From the 1/2 Classrooms

In week 2, all Grade 1 and 2 students went on their first excursion for the year to the Bundoora Park Farm. The excursion focus 'From Farm to Table' was a perfect choice to fit in with our term 2 topic 'Raw to Ready'. We were very lucky with a beautiful sunny day to head off and explore the Bundoora Park Farm!

The day was jam-packed with plenty of immersive, engaging and hands-on activities. Students were involved in four activities on the day:

Wildlife Tour – We all boarded our tour buggy and got up close and personal with the Emus and Kangaroos. We were even lucky to see a little joey in it’s Mother’s pouch. The Mother was very protective of her baby and so we could only see the joey from afar. The Emus were cheeky and walking slowly in front of our buggy when we were trying to drive. There was a lot of ‘Oooohhhhs’ and ‘Aaahhhhhhhs’ on the drive around the Wildlife reserve.

Composting – The students loved using the shovels and wheelbarrows to add straw and manure to the compost pile. It was heavier and more awkward than first thought and with a bit of practise the compost pile was growing! Students then had the opportunity to make their own little pot out of newspaper and plant a snow pea seed that they got to take home and watch grow.

Farm Tour – Students were taken on a tour around the farm to meet the pigs, goats, guinea pigs and ‘Maverick’ the horse. The highlight was getting to feed the animals. There was a lot of giggles as the animals licked hands to get the food!

Scone Making – Did you know you can make scones with 3 ingredients?  We made scones with flour, cream and lemonade. Students all had a chance to add ingredients, measure and mix. Then the messy part of kneading the dough – so much fun! Students got to take their tasty treats home for afternoon tea.

Here are some comments recorded from throughout the day that show how much fun the students had:

Heather - They are adorable! (Kangaroos)

Adeline - I wonder why I keep hearing a rooster?

Ms Amiconi - don’t forget to wash your hands after shovelling poo!

Everyone - ooohhhhhh we get to hold animals!

Rosha - can we come to the farm one billion times I love it!

Matilda - can we come here every day?

Dakota - he’s slobbery! (talking about feeding Maverick the horse)

Adeline - my hand is all wet after feeding Maverick!

LIFE ED – SAFETY RULES

A highlight of week 3 was our visit from Harold the Giraffe and our Life Ed session. We were lucky to have a ‘Harold Experience’ and meet Harold’s Dad! He was a lot of fun and played games with us. It ramped up our excitement for the Life Ed session ahead of us. The focus of our session was ‘Safety Rules’. We learnt how to contact emergency services by calling 000. The information that 000 will want to know: who are you and who are you with, what is the situation and where are you? We discussed situations where you would call emergency services and situations where it is not necessary. We thought about our trusted adults in our life that we can speak to if we have a problem. We also learnt about the vital organs on ‘Flat Matt’. The session was fun, engaging and informative.

Kind regards, 

Year 1 and 2 Teachers