About
WHAT IS DA VINCI DECATHLON?
The da Vinci Decathlon is an academic competition designed to challenge and stimulate the minds of school students. Students compete in teams of eight across 10 disciplines: engineering, mathematics, code breaking, art and poetry, science, English, ideation, creative producers, cartography and legacy.
The da Vinci Decathlon began in 2002 as an exciting offshoot of the very successful da Vinci Program for gifted and talented students at Knox. The Decathlon is designed to celebrate the academic gifts of Australian youth by providing a stimulating and challenging competition run in the spirit of an Olympic Decathlon.
"The Decathlon is designed to celebrate the academic gifts of Australian youth by providing a stimulating and challenging competition run in the spirit of an Olympic Decathlon."
GROWTH OF THE DECATHLON
“Looking to the future, the program equips students with the adaptability and resilience needed to thrive in an ever-changing world.” - Sherry Bieman, Director of da Vinci Decathlon
What began as a local competition for Australian public and private schools has grown to be a national and global phenomenon, involving thousands of students annually from Years 5 to 11.
The growth has been enormous, and interest so high, that chapter schools have been formed in Western Australia, Victoria, Queensland, South Australia, and Tasmania, as well as chapters in New Zealand and the United Kingdom.
These schools now run individual local and state competitions, with the goal of making it to the National da Vinci Decathlon Final. The Final is held each year at Knox Grammar School in Sydney over several days of competition.
Here, Sherry shares about positive student outcomes for those involved in the da Vinci Decathlon.