Documentary in a day excursion program

Teacher checklist

Location	Field of Mars Reserve, Pittwater Road, East Ryde Wallumedegal Country Google maps - Apple maps
	Supply bus driver with Field of Mars Reserve bus information No bus entry into Field of Mars Reserve.
	Field of Mars Reserve risk management plan
	View the YouTube track overview videos. Buffalo Creek Track Doyle and Warada loop track
Cost	2025 DoE $25 per student - GST free 2025 Non-gov school cost $35 per student - GST free, minimum charge $750 Term 1 - Catholic school Weeks 3 to 7 cost = DoE cost - GST free, minimum charge $750 Schools are to confirm the number of students and classes at least 7 days prior to attending. Schools will be charged based on the number of students confirmed or number of students who attend on the day (whichever is greater).
Welfare	Participants will be bushwalking during the day in rugged terrain. Limited wheelchair accessibility. This excursion may not be suitable for people who have recently been unwell.
Bring	Backpack, medication, low-waste food, water bottle, sunblock, raincoat, hat, sturdy shoes. Students wear reusable name tag and sports uniform.
View	Preparing for an excursion
Supporting resources	Student activities Eucalypt forest digital book - available free from Apple Books Habitat digital book - available free from Apple Books Animal and plant fact sheets
Bin access	All student waste to be taken home by students.
Parent/carer helpers	Optional one parent per class, no siblings. Closed shoes essential.
Medical or special needs	Notify Field of Mars staff prior to excursion. Students, staff and visitors must not attend if unwell, even with mild symptoms.
Extreme or wet weather	Days predicted to be above 35ºC, high winds, extreme bush fire danger and dust storms may result in the excursion being modified, postponed or cancelled.
Cancellations	Cancellations with less than 30 working school days notice will incur a $600 administration fee. Cancellations with less than 7 working school days notice will incur the full cost for the program based on the original booking. Cancellations due to weather or fire danger are exempt from fees.

Suggested timetable for up to three classes

Time	Classes A, B, C
9.45 - 10.15	Introduction
10.15 - 10.45	Recess
10.45 - 11.00	Equipment distribution
11.00 - 1.00	Mobile filmmaking
1.00 - 1.30	Lunch
1.30 - 2.00	Mobile filmmaking
2.15	Depart

Learning activities

Students will be introduced to the techniques of mobile documentary filmmaking. They will create an informative and entertaining documentary on iPads showcasing the incredible habitats within the Field of Mars Reserve.

Introduction

In the classroom, students will be introduced to the process of documentary making. A Field of Mars produced documentary is shown to outline the production steps, voiceover, camera techniques and editing.

Mobile filmmaking in the reserve

During this session each class will operate in a variety of bushland locations. Students will be working in groups of two.

At each location students will develop a script through field observations and research using simple multimodal digital texts.

Students will take photos and videos to bring their script to life. They will be explicitly taught a variety of camera techniques including camera angles, camera shots and camera movements to enhance their imagery.

Students will be taught how to use iMovie to begin editing their documentary in the field. They will learn how to sequence, adjusting timing, add titles, add captions, modify sound, record voiceovers and add appropriate background music.

All completed movies will be returned to the school via Google Drive.

Optional

Before the excursion students complete some of the activities provided in the Nature documentary learning resource.

Recommended activities:

Lesson 1

Activity 1: What makes a great nature documentary?

Lesson 2

Activity 1: Identify habitats

Activity 2: Research habitat facts

Lesson 3

Activity 1: Beautiful cinematography

Syllabus outcomes and content

English K-10 Syllabus (2022)

Creating written texts

Outcomes

plans, creates and revises written texts for informative purposes, using text features, sentence-level grammar, punctuation and word-level language for a target audience EN2-CWT-02

Content

Informative purposes

Create informative written texts that include headings, paragraphs beginning with topic sentences, and may conclude information in a final paragraph
Create written texts that describe experiences and observations to connect with and inform an audience

Science and Technology K-6 Syllabus (2024)

Physical and living systems depend on energy

Outcomes

Uses information to investigate the solar system and the effects of energy on living, physical and geological systems ST2-SCI-01

Content

Living things depend on energy and materials to survive

Describe how the needs of living things are provided by the atmosphere, hydrosphere and lithosphere
Describe the relationship between habitat, ecosystem and environment
Observe and describe living and non-living things in a habitat
Describe ways in which plants and animals depend on each other for survival

English K–10 Syllabus © NSW Education Standards Authority (NESA) for and on behalf of the Crown in right of the State of New South Wales, 2022.

Science and Technology K-6 Syllabus © NSW Education Standards Authority (NESA) for and on behalf of the Crown in right of the State of New South Wales, 2024

Return to program summary

Field of Mars Environmental Education Centre

address Field of Mars Reserve
Pittwater Road
East Ryde NSW 2112

telephone 02 9816 1298

email fieldofmar-e.school@det.nsw.edu.au

Get directions

Documentary in a day excursion program

Teacher checklist

Suggested timetable for up to three classes

Time

Classes A, B, C

Learning activities

Syllabus outcomes and content

Field of Mars Environmental Education Centre

General enquiries

Follow us