The James Dyson Foundation was created to help inspire and support the next generation of engineers. Here at the St John’s Campus, we began collaborating with the Foundation in September last year and began introducing a new program in Term 4 with the Year 3 students. This year, the program has so far extended to include the Year 3 and Year 4 cohorts.

Year 3 students are using the air purifier, donated to the school by the Foundation, to help them develop an understanding of what air pollution is and how can we change our habits to create a better future. Students are exploring how air pollution effects people in their everyday lives in different countries and also how Australia is affected by pollution. They are investigating if their route and mode of transport to school changes their pollution footprint, but also their exposure to pollution.

Year 4 students participated in the program in Term 1 this year. They became Design Engineers for a term where they learnt the difference between innovating and inventing. Throughout the term, students chose to work either independently or in groups innovating a product within the classroom. We certainly have some visionaries in this bunch! They went through the motions of picking a product, evaluating the good and bad components of it, then developing a better product based on the changes they wanted to make. Students finished up by creating a cardboard prototype of their new product - just as they do at Dyson in a product’s early stages of development!

So far, the program has proved engaging and enlightening for the students. It has gotten them to think outside the box and shown them that the first attempt isn’t necessarily the right attempt. I can’t wait to see what they do in the future.

Adriana Weling
Reception-Year 4 STEM Teacher - St John’s Campus