Primary School - Years 5 and 6

At the Botanic Garden we want to give students the chance to embrace the beauty and diversity of the gardens. We also understand older students are starting to develop wider, and more advanced skills and knowledge of the environment.

The activities at the Discovery Centre do cater to this higher level of learning. They're also linked to the Sustainability Curriculum Framework (2010), and the NSW Board of Studies syllabus outcomes.

All activities for years 5-6 will be held in the Botanic Garden.

Note: The activities and lessons that are delivered to year K-4 can also be used for years 5-6 but tailored to an older audience.

During the day of your visit there will be the option to undertake two of the following activities beginning at 10am and finishing at 2pm. The stage 5-6 programs will be run throughout the teaching year.

Activity	Details
No Dig Garden Scare crows and Scallywags	Living things and Environmental matters. Learn to grow vegetables in a no-dig garden with the help of the scarecrows
Plant adaptations	Change for the better and light up my life. An exploration of some very unusual plant adaptations found in their natural habitats.
Homes for plants	Environmental Matters and an Ancient World. Children explore a number of “Habitats or homes for plants and animals”, in forests, wet lands and dry lands.
Big Garden Adventure March	Living things and Environmental matters. Explore the Botanic Garden with the help of the Garden staff
Captain Compost	Create compost in your backyard or at school with the help of the Captain.
Aboriginal Perspectives in the Bush Tucker Garden	Indigenous plant use: Explore the bush tucker garden to learn about native plants and their traditional Aboriginal uses in bush medicine and tucker. This is an interactive session where children are able to taste, smell, touch and experience the garden. Traditional shelter building: Work in teams to build traditional Aboriginal gunyas. This interactive session involves hands-on team-building activities, as children work as one to learn and build their shelter. Dreamtime legend: Learn about traditional communication, while taking part in an interactive and colourful Dreamtime story.
Fungi Plants and Animal Species	This lesson explores the adaptations, roles and relationships among fungi, plants and animal species, their physical environments, and our species' place within this system.
Packaging vs. the Environment	In a world that is being inundated by overuse and excessive packaging, this interactive games allows students to discover the problems with trying to find the balance between the economy and the environment.
Story Threads	Revisit the past and uncover the history of waste and recycling with this interactive role play activity. Students act out the roles of local school children from 1947, and discover the evolution and future of human waste problems.
Jewels of the Rainforest	Discover the diverse stories of the importance of the rainforest, the amazing plant adaptations and learn about conservation efforts, and how we can help protect these unique environments.
Water Bug Detectives	Looking at the lifecycles of mini-beast in the freshwater aquatic environment, determining pollution indicators by the presence of certain species, and key components of the food chain.
Spaceship Earth	This interactive activity gives a different perspective of the earth we share as students 'view' planet earth from a spaceship, which depends on its well-maintained systems.
Growing plants from plants	Exploring various ways to propagate plants from cuttings, division and grafting.

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