• "All the children enjoyed it and they learnt a lot, especially about saving money. "
    Helen Adams, Horsham Primary School, VIC

  • "You had quite an impact! I had quite a few mums come up and talk to me about what [their children] had learnt with you."
    Chris Ratcliff, Dernancourt Primary School, SA

Industry advisors

StartSmart Primary content was developed in collaboration with leading behaviour change organisation ChangeLabs, as well as specialists in primary education, cognitive development, instructional design and financial literacy.

Mr. Barry Southwell, Oxford Falls Grammar School

Barry Southwell (Head of Junior School) has been a primary school teacher for over 20 years’ extensive experience in the classroom prior to assuming his current role as the Head of Junior School. He holds a strong belief that the school curriculum should incorporate practical life skills, so that the students can see a real application for their learning.

Prof. Martin Westwell, Flinders University

After completing his bachelor degree and PhD at Cambridge University, Professor Martin Westwell (BSc, Cam; PhD Cam) moved to Oxford University as a Research Fellow in Biological and Medical Sciences and then as Deputy Director for the Institute of the Future of the Mind. In 2008 he became Founding Director of the Flinders Centre for Science Education at Flinders University. He has won a number of awards for communicating science to non-scientists. In 1999 he was named Times Scientist of the New Century. Most recently, he was shortlisted for the Parliamentary Science Writer of the Year Award in the UK.

Prof. John Sweller, University of New South Wales

Professor John Sweller (BA, Adel; PhD, Adel) is an Emeritus Professor at the School of Education, UNSW. He currently leads a team investigating cognitive processes and their implications for teaching techniques and instructional design. He has written numerous books on the subject of cognitive theory as well as published dozens of peer reviewed articles on the subject.

Primary Schools

We would also like to thank and acknowledge the contribution of those Primary Schools that hosted the StartSmart Primary program during the test and learning phase of our content development. The input received from Principals, Teachers and Students was invaluable in the development of the StartSmart Primary content.

Some of these schools included:

Blackwell Public School, St. Clair
Principal Kris Hudswell

Schofields Public School
Principal Greg Josey

Vineyard Public School
Principal Ann Kitchen

StartSmart Online

We would like to thank and acknowledge the following contributors to the continued improvement of the StartSmart Teacher Support Program.

Kristine Barbarossa - Teacher, Ashgrove State School and Project 600

Ms. Liz Criddle - Vice President, Economics & Business Educators NSW

Jeff Licence - Writer, Filmmaker, Media Education consultant

Barry Southwell - Head Of Junior School, Oxford Falls Grammar School