Location | Classes A, B Start - Boronia Park, Park Rd, Hunters Hill Finish - Buffalo Creek Reserve, Pittwater Rd, Hunters Hill Classes C, D Start - Buffalo Creek Reserve, Pittwater Rd, Hunters Hill Finish - Boronia Park, Park Rd, Hunters Hill Wallumedegal Country View the walking trail the students will be following. |
Bus access | Supply bus driver with Buffalo Creek Reserve bus information No bus entry into Buffalo Creek Reserve carpark. |
Cost | 2023 DoE $24 per student - GST free 2023 Non-gov school cost $34 per student - GST free, minimum charge $600 |
Risk assessment | |
Tracks | View the YouTube track overview video. |
Welfare | Participants will be bushwalking during the day in rugged terrain. 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, mask. Students wear reusable name tag and sports uniform. |
View | Preparing for an excursion. |
Supporting resources | Digital book Traditional Wiradjuri Culture available free from Apple Books. |
Bin access | All student waste to be taken home by students. |
Parent/carer helpers | Optional one parent per class, no siblings. Closed shoes essential. Check COVID-19 restrictions. |
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 three school weeks' notice will incur a $500 administration fee. This does not apply to cancellations due to weather, fire danger or COVID-19 restrictions. |
Time |
Classes A, B |
Classes C, D |
9.45 - 10.15 | Introduction - Boronia Park Toilets, crunch and sip or recess, equipment distributed |
Introduction - Buffalo Creek Reserve Toilets, crunch and sip or recess, equipment distributed |
10.15 - 1.15 | Bushwalk and activities along the Great North Walk
|
Bushwalk and activities along the Great North Walk |
1.15 - 1.45 | Lunch at a bushland site |
Lunch at a bushland site |
1.45 - 2.15 | Concluding activity and toilets - Buffalo Creek Reserve |
Concluding activity and toilets - Boronia Park |
2.15 | Depart | Depart |
Students go on a journey to investigate Aboriginal culture and connections to Country. On a rugged bushwalk following the Lane Cove River, students will explore the natural environment that provides food, tools, shelter and other resources. Students will learn about cultural sites and ways to care for Country.
Inquiry questions
Fieldwork
Students will walk through the bush to learn to tune in and connect with their surroundings. They will also identify significant features of the bushland to Aboriginal Peoples.
Through teacher-led and student-directed activities, students will learn about the history of the bushland, how it is cared for, and how it was utilised by Aboriginal Peoples.
Activities include identifying middens and bush resources, creating mini canoes out of natural materials and making an ochre-like paste out of clay.
To conclude the day students will reflect on and recount what they have learnt.
History K–10 Syllabus (2012)
Outcomes
A student:
Content
Community and remembrance
The importance of Country and Place to Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander Peoples who belong to a local area.
Students:
identify the original Aboriginal language spoken in the local area
identify the special relationship that Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander Peoples have to Country and Place
respond to Aboriginal stories told about Country presented in texts or by a guest speaker
First contacts
The diversity and longevity of Australia’s first peoples and the ways Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander Peoples are connected to Country and Place (land, sea, waterways and skies) and the implications for their daily lives.
Students:
identify the original inhabitants of Australia
investigate traditional Aboriginal ways of life, focusing on people, their beliefs, food, shelter, tools and weapons, customs and ceremonies, art works, dance, music, and relationship to Country
Other syllabus links
Learning experiences will also support but not explicitly teach the following outcomes and content
Geography K-10 Syllabus (2015)
Outcomes
A student:
Content
Significance of environments
Students:
investigate the importance of natural vegetation and natural resources to the environment, animals and people, for example:
identification of types of natural vegetation eg forests, grasslands, deserts
explanation of the importance of natural vegetation to animals and the functioning of the environment eg provision of habitats, production of oxygen
discussion of the importance of natural vegetation and natural resources to people
Protection of environments
Students:
investigate sustainable practices that protect environments, including those of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples, for example:
examination of how the practices of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples support the sustainable use of environments eg use of resources
Geography K-10 Syllabus © NSW Education Standards Authority (NESA) for and on behalf of the Crown in right of the State of New South Wales, 2015
History K-10 Syllabus © NSW Education Standards Authority (NESA) for and on behalf of the Crown in right of the State of New South Wales, 2012
address
Field of Mars Reserve
Pittwater Road
East Ryde NSW 2112
telephone 02 9816 1298
We’d like to acknowledge the Wallumedegal Peoples of the Darug Nation, the Traditional Custodians of the land on which we stand and pay our respects to Elders past and present.
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