The Tasmanian Science Talent Search 2025

The Tasmania Science Talent Search 2025 PDF can be found: TSTS 2025 Information Booklet

What to do:

1. Decide on the 3-5 key science ideas you
   want to cover in your entry.
2. Create your picture book. Remember,
   artwork can be created using any
   medium and at least 75% should be
   original work. Handwriting is OK as
   long as it is clear and legible, but typed
   text is preferred.
3. Add your appendix summarising the
   science ideas you used to develop your
   story.
4. Add your bibliography and
   acknowledgments.
5. Submit your picture book as an A4 or A3 PDF.

Resources and inspiration:

Exploring Picture Story Books
Writing Your Picture Story Book (PDF Download)

Marking Criteria

1. The book includes a clear scientific concept relevant to the theme.
2. The book includes an accurate portrayal of the scientific concept.
3. The creativity of the storyline.
4. Visual impact.
5. Adherence to guidelines.

What to do:

1. Decide on the 3-5 key science ideas you
want to cover in your entry.
2. Write your piece. Be creative!
3. Add your appendix listing each
scientific idea covered in your entry.
For Divisions 3 and above, this
should include a short (1 – 3
sentence) explanation of each
concept.
4. Add your bibliography and
acknowledgments.
5. Submit your entry as an A4 PDF.

Marking Criteria

1. The piece includes a clear scientific concept relevant to the theme.
2. The piece includes an accurate portrayal of the scientific concept.
3. There’s a clear integration of the concept into the piece.
4. The piece displays the creativity of expression of the topic.
5. Cohesion of elements is of a high quality.
6. Adherence to guidelines.

What to do:

1. Decide on the topic for your poster.
Posters should advertise a science
concept, issue or idea in a way that is
eye-catching, informative and/or
challenges a person’s thinking.
2. Create your entry.
3. Submit your poster as an A3 PDF.

Resources:

How to make an infographic

Marking Criteria

1. Poster includes a clear scientific concept relevant to the theme.
2. The Poster includes an accurate portyayl of the scientific concept.
3. Poster displays the creativity in topic choice.
4. Poster displays the creativity of expression of topic.
5. Quality of poster presentation.
6. Adherence to guidlines.

What to do:

1. Take your photographs and edit them
if you would like to.
2. Create your title page. This should
include your project name, your
name, the division you are entering,
and your school’s name.
3. Add your photos (one per page) in
any order you like. Photos may be
accompanied by a caption (up to 20
words each).
4. Write your artist’s statement (no more
than 200 words).
5. Add your bibliography and
acknowledgments.
6. Submit your essay as a PDF.

Marking Criteria

1. Photographs highlight a clear scientific concept relevant to these.
2. The artist’s statement/captions show an understanding of topic.
3. Photographs highlight technical skills.
4. The selection and sequence of photos tell a story.
5. Artisits’ statements show a link between intention and outcome.
6. Adherence to guidelines.

What to do:

1. Choose the topic you wish to convey
in your video.
2. Write a script and plan your shoot.
Think about your use of sound, slow
motion, subtitles, animation, colour,
etc.
3. Film and edit your footage.
4. Include a credits section. Make sure
to add everyone involved and what
they did.
5. Upload your video to a video sharing
site like YouTube
6. Make sure your video can be viewed
by anyone with a link.
7. Submit your video by sharing a link to
your entry All entries must be
submitted via the www.stat.org.au
website, following the required
submission procedure.

Resources and inspiration

Sleek Geeks
MyState Filmmaking Guides

Marking Criteria

1. The video highlights a clear scientific concept relevant to the theme.
2. Scientific concepts are used accurately in the video.
3. Video conveys a coherent message.
4. Footage, editing, and sound are of a high quality.
5. Video show clarity of expression and story.
6. Adherence to guidelines.

What to do:

1. Choose the topic you wish to write
your essay on. Make sure it is clear
which you have chosen.
2. Plan your essay. Write a thesis
statement, do some background
reading, and plan your arguments.
3. Write your essay. You may want to
use images, tables, or graphs to
support your argument, but these
should be used sparingly.
4. Cite your sources in-text and include
a bibliography.
5. Add an acknowledgements paragraph
at the end of your essay including
anyone who helped develop your
essay including in the planning or
editing stages.
6. Submit your essay as a PDF. All
entries must be submitted via the
www.stat.org.au website, following the
required submission procedure.

Resources and inspiration

Persuasive Writing
Plagiarism & Referencing

Marking Criteria

1. Scientific concepts relevant to the theme were identified.
2. Scientific concepts were described clearly and accurately.
3. Essay contains an appropriate amount of scientific content
4. Specialised vocabulary is used accurately.
5. Information is presented in an engaging and informative manner.
6. Adherence to guidelines.
7. Conclusions drawn in the essay are appropriate.
8. Resources used as evidence are appropriate.

What to do:

1. Discover the Problem

• Think about a problem affecting your school, community, or the environment.
• Look for ways nature might have already solved a similar problem.

2. Explore Nature’s Ideas

• Research natural systems (e.g., how bees build hives, how trees grow, or how fish swim).
• Ask: Why does this system work? Could this help solve your problem?

3. Design Your Solution

• Imagine a creative idea inspired by nature.
• Draw or build your idea as a prototype. This could be:
  • A physical model made with craft materials.
  • A digital drawing or 3D design.
  • A coded animation or simulation.

4. Test and Imagine

• Imagine how your idea would work in real life.
• Think about what might go wrong and how to improve it.
• Ask: How could this idea help people or the environment?

5. Share Your Work

• Create a report explaining your idea.
• Include photos, drawings, videos, or any other visuals to support your explanation.
• Share who would benefit from your solution and how it could be used.

Some ideas for inspiration related to the theme:

Nature and Communication:

• How can patterns like bird songs or ant trails inspire better communication systems?

Sustainability and Efficiency:

• How can natural processes like photosynthesis or leaf shapes improve energy or resource use?

Materials and Structures:

• How can designs like honeycombs or spider webs help us build stronger, lighter structures?

Resilience and Adaptation:

• How can ideas from nature (like animal camouflage or deep-sea creatures’ pressure resistance)
  help solve tough problems?

Marking Criteria

1. The team had a clearly defined problem that was well-researched.
2. The team generated innovative ideas independently before selecting and planning which to
   develop.
3. The team developed an original or built on an existing idea with a protoype model or drawing
   that represents their solution.
4. The team shared their ideas, collected feedback, and included improvements in their solution.
5. The team shared a creative and effective presentation of their current solution and its impacts
   on their users.

What to do:

1. Choose the topic you wish to
investigate.
2. Do some background research to
understand the main concepts
associated with your topic. Seek
expert knowledge from within your
community or the industry associated
with your topic.
3. Identify a problem or a knowledge
gap to address in your investigation.
4. Take some time to plan your
investigation and your experiments.
5. Perform your experiments! Keep a
detailed log book of your methods
and results. Make sure you note down
if anything goes wrong or was
unexpected.
6. Analyse your data and decide how
you want to display it. What kind of
graphs or tables will best show your
results?
7. Write up a report. Check out the
guides on the next few pages for
more information.
8. Submit your report as an A4 PDF. All
entries must be submitted via the
www.stat.org.au website, following the
required submission procedure.

Resources

Writing a Primary Research Investigation Report

Writing a Secondary Research Investigation Report

Predictions v Hypotheses

Controlled Experiments

Variables

The Scientific Method

Marking Criteria

1. The research question is clear, and testable, and identifies a contribution to the field of study.
2. The researcher has completed a risk assessment.
3. The researcher has included an hypothesis.
   that represents their solution
4. The data was collected and presented appropriate improvements in their solution.
5. The report includes a clear analysis of the investigation and identifies areas of improvement.
6. The report included appropriate references and acknowledgements
7. The report is well written and presented overall.

What to do:

1. Choose a problem or challenge you
wish to address in your project. Make
sure to clearly outline what this problem
is in your background.
2. Do some background research on your
chosen topic. Seek expert knowledge
from within your community or the
industry associated with your topic.
3. Write up a comprehensive background
section summarising your research and
your project aims.
4. Include a section that addresses the
methods, interventions, or strategies
you will use to address your problem.
5. Present your observations and results.
Use measurements where possible.
You can display your results however
you like, as tables, graphs, photos,
interview, maps, etc.
6. Write your discussion section. This
should describe the outcomes of your
work, analyse what was and was not
successful, identify errors or problems
you encountered, and suggest possible
improvements or future work that
needs to be done.
7.  Submit your report as an A4 PDF.

Marking Criteria

1. A locally relevant problem was identified and explained.
2. The report included an introduction that outlining the background information clearly.
3. The data was collected and analysed appropriately.
4. The conclusions drawn were appropriate based on the data presented.
5. Issues and challenges with the project were identified and discussed.

What to do

1. Choose a problem and research current solutions to this issue.
2. Design a device or product to solve the
problem or offer a different approach to
the problem.
3. Write up your report (use the Engineering Inventions Report link below as a guide)
4. Submit your report as an A4 PDF. All
entries must be submitted via the
www.stat.org.au website, following the
required submission procedure.
Resources and inspiration
Engineering Design Process

Resources

Engineering Design Process

Engineering Inventions Report

Marking Criteria

1. The team had a clearly defined research question that was well-researched.
2. The invention described is largely a new idea or a refinement of an existing invention is clearly shown.
3. The design brief clearly explained how the invention was designed, built, and tested.
4. The discussion clearly explained the scientific principles behind the invention.
5. The discussion includes an analysis of the invention testing results and identifies areas for improvement.