Humanities News
Mary TAYLOR
Classroom Teacher
636: Geography Excursion
Students in the Geography elective ‘For Richer For Poorer’ have been studying poverty and inequality in the world from a geographical perspective. As part of our study of inequality in Melbourne, the class visited various locations in order to investigate issues of homelessness and the differences in living conditions between suburbs.
The morning was spent in the central business district (CBD), with students completing a scavenger hunt to see how easily they could find life’s necessities such as safe and secure shelter, clean water and healthy food options (with only limited funds). Most found it more difficult than they expected! Next, it was off to ‘The Big Issue’ for a workshop on homelessness. Students got the chance to take part in a range of activities as well as the opportunity to hear one man’s personal experience of being homeless.
After lunch, students visited two very different suburbs – Richmond and Toorak. They completed sketches and observation tables as a way of identifying the unique geographic characteristics of these regions and they will compare these with statistical data once back in class. A big thank you to Mrs Naidoo for accompanying us and well done to the students for their exemplary behaviour on the day!
Unit 3 & 4 Geography Tree Planting
Earlier this year, students in Unit 3 & 4 Geography studied the topic of deforestation, including the many negative environmental impacts this can have, such as its contribution to climate change. Students decided they wanted to do something in response to this issue for their final class for the year. As such, as a small local gesture, the class has planted a native eucalypt in the school grounds near the corner of Capital Avenue and Troy Street. It was great to see the students enthusiastic about taking action based on their learning and we hope it will be a small step in improving the local environment. Also, a big thank you to Mr Mace for helping us with the planting process!
