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With a new building project about to start on-site, Year 4/5 students at Saint David’s Parish School have been busy using the real building experience to explore what makes a really great learning space.

Students have been working with local architects and engineers who have assisted them with interpreting architectural building plans. They have been conducting research into suitable materials and furniture and with some design inspiration thanks to donations of material samples and products from local businesses, have created their own furniture designs for an educational environment. Students used the online program Tinkercad to create their designs and brought the prototypes to life using a 3D printer.

Year 4/5 students have also been busy fitting out floorplan models, creating furniture in proportion to the space, creating logos, designing business cards and writing a pitch proposal in the lead up to their Learning Expo - which was held on Thursday 16 August 2018.

In 2018 and 2019, Saint David’s Parish School is involved in the CESA STEM UniSA Project, a two year project aimed at optimising STEM education in SA Catholic Schools. Funding provided from the Catholic Education Office (CEO) will be used to provide teacher release time for STEM work, professional learning and collaboration with other partners.

Students used their STEM lessons to get ready for the Learning Expo - including writing their group pitch proposals which were delivered to the school principal on the day.

“This learning initiative has given our students a real life taste of future career opportunities in the areas of product development, sales, architecture, building and design, landscaping, floor plan drawing, engineering, interior design, project management, marketing and proposal writing. The students are looking forward to sharing their ideas with the school community and having a voice in the design of the new learning spaces.” Caroline O’Halloran, Director of STEM Education

The Learning Expo was a great success for the Saint David’s Parish School community - it was a fun day for all involved. Year 4/5 students were asked to consider what they thought would make their ideal learning space and as a result, they shared their amazing creations to demonstrate their thoughts... there were pinball machines, aquariums, beanbags, large windows, sporting murals, lots of TVs and more.

Student comments:

“We worked as a team and had fun. I learnt that you have to use maths in the outside world. The working out showed measurement, structural design and different materials and different ways to use them.” Sienna

“I also learnt how hard it is and to not give up when you’re really stressed out, just keep pushing.” Sian

“I was the manager of technology so I made the technology and I decided what tech we needed.” Amity

“I think our design should be chosen because it is sustainable, has good light and reaches the student’s needs.” Hayden

“I learnt that we can build anything together as long as we are a team. I love doing this STEM task, my favourite part was the building part. The mini-technology room was hard to build but looks fantastic.” Jy

“Our design that we made was a light, calming, happy, creative and great learning space for kids now and in the future. In addition, our model should be chosen because it is a unique design and lots of sustainability can help kids concentrate better and get better grades.” Charlee