The Learning Circle, habitat and kitchen gardens have been integral to the development of cultural knowledge. Students regularly participate in activities focused on establishing, maintaining and nurturing plants and gardens. This has included planting and landscaping using mulch and bush rock and installing ponds and painting surrounding walls.
The gardening program is also supported by the Sydney Royal Botanic Gardens (Youth Community Greening Program). National Tree Day was a successful day with students from all faculties participated in tree planting. Sarah Hamilton delivered workshop on native bees and we now have bee hives in both the habitat garden and Learning Circle. Narelle Happ (A Garden for Life) delivered workshops on bush food, balcony gardening, permaculture design, terrariums, indoor gardening, vertical gardens, bee hotels, pollinators and seed raising.
The Royal National Park Environmental Education Centre is located in the Royal National Park at Audley Heights. The qualified and highly experienced Department of Education teachers facilitate programs in the field and at Dorchester ETU.
The centre aims to foster in students an appreciation of their environment to enhance their relationship with it and to assist in the development of responsibility for its future. Through supporting students and the community, we hope that they become better earth citizens and be equipped to undertake positive environmental action.
Our gardening program has provided opportunities for students to make connections to the world and its people through food and its relationship to cultural groups. Supporting our Food Technology programs with produce form our gardens provides students with an opportunity to examine sustainable practices.
We have used our learning circle to learn to identify plant and Bush Food. Often a dampers is made by students using plants from the learning circle and is shared during a learning activity.
