Fifth Element Academy
tackling math anxiety by co-designing joyful learning experiences with students at risk of academic disengagement
Registrations for 2023 now open!
Or get in touch with us, if you have any questions or would like to request a call back.
About Fifth Element Academy
Fifth Element Academy is an exciting new specialist maths education program - a community initiative jointly delivered by Changemakers Collective and the Shoshama Institute for Collective Wellbeing - which aims to make the Storyful Math program accessible to young people and their families through full scholarships.
Over the past two years, we have been delivering the program in community and school settings in Perth and Melbourne. This year, we are delivering the program as an online, 10-week program. During these ten weeks, participants will have free access to our online learning portal, which will help them build the foundational math skills that they might have missed out on in earlier years.
We will be building our skills on foundational maths skills, such as: addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, mental math strategies, fractions, percentage and decimals. Participants in the program will:
attend fun and interactive maths workshops to learn and practice their maths skills
work together on math projects that build their confidence
have access to videos and activities that will allow them to deepen their knowledge and practice their skills
have access to 1:1 mentoring to help them develop an individualised learning plan
Students will work with qualified and experienced instructors and program facilitators who will ensure that participants are safe, engaged and getting the most out of the program!
Scholarships for 2023 now available
Thanks to the generous support of the City of Maribyrnong, we currently have 20 full scholarships for our upcoming program (worth $710 each) up for grabs, for young people with a desire to build their skills and join us in our quest to make learning more enjoyable!
Interested in registering for the program?
fifth element academy’s origins
Inspired by the #HipHopEd movement’s philosophy of culturally responsive pedagogy and the methodology of the Junior Youth Spiritual Empowerment Program, Fifth Element Academy started as a way to help kids feel more confident about their academic abilities, and to create engaging and culturally affirming learning environments in which they can see themselves as scholars.
In 2019, we started Fifth Element Academy (with the generous support of the Awesome Foundation’s Melbourne chapter), as a pilot program with a maths focus for students in the middle years. We asked kids how they felt about math and their mathematical abilities, and invited them to join a team of young scholars, where the goal was for them to brush up their maths skills with the aim of then developing and delivering lessons and activities for younger children, that would help them enjoy maths and feel confident doing maths.
Fifth Element Academy provides scholars with the opportunity to strengthen their own academic foundations, while acting as leaders to younger children. Scholars are immersed in learning environments that value youth culture, and are encouraged to tap into their own creative genius as they work alongside educators and facilitators to co-create innovative and engaging activities for their peers and juniors.