High potential and gifted education programs | HPGE

Our High Potential and Gifted Education programs provide enrichment opportunities for primary students through creative, scientific and inquiry-based activities. These curriculum-aligned enrichment programs extend student thinking, build digital and creative skills and offer authentic opportunities for problem-solving, leadership and environmental investigation. Each one-day workshop offers meaningful, challenging learning experiences that develop students’ intellectual, creative and social-emotional abilities.

HPGE workshops are held on selected days and led by specialist teachers from the Field of Mars Environmental Education Centre and other subject experts. Additional dates are added throughout the year.

Programs are held at Field of Mars Reserve in Sydney and do not require classroom teachers to attend.

HPGE programs are only available to NSW Department of Education schools. Maximum 8 students per school per day.

An iPad showing a colourful butterfly ready to be animated, symbolising the Animate HPGE digital animation enrichment program

Animate HPGE enrichment program

Stage 2 and 3 | Creative arts

A digital animation enrichment workshop where students design and create short animated sequences inspired by nature, building skills in visual storytelling, sequencing and digital creativity.

2026

Term 1 - Week 3 - Tuesday 10th February - capacity 40 students (36 spots remaining)

Term 2 - Week 2 - Wednesday 29th April - capacity 40 students (40 spots remaining)

Paintbrushes and art tools laid out on a table, ready to be used to create nature-inspired artworks in the Bush studio HPGE enrichment program

Bush studio HPGE enrichment program

Stage 2 and 3 | Creative arts

An art studio experience using natural materials, drawing and mixed media to create detailed artworks based on local bushland, extending students’ observational, compositional and creative thinking skills.

2026

Term 3 - Week 6 - Tuesday 25th Aug - capacity 50 students (50 spots remaining)

Term 3 - Week 6 - Wednesday 26th Aug - capacity 50 students (42 spots remaining)

An iPad featuring a macro photograph of a blue mushroom taken by a student, showcasing close-up photography from the Bush studio photography HPGE program

Bush studio photography HPGE enrichment program

Stage 2 and 3 | Creative arts

A creative arts and photography focused enrichment day where students learn to use iPad cameras as a creative tool. Students will explore cyanaotype printing, use of mirrors to alter images and create digital artworks by mixing up layers of photographs.

2026

Term 3 - Week 10 - Monday 21st September - capacity 60 students (60 spots remaining)

Term 3 - Week 10 - Tuesday 22nd September - capacity 60 students (60 spots remaining)

An iPad screen displaying a movie editing app timeline, representing filmmaking and editing skills developed in the Cinematographer HPGE enrichment program

Cinematographer HPGE enrichment program

Stage 2 and 3 | English and creative arts

A filmmaking workshop where students plan, film and edit short films that combine narrative, visual techniques and environmental settings, extending their skills in scriptwriting, camera work and digital editing.

2026

Term 1 - Week 4 - Thursday 19th February - capacity 60 students (51 spots remaining)

Term 2 - Week 4 - Thursday 14th May - capacity 60 students (60 spots remaining)

A beetle puppet in a ground-cover habitat beside a magnifying glass, symbolising invertebrate investigations in the Entomologist HPGE enrichment program

Entomologist HPGE enrichment program

Stage 2 and 3 | Science and technology

A science-focused program where students investigate invertebrates and their adaptations, collect field data, communicate scientific findings and create a framed model.

2026

Term 1 - Week 4 - Thursday 19th February - capacity 60 students (51 spots remaining)

Students create a digital nature journal while participating in the Field guide HPGE enrichment program.

Field guide HPGE enrichment program

Stage 2 and 3 | Creative arts and science and technology

A creative arts and science-focused program where students become nature explorers and digital artists, they observe and document both living and non-living elements of ecosystems through hands-on fieldwork and creative journaling.

2026

Term 1 - Week 9 - Wednesday 25th March - capacity 40 students (40 spots remaining)

Term 2 - Week 8 - Tuesday 9th June - capacity 40 students (40 spots remaining)

An animal skull on a rock being examined with a magnifying glass, illustrating students investigating wildlife clues in the Mystery HPGE enrichment program

Mystery HPGE enrichment program

Stage 2 and 3 | Science and technology

A forensic-style investigation where students solve a wildlife mystery using field evidence, maps and secondary data, strengthening higher-order thinking, scientific inquiry and collaborative problem-solving.

2026

Term 1 - Week 4 - Wednesday 18th February - capacity 40 students (32 spots remaining)

A close-up photo of a blue-tongue lizard displayed on an iPad, showcasing nature photography from the Wild shots HPGE enrichment program

Wild shots HPGE enrichment program

Stage 2 and 3 | Creative arts

A digital photography enrichment day where students capture, edit and curate striking images of nature, developing both technical camera skills and creative visual storytelling.

2026

Term 1 - Week 4 - Tuesday 17th February - capacity 60 students (60 spots remaining)

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An iPad showing the Field of Mars Environmental Education Centre HPGE booking form

Book now

Book a HPGE program now using our on-line booking form.

An iPad showing a digital learning resource for students and teachers that supports HPGE enrichment programs

Learning resources

Find digital learning resources, social stories and excursion preparation materials.

Explore high potential and gifted education (HPGE) enrichment programs at Field of Mars Environmental Education Centre in East Ryde, Sydney. Our primary HPGE programs in science, visual arts, photography, digital technologies and creative writing challenge high potential students through nature-based fieldwork, digital storytelling and gallery-quality artworks in Field of Mars Reserve bushland, aligned with NSW curriculum outcomes and the NSW Department of Education HPGE policy.

Flora and fauna fact sheets

Read our animal, plant and habitat fact sheets for use in the classroom or at home.