There is nothing like creativity and determination in action! Tournament of Minds (TOM) provided an opportunity for our 7 STA students to develop their teamwork and problem solving skills, while exploring their creative side and natural talents. It was a 6 week process of weekly after school sessions and break time practices, but they went from a group of individuals to a cohesive team who shone in their TOM presentation. Who knew we had such a talented bunch of amazing kids?!

On Saturday, the 30th of August, our Yr 5/6 TOM team competed in the Social Sciences Challenge, called “TOMmunity Tackles Town Tensions!”. The challenge involved designing a community centre for Canberra and working through the difficult decisions around location, environmental impact, safety, and meeting the needs of a range of people in the community. Our team chose two locations, one in Taylor and one in Macquarie. They set up an STA News set and made their own props to distinguish their characters, which allowed them to present their ideas and discuss the issues across the community. Feedback from the judges was very positive including comments like, “it flowed well and was engaging for the audience… Great insight into the social considerations. A real strength of yours was your characterisations in your interviews,” - our team was thrilled with the outcome and so proud of their efforts. 

Next was the Spontaneous Challenge, where the team had 4 minutes to brainstorm and then present a 1 minute solution to the problem - “What would happen if the number 42 was absent?” With allocated roles, they discussed their ideas, then the students presented with enthusiasm, enthralling the judges. The judges commented that they “really enjoyed hearing all your creative ideas and critical expansion of the implications of the absence of the number 42,” The team finished with a buzz and we were all so pleased with the results.

Congratulations to the 5/6 team - Poppy R., Nella W-S, Mikayla M., Charlotte S., Adam H., Marko C. C. and Jackson H. - on your stellar efforts and representing STA PS with pride. Thank you to Mrs Wang and Miss Smart for helping to coordinate and facilitate the event, especially Mrs Wang who was a volunteer judge all weekend!! We look forward to more students enjoying this enriching experience in 2026.

Miss Smart