YEAR 5 CAMP SYDNEY

You stayed at Cockatoo Island. Can you tell us more about its significance? The camp wore two hats – it was about history; touring Cockatoo Island to learn about the island and its meaning to Indigenous people, and its use as a ship building factory and prison by later Australians. Also, the camp was about personal development. The girls rose to the challenges of sleeping in canvas tents with a bed on the ground; it definitely built resilience, courage and independence. WALKING IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF OUR EARLYSETTLERS We recently spoke with Julian Mutton, Deputy Head of Junior School, about the Year 5 camp to Sydney in Term 3, 2019, where students learned about Australia’s history of colonisation. Can you tell us about the purpose of the Year 5 camp? Sydney is a fascinating historical experience, as it allows us to understand the challenges for the Indigenous people and the European settlers, while visiting the first significant places of European settlement. What moment or experience do you think deepened the students’ understanding? Discovering that our accommodation in The Rocks was built on top of an archaeological site, with buried historical items found such as remnants of houses, plumbing, artefactsetc. The NSW Government historians guided us and pointed out artefacts. The girls also got to dig in the sand and analyse the artefacts, understanding more about whatlifewaslike. REALLY HAPPENED IN THE PAST, AS IT INFORMS OUR FUTURE TEACH STUDENTS ABOUT WHAT WE HAVE A RESPONSIBILITY TO

How would you summarise the Year 5 Sydney Camp experience? It’s unique, and I don’t know of other Year5 students who get this kind of experience. To be able to camp on the historic Cockatoo Island in the middle of Sydney Harbour, even adults don’t get to do this. Visiting sites where European settlement took place brought the history to life. I think we have a responsibility to teach students about what really happened in the past, as it informs our future. The girls realised that the past wasn’t always a nice place to be, and people didn’t treat each other with much acceptance. They learned what life was like for the less privileged, confronting often hard and scary stories of the past, and building a real understanding of Australia’s history. It’s a camp that has great links to what girls are learning in the classroom, and a fantastic opportunity for personal development. It was a challenging and unique experience that took girls outside their comfort zones, and the girls rose to the occasion. Elaine Doyle Community Relations Team