Great minds head to international final

Teams from Poynter Primary School, Esperance Senior High School and Perth Modern School are heading to Darwin next week to compete in the Tournament of Minds (TOM) international final.

The three teams each won their respective categories in the WA state final and have earned the chance to compete against students from Australia and other countries.

At TOM, students work together to solve a long-term challenge and then a spontaneous challenge that isn’t revealed until tournament day.

Teams are judged on their collaboration, creativity, time management and problem-solving skills.

 

Poynter Primary School had two winning teams, taking out the state primary school prizes for social sciences and language literature.

The team from Esperance Senior High School claimed victory in the social sciences contest for secondary students. They were also presented with an award for their creativity in the spontaneous challenge.

The squad from Perth Modern School won the STEM competition for secondary students.

Poynter Primary School associate principal and TOM coach, Sarah Kyle, believes TOM can help students develop critical and creative thinking skills.

“They learn to think on their feet, share ideas, compromise, build on each other’s strengths and come up with unique solutions,” she said.

“They also get to extend their creativity by presenting their ideas in fun and imaginative ways, while working within a set of criteria.

“Tournament of Minds is a great mix of problem solving, teamwork, creativity, communication and performance, and encourages students to take risks and think outside the box.”

Students from Poynter Primary School were excited to win the state final.

“It felt crazy, exhilarating and surreal to know that we had accomplished something so big,” a team representative said.

“We had worked so hard for so long to achieve our goal.

“It was amazing to cheer each other on and know that both teams had reached their goal.

“And now we get to travel to Darwin together with our friends.”

Esperance Senior High School team facilitator Cara Gurney said winning the award was exhilarating.

“All teams are called to the stage, so there is great anticipation as the judges announce the winning school,” Cara said.

“We are just so proud of our students and their achievements, they have worked so well together, and have put in hours of work outside of class time.

“For some of our students this is their last year participating in TOM so it was a special moment and to continue our school's success from last year and from many years previously, was amazing.”

The Esperance Senior High School students enjoyed the thrill of the contest and cherished the friendships that were forged during the state finals.

“It's the pressure of solving a challenge with multiple aspects in three hours and the adrenaline rushing through your veins standing in front of a table of judges and a huge crowd knowing you'll crush it,” said Year 10 student Libby.

“TOM allows you to make lifelong friends that you can relate to who will always be there to give you a hand,” she added.

Teams from other schools were also recognised for their efforts at the state finals event.

A Toodyay District High School team received the 2026 Spirit of TOM award for demonstrating TOM’s core values.

And merit awards went to teams from Perth Modern School, Bullsbrook College, Esperance Senior High School, Bunbury Senior High School as well as Marmion, North Kalgoorlie, Pearsall, West Leeming and Jolimont primary schools.

To learn more about the competition, visit the TOM website.