The Inspire Program for our Gifted and Talented Students

Introduction:

At Canberra High School there are a range of activities designed to inspire all students to achieve their best, try something new, engage with different social aspects, and build their academic portfolio. There is the Inspire Program designed to target gifted and talented students in the school as well as academic competitions where students can show their prowess in subject areas.

da Vinci Decathlon Team at State Competition - 2023

History Challenge submission - 2023

There are also community focussed extra curricular activities such as the Interact Club, Green Team and SAGA and other clubs to support students interests such as the JLP Mountain Bike Club and Coding Club. All of these can be found on the Canberra High School Connect web page.

For musicians there is the extra curricula music program (CHAMP) and for students who excel in the sporting field there is the Athlete Development Program (ADP). There is also the F1 Team which competes against other schools across Australia  in the development of a 3D designed and printed race car.

Formula 1 in Schools - 2023

Lastly, for students in year 10 they can select to undertake a vocational education course in hospitality or building and construction, thereby earning tertiary qualifications while in high school.

Students are encouraged to look into the opportunities available to them as inspiration during their time at Canberra High School.

Inspire Program

The Inspire Program is offered to cater for the individual needs of our gifted and talented students. A student may choose to be extended in either one or more of the subject areas in maths, humanities (HaSS), English or science. Details of these subjects and expectations can be found in the Policy and Procedures of the Inspire Program.

To enter the program there is a multi-faceted selection process which includes:

• Primary school recommendations and/or involvement in primary school G&T programs
• Parental-questionnaire for year 7 students and parental recommendations for yrs 8, 9 and 10
• Secondary school teacher recommendation (academic excellence within their teaching subject, and /or identification of underachievers (sleepers)
• Academic excellence over the course of a semester
• OLSAT/NAPLAN, PAT, other testing tools

Upon successful entry, Inspire students are granted genuine extension opportunities in the subject area(s) of their choice. Inspire students are also extended both culturally and socially through philosophy classes held regularly with their peers. These lessons support deep thinking and offer a wonderful opportunity to meet other like-minded students.

For more information, please do not hesitate to contact the school's Gifted & Talented Coordinator, Mel Timpson on 61420800 or via email at  melinda.timpson@ed.act.edu.au.

Academic Competitions

There are a range of competitions open to all students in the school. For students of the Inspire Program some of them are compulsory as part of their subject choice. Current competitions by subject area are:

If a student in your family is interested in any of these competitions they should contact the relevant faculty to receive information about dates and processes to enter.