The College’s Year 6 students recently went on an educational tour of our national capital.
Students were given the opportunity to participate in a variety of educational programs with a focus on Australia’s history, culture, heritage and democracy. The Australian Government recognises the importance of all young Australians being able to visit the national capital as part of their Civics and Citizenship education. To assist families in meeting the cost of the excursion, the Australian Government is contributing funding of $240 per student under the Parliament and Civics Education Rebate program towards those costs. The rebate is paid directly to the school upon completion of the excursion.
As well as visiting Canberra, students also visited Sydney, the Bathurst Goldfields and the Australian Institute of Sports. They spent some time enjoying the snow in the Snowy Mountains and took part in a memorial ceremony at the Australian War Memorial.
The students have put together their personal recollections and highlights of the trip:
Day 1 – Thursday
“Today we went to the Pylon Lookout which is where we saw the Sydney Harbour Bridge and the Sydney Opera House. Up there it was a very nice view. There, we learnt about how the Sydney Harbour Bridge was built. We also went to the Big Dig Site which is a place that is located at the same place as our accommodation. We learnt about archaeology and the life of the past. This was a very interesting experience and I learned lots of new things. Today was very fun and I can’t wait for the rest of trip. “ – Matilda R
Day 2 – Friday
“Today was absolutely fabulous because we got to go to Taronga Zoo and we saw all different kinds of animals and they were so cute. All I wanted to do was squeeze them to death! My favourite part was definitely the seal show because all the animals are so talented and they obviously love what they do (showing off!) They were so good at it. I loved the part where Marc got chosen to say hello to the seal and he said to the seal called Pepper, “jump, Pepper!,” and she dove into the water and jumped back up and touched a buoy and did a massive backflop and saturated Marc, Neve, myself and Chloe. I also like the elephants and the giraffes because there was a baby elephant and then there was a giraffe who looked so elegant and she was just sitting there just eating her branch of leaves. ” – Hayley P
Day 3 – Saturday
“Today we went to Bathurst and after a two and a half drive on the bus, we finally arrived. When we got to the motel the owners gave us a tour of the place and we got to pan for some gold! I only got one flake. We also got to see the Three Sisters and it was really cold there. After we got back from gold panning we went back to our rooms and then we had dinner. For dinner, we had some lasagna with chips. The trip has been really fun and I can’t wait to see what’s next.” – Bailey L
Day 4 – Sunday
“Today was a great day, the bus drive was full of laughter and joy. We had everyone singing and watching movies, which was really fun. As we arrived at the Australian Institute of Sport, the teachers let us go into the gift shop and buy some souvenirs for ourselves, family or friends. An athlete took us on a big tour around the premises. We looked at the workout gym, the swimming pool and the gymnastics gym. We learned some facts about athletes and different types of records. Then we went into the games area and played some mini games that athletes would do such as wheel chair racing, basketball, cycling and much more. Then we went to our accommodation. Today was very fun. I’m sure tomorrow will be as much fun!” – Aleeya B
Day 5 – Monday
“One of my highlights from today was when we went to the Art Gallery. It was full of beautiful artworks and I was really surprised how good the art was. One of my favourite artworks on the wall was “The Blue Poles” by Jackson Pollack. I also really liked going to Old Parliament House and seeing how it looked back then and how it has changed through the years.” – Ava R
Day 6 – Tuesday
“Today, we went to the National Museum of Australia and we went to the Australian War Memorial. This was my favourite place so far because we learned about war and we went to the last post ceremony. I learned about the sacrifices that were made to keep us safe and it made me very happy and sad knowing people have risked their lives for us.” – Kynan H-J
Day 7 – Wednesday
“Today was snow day! We got woken up early and it was Izzie’s birthday which was cool. We had a yummy breakfast and then we hopped on the bus to go to the snowfields. We went on the chair lift and then I got the chance to throw a snowball at Mr N. I think it was more than 1! A lot more than one… Then we went to Maccas and I enjoyed nuggets and chips. I have really enjoyed the trip because even though it was incredibly tiring it was fun and I learned a lot about Australia. Goodnight… from Annie.” – Annie E
Day 8 – Thursday
“Today we got to go to Questacon. For me the best thing was the vertical slide. I found it very fascinating all the robots and engineering they had in there. We also did a show that had optical illusions. There was a lot of different floors and on every different floor there were rooms like for example there was a machine that could sense your feelings. I thought the whole experience was really cool.” – Joel P
If you would like to read more about the trip please follow the link below. At the end of each day, there is a link for more photos.
https://sccsydneycanberra2019.wordpress.com
