Welcome back to school everyone, we have hit the ground running this term in the Enrichment space but before we share what’s been happening, there are a few things that we would like to share with you all from our busy last few weeks of Term 1 and some exciting things that took place in the school holiday break.
Women in Aviation at Parafield Airport
On Wednesday in Week 10, Term 1, Vanessa drove students to Parafield for the Women in Aviation International Australia Career Day. David, our aviation teacher, helped organise this enrichment opportunity with the assistant SA Chair of WAI to help bridge the gap enabling us to offer such opportunities for females to explore more male dominant professions such as aviation. Thank you to David for making this opportunity happen. Students were met by female controllers in the control tower to hear from each of them about their job role and prior experience in the field, next they went to explore the flight simulator at Aerostar and were then given a special tour of a fixed wing aircraft (Baron) and a helicopter before finishing with a tour of the Aerostar maintenance facility at Aero Service. To hear from how our students engaged with the experience, read below.
On this aviation day we got to tour around Aerostar workplace and learnt about all the different careers in aviation, and all the different ways we can get into the industry. We got to learn about different planes such as barrens, and different helicopters. We got to go up to the control tower and see how everything works and runs up there, and we got to investigate the maintenance and engineering side as well. It was so fun getting to look at so many different careers in aviation, but the most fun part of the day was getting to be in contact with women in the industry and see how they got there, and to learn their story! – Isabella, Year 10
Today, we went to Aerostar in Parafield and met two female pilots. We went into the Parafield Air Traffic Control tower, met the female manager there, and watched what an Air Traffic Controller does. We went inside a plane and learnt about the different controls. We did a flight simulator and met a female helicopter pilot and an Aircraft Engineer. We also learnt about different career pathways within aviation. – Mia, Yr 10
The Women in Aviation Career Day was a great way to learn about different aspects of aviation and that there are multiple pathways for the end goal. I also found myself interested in things that I would not have thought I would be interested in as much, such as helicopters or aircraft engineering for example. Today was very fun overall with all the new opportunities such as being able to go air side and the ladies over in Aerostar were amazing with their explanations and tours throughout various areas in Parafield airport. – Chantelle, Year 10
At Parafield, we met Jessica and Tash, who are learning to fly. They took us to the Air Traffic Control (ATC) Tower, where the manager, another Jessica, explained how ATC keeps pilots safe. We saw controllers at work and learned about their challenging job. Next, we toured the Baron, a twin-engine plane used for lessons and tried a flight simulator. Then, a helicopter instructor explained how helicopters work and their engineering details. Finally, we met Jordan, a mechanic, who talked about his job and training. – Tabitha, Year 10
We had a great day on Wednesday at Parafield Airport exploring the different careers involved in aviation. I enjoyed the tour of the place, including the control tower, Baron plane and maintenance, where we got to see and sit in a helicopter. We had the chance to talk to many women who are in this field and hear their stories about getting into the industry. An interesting fact I learnt is that the light on the left wing of the plane is always red, and the light on the right wing is green to help other aircrafts know what side of the plane they are approaching. – Hanna Year 10
Bebras Computational Thinking Competition – Australian Maths Trust
Thursday, Week 10, four wonderful year 11’s Jackson, Anton, Matthew, and Trinity competed in the Bebras Computational Thinking Competition where they answered 15 challenging questions in a combination of multiple choice, integer and interactive responses. By doing this competition students actively develop crucial future-ready skills like research, digital literacy, and problem-solving. Well done to these students.
Maths Extension Program – Australian Maths Trust
This term we have had a number of students engaging in the AMT Maths Enrichment program and are being supported by the wonderful Tun during Passion Project to work through solving 16 abstract problems to be submitted in August. Students have begun the challenge in Week 1, and we will update you in the next few months.
Energy, Mining and Resources Immersion Program
An old scholar from the ASMS who is now affiliated with Adelaide University got the ASMS involved in the Energy, Mining and Resources Immersion Program, where Year 12 student Samuel took part and represented the ASMS during the school holiday break from 22 – 24 April 2025. The multiple day industry immersion program provided students with a firsthand insight into a day-in-the-life in the resources sector, the opportunity to tour mine sites, chat 1-1 with industry professionals, and participate in hands-on STEM workshops with current students and university academic staff.
Minecraft Design Challenge – Building Tomorrow’s workforce
A small group of students from Year 10-12 have been collaborating to complete a design challenge where they are working together explore and research STEM fields using Minecraft:Education as a platform to design areas suitable for needs in such a dynamic society.
Students are working on their designs as we speak and will give you a sneak peek in the coming info@ASMS editions.
Department for Education – Cyber Immersion Day
On Friday 28 February Week 5 in Term 1 the wonderful Sam took a group of students to Woodville High School for a Cybersecurity Escape Room. This Department initiative was a great way for students to get a taste of the cybersecurity and digital technology field, as well as put their critical thinking and problem-solving skills to the test and compete against other public schools. We were very proud to have brought students of both female and male genders as we were the only school who did on the day. We have received the news that students James and Jackson won both 1st and 2nd place (respectively) and Isabella won 9th place overall. James was awarded a Nintendo Switch lite and Jackson a XB100 Sony Speaker, courtesy of the Department for Education.
Well done to all students who participated on the day.
Young Writers Award
We had 4 entries to the Young Writers Award 2025, ran by the Australian Association of the Teaching of English (AATE). Students from Year 10-12 Jess, Ark & Sara have written and entered either a poetry piece or a prose up to 1,000 words and results will be released in August. The winning entry will feature on the cover of SAETA’s special edition Young Writers OPINION Journal, receive a certificate, a complimentary copy of the journal, a prize of $50.
Passion Project Showcase
We had an amazing showcase of our students’ diverse projects in Week 11 of last term. Our photography Passion Project students are currently working on making some video content to showcase to everyone, for now see some of the highlights below.
We have begun Week 1 of Passion Project for Term 2, most students have selected a new project to work on or are continuing with their Term 1 projects.
