Primary

30 min

What calls a wetland home? Students cooperate to catch aquatic minibeasts from pre-collected samples held in tubs. They will then work together to identify what they have caught.

• Why is it important to know what lives in a wetland?  (VC2S2H01)
• We can use external features to identify minibeasts  (VC2S2U01; VC2S2U03)
• Looking at how minibeasts move and eat  (VC2S2I01)
• Students count how many different types of minibeasts they have caught  (VC2S2I03)
• Discussing what was found as a class and in small groups (VC2S2I05)

30 min

Get hands on with plant reproduction! Your students will learn how some plants reproduce by ripping apart a native grass tussock to create ‘juvenile’ forms of the original plant. Why do this? To check out who lives inside and find out why grasses are important habitat for minibeasts!

• Exploring a grass tussock as a mini habitat (VC2S2H01)
• Identifying features of plants in order to successfully propagate an indigenous Poa (VC2S2U01, VC2S2U03)
• Working in small groups encouraging teamwork and discussion about their minibeast discoveries (VC2S2I01, VC2S2I06)

30 min

Your students will understand that animals change as they grow. They will explore the concept of complete and incomplete metamorphosis.

• Purpose of animal body parts (VC2S2U01)
• How the needs of a animal changes as it grows (VC2S2U03)
• Each animal plays a vital role in its environment (VC2S2U02)
• Placing lifecycle of various animals in order (VC2S2I01; VC2S2I04; VC2S2I05)
• Sharing their observations with other students (VC2S2I06)

30 min

Why are holes in trees important? Your students will put together and nestbox and use it to discuss how plants and animals interact with one another.

Year F-2

• Animals have different features which enable them to live in different types of hollows/nest boxes (VC2S2U03)
• What happens if there are no old trees? (VC2S2U02)
• Working out what animal might live in their nest box (VC2S2I05)
• Discussing what might call their nest box home (VC2S2I06)

Year 3-4

• Many native wildlife rely on hollows to breed (VC2S4U02)
• Eucalyptus trees play an important role in the environment and their removal has a big impact (VC2S4U03)
• Comparing the entrance hole with other groups to work out what animal would use the box (VC2S4I05)
• Discussing what animal would use their box and the features that would make them suited (VC2S4I06)

Year 5-6

• Wildlife have evolved to rely on hollows in trees to breed (VC2S6U02)
• It takes hundreds of years for a hollow to form and human activity has reduced the number of hollows available (VC2S6U01)
• Working out what features of the nest box makes it suitable for the target species (VC2S6I05)
• Explaining why they think their box is suited to the target species (VC2S6I06)

30 min

This mini-tour of the sanctuary is reccommended for all visiting groups. The Wilderness Wander allows students to put what they have learned into perspective by seeing the sanctuary as a whole.

Year F-2

• What we do at the sanctuary (VC2S2H01, VC2S2H02)
• 3 main habitat types of the sanctuary and the animals that live in them (VC2SU02)
• Using senses to observing plants and animals (VC2SU01, VC2SU03)
• Students are encouraged to ask questions and contribute to discussions throughout the Wilderness Wander (VC24I01, VC2S4I06)

Year  3-4

• The purpose of and changes in the sanctuary over time (VC2S4H01, VC2S4H02)
• Observation and discussion of the sanctuary inhabitants (VC2S4U01)
• Interactions between plants and animals within the sanctuary (VC2S4U02, VC2S4U03)
• Prompting questions to explore relationships (VC2S4I01,  VC2S4I06)

Year 5-6

• The sanctuary wetland system and how it helps the wider community (VC2S6H01, VC2S6H02)
• Living things have structural features and adaptations that help them to survive in their environment  (VC2S6U02, VC2S6U01)
• Open ended questions to encourage critical thinking and comparison of changes in the landscape (VC2S6I01, VC2S6I06)

Students will learn a variety of methods plants use to reproduce through demonstration and hands on activities. These plants will then be used to revegetate the sanctuary.

Year 3-4

• Plants can be propagated in a variety of ways (VC2S4H01)
• Deciding on a propagation method based on the plants appearance and family (VC2S4U01, VC2S4U02)
• Students discuss plant features and propagation in small groups (VC2S4I06)

Year 5-6

• Plants can be propagated in a variety of ways (VC26H01)
• Features of different plants which lead to survival in their habitat (VC2S6U02)
• How various methods of propagation would occur naturally in the wild (VC2S6U01)
• Working in small groups and discussing observations (VC2S6I06)

30 Min

Using dipnets, your students will work together to collect samples directly from one of our sanctuary wetlands.

Year 3-4

• Why is it  important to sample wetlands (VC2S4H01)
• Distinguish living from non-living things (VC2S4U01)
• Distinguish between adults and juveniles (VC2S4U02)
• Why different minibeasts are found in different areas (VC2S4U03)
• Make predictions about the health of a wetland  (VC2S4H02; VC2S4I01)
• Students sort and compare what they have collected (VC2S4104; VC2S4I05)
• Discuss what they have identified (VC2S4I06)

Year 5-6

• What might impact the health of a wetland (VC2S6H02)
• Questioning what external features might be for (VC2S6U02)
• What might affect the variety of invertebrates found (VC2S6U01)
• Predicting what invertebrates might be found (VC2S6I01)
• Troubleshooting common issues with sampling methods used (VC2S6I05)
• Comparing what is found to conditions on the day (VC2S6I06)

30 min

In this activity your students will get up close and personal with aquatic minibeasts taking an in depth look at their features and how this affects their relationship with their environment. It is recommended that this activity is booked with Dip Netting so that students can identify samples that they have collected themselves.

Year 3-4

• Why is it  important to know species are present (VC2S4H01)
• Identifying minibeasts by their observable features and their role in the environment (VC2S4U01; VC2S4U02; (VC2S4U03)
• Questing why we have found certain species  (VC2S4I01)
• Using  microscopes and reference material to identify minibeasts (VC2S4I02; VC2S4I03)
• Sharing what they have found with the group (VC2S4I05; VC2S4I06)

Year 5-6

• Presence of specific species can give an indication of wetland health (VC2S6H01)
• What would happen to these creatures in the event of an drought? (VC2S6H02)
• Observing camouflage; considering what they might eat (VC2S6U02; VC2S6U01)
• Sorting into broad taxonomic groups (VC2S6I01)
• Using microscopes and reference material (VC2S6103)
• Which minibeasts are easy/hard to identify? (VC2S6I05)
• Discussion about they have found with their peers (VC2S6I06)

30 min

Students with get up close and personal with a variety of plants to build their understanding of our floras features!

• Identifying plant parts using a variety of senses (VC2S4U01)
• Flowers, nuts, seeds are part of the plants lifecycle (VC2S4U02)
• Predicting what the purpose of different parts of plants (VC2S4I01)
• Sharing what they have observed with their group (VC2S4106)

30 min

Students will explore the interactions between plants and animals at the Sanctuary in order to create a food chain/simple food web. They will participate in a discussion about the impacts of human activity on the food web.

Year 3-4

• Creating a simple food web using knowledge about what an animal might eat (VC2S4U03)
• Working in small groups and explaining their decisions (VC2S4I01, VC2S4I06)

Year 5-6

• Exploring the impacts of human activity on organisms in a food web (VC2S6U01)
• Working in small groups, predicting and justifying their choices (VC2SI01, VC2SI06)

Habitat	Connections	Minibeasts
What's in the Water?	Linking Lifecycles	What's in the Water?
Nesting Box Game	What's in the Water	Linking Lifecycles
Traverse a Tussock	Nesting Box Game	Traverse a tussock
Wilderness Wander	Wilderness Wander	Wilderness Wander

Minibeasts	Plants	Connections
Traverse a Tussock	Plants Up Close	Dip Netting
Who Eats Who	Propagation	Close Encounters
Dip Netting	Nesting Box Game	Who Eats Who
Wilderness Wander	Wilderness Wander	Wilderness Wander

Human Impacts
Dip Netting
Close Encounters
Nesting Box Game
Wilderness Wander