The ‘Enviro’ year is a unique program. The rich context of the immediate environment, including the Barwon River and a beautiful and productive food garden, provides endless opportunities to engage in meaningful learning in all areas of the curriculum.

There is a wide body of environmental education research confirming that through our increasingly urbanised lives we have lost our connection with the natural places that ultimately sustain us.  Our program allows young people the opportunity to connect with the natural world – something that has largely vanished from school curricula in recent decades.

Tactile outdoor experience develops empathy and builds respect for the magnificent natural diversity of life on earth. Working in, and cooking and eating from the garden allows children to learn important life lessons about sustainability, good food and good health.

The overarching question, “How can we create a good tomorrow?” guides us throughout the year and helps us think clearly about so many things from personal growth and interpersonal relationships to living sustainably and caring for the planet.

Year-long guiding question:  HOW CAN WE CREATE A GOOD TOMORROW?

Term 1: How can we grow a productive food garden?

Term 2: How are the living things around us connected?

Term 3: How has our landscape changed over time?

Term 4: How do we use the earth’s resources?

The Pillars of the Enviro Year

 

Learning to Know

Nature  The Enviro program aims to build a deep understanding and love for nature by tapping into young people’s inherent curiosity and love of animals and other living things. They are encouraged to notice, and then to ‘know’ their local natural world and their place within it.

Academic rigour  The wonders of nature and the challenges of sustainability provide an incredibly rich context for purposeful learning. An integrated and inquiry-based approach to teaching and learning allows students to explore, gather, process, refine and present information about topics without the constraints imposed by traditional subject barriers. Links between areas of the curriculum are made only when they are natural and when they are related to the understandings on which the unit is focussed. The links are not contrived or forced. Activities offer the possibility for learners to further develop their ideas about the fields of knowledge being studied.

 

Learning To Do

Sustainability  The Year 4 program is a key feature of the school’s commitment to sustainability. Our young people open their eyes to their own impact on the environment and investigate ways in which we can live more sustainably and act upon these. As a community we endeavour to model sustainability and improve our own practises.

 

Environmental action and good health

The notion of ‘acting for the environment’ is central to the program. Students are often engaged in improving the Enviro precinct by creating new features or spaces. During the year our students connect with a diverse range of outdoor places: the Barwon River; the school food garden; farms; parks and gardens and animal sanctuaries. They participate in activities such as: gardening; growing, cooking, serving and eating food; tending to animals; ponding; observing plant structures and growth; investigating invertebrates; hands-on scientific experiments; and nature observation.

 

Learning to Live with Others

Transition  The Year 4 experience represents a ‘right of passage’ in the journey for The Geelong College students. The year provides a careful transition to life in the Middle school. The Enviro precinct is set away from the main part of the Middle School and provides a secure setting for students as they come to know their new places, people and routines.

Respect  A key component of the program is nurturing respect. Respect for: ourselves; others; our communities; our places; and all life on earth.

Working together  Year 4 students regularly work together in teams where they are required to listen to others, compromise, negotiate and share responsibility.

Learning to Be

Positive outlook  Our role as educators is to involve children in a range of learning experiences that lead them to discover ways in which they can ‘make a difference.’ The Enviro program teachers are committed to equipping young children with an optimistic ‘can do’ mentality.