their newly developed skills to the test by designing and implementing their own investigations to explore patterns. In addition to experiencing a number of experiments to elicit ideas, students have worked with their teachers to co-design their own investigation taking into account the requirements to collect and analyse data and mathematically model that data to make predictions. They have also reviewed their learning attainment against previous assessment criteria in order to target areas of development against the achievement and performance standards. As part of this process students have been introduced to project management software and using risk assessment matrices to consider all steps and aspects of their investigation in order to conduct them to a timeline and in a safe manner. 

We’ve had a myriad of different variations, from aerofoil resonance testing to glass frequencies, to copper plating, through to snowflake creation. Students can bring their understanding of statistics, arithmetic and geometric sequences and series into play, coupling this up with science learning from both Order from Chaos and also building on the sequence of learning just completed in Biodiversity, transferring skills from one Central Study to the next.

Enrichment News

Hanman Maths Competition

On Wednesday 6 May, we had 13 students across Year 10, Year 11 and Year 12 participate in the MASA Hanman Maths competition. Well done to Chathuki, Ashlyn, Anton, Matthew, Jasmine, Meharbir, Riya, Urja, Lewis, Romin, Jayden, Liam and Arlo for your participation.

Big Science Competition (ASI)

On Thursday 7 May, we held The Big Science Competition run by Australian Science Innovations (ASI). This is a 50-minute, mixed format online science competition testing science knowledge, critical-thinking and problem-solving skills. Questions are set in real-life, contemporary contexts, making them relatable, and interesting!

Congratulations to Nico for his participation. “I found this competition to be a great opportunity to practise my critical thinking and problem solving skills. The multi-step deductive reasoning required to solve some of the problems were aspects of the challenge I found very enjoyable.” – Nico, Year 10.

Triple J – Unearthed Music Competition 

On 11 May, Year 10 student Braydon submitted a song to the Triple J – Unearthed High Music Competition. He titled it ‘Burn after Listening’, Braydon used his Passion Project and home time to write the song. Well done and good luck on your submission.

What Matters? Writing Competition

In 2025, more than 6,500 young Australian students from across the country entered this competition. This year we had an important submission from Year 10 student Rianne about the influence of ‘Silence’. Thank you Rianne of raising your voice!

Inspiring Australians Student Summit 2026

Year 12 students Ark and Rosa attended the Inspiring Australians Student Summit 2026 hosted by Woodville High School at St Clair Recreation Centre on Friday 15 May, Week 3. Dr Karl, Katherine Bell-Pegg and Amber Brock-Fabel were the guest speakers.

“We were so lucky to be invited to this event, a highlight for me was hearing from all of the speakers and hearing their diverse stories. It was nice to see their values and passions within their fields come through strongly in the panel at the end. We were inspired by their life journeys and their resilience.” – Rosa and Ark.

Rostrum Voice of Youth – Public Speaking Competition

On Saturday 16 May, after a very busy Curiosity in the Community (CiC) week, Year 11 student Urja participated in the public speaking competition run Rostrum Voice of Youth (SA/NT). This national public speaking competition was held at Immanuel College, hear from Urja about her experience: “Rostrum Voice of Youth 2026 was a really rewarding experience that helped me grow both personally and academically. I enjoyed this opportunity to develop my public speaking skills, build confidence, and learn how to connect more effectively with an audience. I gained many valuable skills throughout the process that I will continue to implement in future competitions and in life! Overall, it was a very valuable experience, and I had a lot of fun!”.

Archaeology Day at Flinders

On Tuesday of Week 4, we had 12 ASMS students attend the Archaeology Day at Flinders University to celebrate National Archaeology Week 2026. Students were stretched with questions like “Have you ever wondered what humans were doing in the past?” They learnt that Archaeology is the study of humans throughout time, all the way back to our first ancestor, who lived about 7 million years ago. Students networked with a range of staff and students within the Flinders University Archaeology departments about current research and pathway advice. Students engaged in a range of hands-on activities including digging for artefacts, meeting some skeletons, hearing about ancient temples and historic shipwrecks, and visiting their labs. 

“Archaeology Day at Flinders University was a valuable opportunity to expand my knowledge of archaeology and gain an insight into the dedication, skills, and pathways required to achieve a high level of success in the field.” (Beth, Year 11) 

“It was really interesting to look at all the equipment and hear from some people with lots of knowledge around archeology” (Noa, Year 10)     

AEL Minecraft Build Challenge

This year we have had 2 student teams of Year 10 students submit their Minecraft worlds into the AEL Minecraft Build competition. Our 2026 competitors have big shoes to fill with ASMS taking 1st place last year. Our teams have been working on their research evidence, documentation, and implementing these into their Minecraft world since March this year. Students submitted their projects on Friday of Week 4. This year’s theme was ‘Engineering Failure Analysis – Structure Collapse’.

Team ‘ASMS builders’ consisted of Ali, Justin (Nico), Charith, and Zion worked on the CTV Building in Christchurch, New Zealand. Team ‘Brumadinho Crew’ consisted of Elroy, Neal and Rory worked on The Brumadinho Dam collapse.

This is fantastic work from these students, a lot of time, effort and collaboration went into these projects. We await the results and are keen to see their scoring on the criteria theme adherence, design, complexity and overall presentation.

Computational Algorithmic Thinking (CAT) competition (Australian Maths Trust)

On Thursday 21st May, Week 4, we ran the CAT competition during Passion Project and we had 2 Year 10 students; Arlo and Roxuan and Year 11 Matthew who participated. Student said that this competition “bent their minds a bit, but it was a good experience to think differently”. The Computational and Algorithmic Thinking (CAT) competition gives students the opportunity to develop their problem-solving skills through algorithmic thinking. The competition incorporates unique ‘three-stage tasks’ that encourage students to develop informal algorithms and apply them to test data of increasing size or complexity.

Parents and Caregivers access to our Enrichment Portal Page 

Parents and Caregivers with access to our Sharepoint portal are invited to see what Enrichment opportunities are coming up. You can use this to help encourage your child to try something new or experience things that are of interest to them.

Open Night May

Thank you to our students and staff for all their work supporting the ASMS at our first Open Night of 2026!

The entire school was abuzz with excitement, as our cohort met with prospective students and families at our site. With stations set up featuring Brains or Bots, Order from Chaos, Biodiversity and Learning Studies, visitors were able to explore our current Year 10 and 11 Central Studies subjects.

Guests also had the chance to learn more about our Stage 2 subjects, Enrichment, and International and Student Programs while exploring our open plan learning commons, ideation studio, and science laboratory.

We have another Open Night coming up in August, so please spread the word if you know families who are interested in the ASMS.

Biggest Morning Tea

This year we celebrated 18 years of our Biggest Morning Tea fundraiser cake baking competition! As always, the cohort brought their best culinary skills to the table for the judges to taste test, with everyone vying for the coveted ASMS golden spoon award for best cake. The winner will be announced at the next assembly, so stay tuned for more updates in future newsletters.

A special thank you as always to Deb, our Service Club Coordinator who has been keeping this tradition alive since 2008. Well done to all the students for their efforts raising money for Cancer Council research.

Pathways

2026 Flinders Assessment Centre

Year 11s are being asked to consider their interest in the Flinders Assessment Centre pathway option. Flinders offers the opportunity for select students to be assessed through a variety of activities for the suitability for University study. Students are sorted into bands based on this assessment, which indicates the courses available to them to apply for in 2027. The eligible courses are updated each year, the attached is the 2025 courses, 2026 will be updated around September and then again in September 2027 when current Year 11s will be selecting.

The purpose of the Assessment Centre is to relieve pressure for students in Year 12 and help solidify or confirm their chosen pathway. ASMS only has 48 student spaces available to send to Flinders on Tuesday 25^th August. We will be gathering expressions of interest from Year 11 students. Senior Colour Leaders and Leadership will then assess each EOI as needed to fill the 48 positions. This can be based on individual circumstances, learning needs, other pathways accessed and general learning behaviour.

Students are encouraged to review the resources and put in their EOI by Friday Week 10 Term 2. Students need to check their emails for the EOI link and further information. If they missed the presentation on Tuesday Week 6, they are encouraged to seek Jason for details.

Flinders University pathways beyond Year 12

Flinders University is running a presentation for Year 12 students on Wednesday Week 8. The purpose is to cover new courses, entry opportunities, how university applications will work for Flinders and general Q&A. With Year 12 home studies being approved, Year 12s are encouraged to make sure they are present for this presentation and to keep an eye on their emails for further details.

Tertiary Open Days 

Open Days are beginning to emerge for EOI, students are encouraged to seek out their desired institutions and make sure to add relevant dates to their calendars. ASMS does not attend Open Days with students as majority of them fall on weekends. Some potential options are linked below:

• Adelaide University
• Flinders University
• Torrens University
• Academy of Interactive Entertainment
• SAE
• TAFE SA
• Charles Sturt
• Deakin University
• Monash University

Studying Medicine at Flinders Presentation

Around 30 Students from Year 10,11&12 opted in to find out more about what is required and how studying medicine looks at Flinders. 

The presentation had a variety of information for undergraduate and post-graduate entry, but was also realistic with students about what is required to commit to this pathway. Discussing competitive ATAR scores, how UCAT or GAMSAT work, How many positions are available each year and alternative courses that can lead into a Doctor of Medicine. Students asked lots of questions and felt enriched and more prepared about their pathway options. Year 12s are currently using part of Learning Studies to solidify their Career and Pathway options, while Year 10&11s will engage with this in the coming weeks. Students have been encouraged to use this time wisely if seeking to pursue Medicine.

Year 12 July Holiday Revision Seminars

Adelaide Tuition Centre has released its July Holiday Revision Seminars. Sessions are typically 3 hours and cost $85 per session. Each seminar summarises important theory, key concepts and practical skills essential to each Year 12 SACE subject. This can be a great way to refresh your memory, get a deeper understanding and prepare for exams. Year 12 students are encouraged to discuss with their subject teacher the suitability for them personally and which sessions may be beneficial for them. Book face to face here. Virtual Seminars are offered as 5x 2hr course for Chemistry, Biology and Mathematical Methods, for $350.

Library News

Sports Report

It has been another busy and successful period for school sport, with students representing the school with enthusiasm, determination and excellent sportsmanship across a range of events.

Our boys’ Futsal knockout team enjoyed an outstanding run in their competition, progressing all the way to the final round. In a spectacular and closely contested match, the boys narrowly missed out on victory. It was a fantastic effort from the team, who came incredibly close to winning their overall bracket and should be proud of their achievements throughout the competition.

Our AFL Nine-a-Side girls’ team also competed at a carnival against several highly experienced schools. For many of our girls, it was their first experience playing the sport, yet they embraced the challenge wholeheartedly. Often competing with only eight players on the field instead of the full nine, the team demonstrated resilience, determination and teamwork throughout the day. Their willingness to give their best in every contest was excellent to see, and they represented the school exceptionally well.

The badminton carnival was another highlight, with almost a full busload of 30 students attending alongside two staff members. Students competed in doubles matches throughout the day and produced some excellent results. Several of our teams were successful in winning their divisions, reflecting the strong skill level and commitment shown by our players.

Our boys’ basketball knockout team travelled to Victor Harbor and delivered an impressive performance, winning both of their matches to claim their bracket and progress to the second round of competition. The second game was a thrilling win, with the team trailing by eight points heading into the final quarter. Through determination, teamwork and some outstanding individual performances, the boys fought back to secure a six-point victory and continue their knockout campaign.

The annual Students versus Staff volleyball match also provided plenty of excitement. Following a closely fought contest during lunchtime after our last assembly, the students managed to secure a draw, winning one set each. This result marks the students’ first non-loss in the series this year and shows that the gap is beginning to close. Congratulations to the students on their efforts, and we look forward to seeing whether they can continue this positive trajectory in future matches.

There are still plenty of sporting opportunities to come. Upcoming events include knockout soccer competitions for both boys and girls, while Term 3 will feature table tennis, volleyball and seven-a-side soccer. We encourage all students to keep an eye on their emails, sign up for upcoming sports, get involved, make new friends and enjoy the many opportunities that school sport provides. Thank you to all students, staff and volunteers who continue to support our sporting programs and help make these events such positive experiences for everyone involved.

Need help? Get in touch with ICT

If you are having any issues with the portal, or Daymap, please get in touch with by emailing ict@asms.sa.edu.au.