Year 6 Canberra Camp 2024

The Parliament and Civics Education Rebate (PACER)

Students from our school have recently undertaken an education tour of the 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 and to assist families in meeting the cost of the excursion, the Australian government contributed funding of $45 per student under the Parliament and civics education rebate program.

Here is a summary of our adventure in the Nations Capital....

On Monday 6th of May, excited, anxious and weary Year 6 students left the gym early and boarded the bus bound for Canberra.

John, the driver, introduced himself as happy parents waved goodbye. It wasn’t long before ‘Spotto’ became a tradition on the bus. “Did someone say K.F.C?” asked Chelsea. “I don’t care, I love it” sang out the passengers. ‘It’s going to be a long trip,” thought the teachers.

Along the way, we stopped at Yea where the toilet floor was wet and the water was freezing. At Holbrook we saw an old submarine, ate lunch and headed to Gundagai to see the famous Dog on the Tuckerbox.

Cheers flooded the bus as we pulled into the Alivio Tourist Park. The teachers were interrogated with, “What cabin am I in? Who’s in my cabin?"

Our first dinner in the camp dining room was ‘schnittys’ and sweet potato chips. Mr. Woolfe was agitated by the students’ continuous racket! That night, the cabins ‘buzzed’, no-one could settle, but that was to be expected!

At the Australian Institute of Sport (A.I.S) there were large sculptures of various sports around the grounds. The tour guide showed us the gymnastics training area where we saw Georgia Godwin practicing a beam routine. The men’s and women's Volleyball teams were training. They served, stretched, set and spiked. It was surprising to see how tall these athletes were!

The swimming complex had sophisticated equipment such as electronic touch-pads, a movable pontoon, underwater viewing for the coaches, Go Pros to track the swimmers, and instant video replays. We found out that one swimmer had swum the distance around the world during her career and the world record for leg presses was broken in the weights room!

A visit to Sportex was a highlight! Shooting, rock climbing, basketballs, balance beams, cross-country races, skiing, rowing machines, luge, cycling targets, chin-up bars and reaction boards. We had fun trying all the sports and looking at all the memorabilia, including Cathy Freeman’s green running suit from the 2000 Olympics and a signed Don Bradman cricket-bat. So cool!

Next stop was the Royal Australian Mint. We learned how coins were designed and pressed, saw examples of commemorative coins and collector’s coins. Did you know our money was changed to decimal currency in 1966? Eventually, the one and two cent coins went out of circulation and the metal used changed from pure silver to a mix of silver and copper.

To fill in some time, Mrs Cramer and Mr Cox took us on a short walk around the city centre. Minties were given as rewards for answering ‘ridiculous’ questions like, “What celebrity had her hair styled here?" Apparently she is naming her next album after the salon - Eternity. Yeah right!. We saw some famous ‘Art’ and were warned not to touch the Inland Jellyfish that come up through the city drains from Lake Burley Griffin. Mr Cox pointed out the place Captain Cook landed. Did you know his ship actually had wheels so he could ‘sail’ inland? As if!

At the National Archives, we saw the original Constitution which is Australia’s ‘rule book’. We learned how American's Walter and Marion Griffin, designed Canberra based on geometry and the natural landscape. The man-made, Lake Burley-Griffin, is named after them.

Questacon was our next destination. We explored 4 levels of Science and Technology through practical tasks and exhibitions such as Lightning Strikes, Gravity Slide (even Ms Cramer went on it), examples of human skulls, optical illusions, air-launched rockets and even a working beehive, but we couldn’t find the Queen! Real samples of each element on the Periodic Table were there to see too.

After releasing a bit of energy at the Arboretum Playground and rolling down the hill, it was back to camp for lasagne and birthday cupcakes for Asha. Later that night, we drove up to Mt Ainslie Lookout and saw the City of Canberra all lit up, magical!

A morning drive around the Embassy's and High Commissions was so interesting. The buildings were designed and presented, to reflect their culture and history.

Soon we were off to the Electoral Education Centre to learn about Australia’s election process. We participated in a mock election using the Preferential Voting System. We can’t wait to turn 18!

The National War Memorial was an emotional experience and we made lots of connections to the stories we had read in class. It was so moving to see the 'Tomb of the Unknown Soldier' and the stained glass murals representing all service men and women who served our country in wartime. We wished we could have spent more time at the 'Wall of Remembrance' looking for familiar names.

We’d been really lucky with the weather so far, but light drizzle at the ANZAC Parade was not going to dampen our spirits. There were monuments and trees to honour the servicemen and women. We could interpret these visual messages and themes: mateship, courage, honour and sacrifice. Jim the tour guide, explained why there was a commemorative display for the Turkish Army as a symbol of respect and hope for friendship.

The last place on our Itinerary was Parliament House which was situated on Capital Hill. The portraits of past Prime Ministers were all unique because each one chose their own artist and style of painting.

Sitting above the Chambers of the Senate and House of Representatives made us feel important and privileged. Abbey asked, “Why is there a peacock on the Coat of Arms?” We all giggled to ourselves! Then we were treated to frozen yoghurt and a play on the rooftop.

Our last experience taught us how a 'Bill' is proposed and passed. The following roles were assigned: Speaker, Clerk, Prime Minister, Opposition Leader, Scrutineer, Sergeant of Arms, Governor General, Back Benchers and Cabinet Ministers. We proposed a new 'Bill': All students in Australian schools have 3 hours of sport per week. After debates from both sides, the 'Bill' was passed after one amendment - ’one hour of sport per week for Australian students’. We learned how the 'Bill' needed to be approved by the Senate and then signed off by the Governor General.

Friday came around quickly. After lots of learning, laughs, lining up, listening, love and secret lollies, we left our Nation’s Capital with lasting memories.

Written by the students of 6C

Parent Association

Diana

President