Inquiry & Innovation
Children learn best when connections are made between the disciplines, rather than teaching subjects in isolation. Inquiry Units connect big ideas and concepts to engage our students to real life issues. Through termly Units of Inquiry students to develop knowledge about their world and develop the skills and competencies that will equip them for life in the 21st century.
At the heart of each Inquiry Unit is our mission to “make a difference in our world.” Our Inquiry Units challenge students to ask “How can we use our knowledge and skills to make a difference or bring about change in our local or global community?”
We have a strong focus on merging STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) education and skills within our curriculum and believe our students will become more animated learners by embracing the opportunities technology provides.
STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Maths) is an approach to learning and development that integrates the areas of science, technology, engineering and mathematics. Skills developed by students through STEM provide them with the foundation to succeed at school and beyond.
Through STEM, students develop key skills including:
- problem solving
- creativity
- critical analysis
- teamwork
- independent thinking
- initiative
- communication
- digital literacy.
At St Mary’s, Digital and Design Technologies are embedded across the curriculum, with students developing and using STEM skills to solve problems and to take action in our Faith Inquiry Units.
Our students use technology in an authentic context on a daily basis. They are given opportunities to collaborate, research and discover with digital tools and teachers engage with students through these online platforms. Technology is integrated into the students learning, in an effort to develop essential problem solving and technical skills that are a key component of living in a rapidly evolving technological society.
St. Mary’s utilises the tools of the "G Suite for Education" and students in Years 3-6 have access to one-to-one chromebooks. Banks of iPads are used in the Prep - Year 2 classrooms.
As ‘Digital Natives”, students are guided and supported to explore online resources safely. We recognise that a strong home-school partnership is vital to effectively provide a quality provide Cybersafety program for students. Parent information sessions regarding Cyber Safety are offered to our parent community as well as resources to assist parents in managing technology in the home.