Environmental Education

St James' is committed to learning about our natural environment and learning a how can can best preserve and protect it. Students from years 3 to 6 visit the local area of Yarrowee Creek in order to study the water quality, identify local flora and fauna and to experience time playing in a natural, outdoor space. The clip below shows what a session at the Yarrowee Creek looks like for our students. On this occasion, we invited local First Nations people, Uncle Paul and Peter-Shayne to join us. They taught the children about traditional use of the land and creek and discussed what the landscape might have looked like before colonisation using clues from the land.

Children from Foundation to year 2 have time to learn from and within a natural space right here at school in our 'In and About' space. This area is filled with native trees, birds, insects and many places to play and learn. When outdoors, children explore deep questions posed by their teachers, encouraging them to think carefully about the interconnectedness of nature and to consider all aspects of the environment, even the parts that cannot be seen. Students are provided with a variety of ways to express their understandings and to share ways in which they are learning to care for our local habitats.