Experience Engage Enable
T: Telephone02 9816 1298
| Location | Field of Mars Reserve, Pittwater Road, East Ryde Wallumedegal Country |
| Bus access | Supply bus driver with Field of Mars Reserve bus information No bus entry into Field of Mars Reserve. |
| Cost | 2023 DoE $25 per student - GST free 2023 Non-gov school cost $35 per student - GST free, minimum charge $600 |
| Risk assessment | |
| Tracks | View the YouTube track overview videos. |
| Welfare | Participants will be bushwalking all day in rugged terrain. This excursion may not be suitable for people who have recently been unwell. Toilets are only available at the beginning and end of the day. |
| Bring | Backpack, medication, low-waste food, water bottle, sunblock, wet whether gear, hat, sports uniform, sturdy shoes, mask. There are no shops near the study site. |
| View | |
| Preparation and supporting resources | Students need to watch an online video (homework) the week before the excursion which outlines necessary preparation for one of the excursion tasks. |
| Bin access | All student waste to be taken home by students. |
| 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 whether | 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. |
Plant community comparison
These two activities investigate two environments in the reserve which are then compared and contrasted. Students work in small groups using a variety of methods and equipment to record the abiotic measurements at the two study sites. Students identify biotic factors in the form of dominant tree, shrub and ground cover species which are then used to construct a detailed profile diagram. Finally students identify and explain the differences in their results recorded at each site and relate these to the effects of different landforms, climate, bushfire, drought and nearby human impacts.
Plants in place digital stories
This session uses the flipped model of teaching to prepare students for a creative communication task that sees them creating an engaging digital text or video that details the structure, adaptations and habitat value of a native plant growing in the native gardens at Field of Mars.
The flipped component is that students need to watch an online video for homework in the week before the excursion. This video outlines the excursion task and a template for the necessary pre-excursion research that will form the basis of the creative task.
Science 7-10 Syllabus (2018)
Outcomes
A student:
Content
LW1 There are differences within and between groups of organisms; classification helps organise this diversity.
b. classify a variety of living things based on similarities and differences in structural features
c. use simple keys to identify a range of plants and animals
f. explain how the features of some Australian plants and animals are adaptations for survival and reproduction in their environment
Other syllabus links
Learning experiences will also support but not explicitly teach the following outcomes and content:
A student:
Content
LW5 Science and technology contribute to finding solutions to conserving and managing sustainable ecosystems.
a. construct and interpret food chains and food webs, including examples from Australian ecosystems
c. describe interactions between organisms in food chains and food webs, including producers, consumers and decomposers
d. predict how human activities can affect interactions in food chains and food webs, including examples from Australian land or marine ecosystems
Life Skills
Outcomes
A student:
Content
Students communicate by:
a. presenting ideas, findings and solutions to problems using scientific language and representation using digital technologies as appropriate
b. using appropriate text types presentations, including a discussion, explanation, exposition, procedure and recount
Science and Technology 7-10 Syllabus © NSW Education Standards Authority (NESA) for and on behalf of the Crown in right of the State of New South Wales, 2018
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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