Year 6 Canberra Tour - Mt Ridley
It was very early on the morning of Monday, 18 July that 80 Mt Ridley Year 6 students, their parents and their teachers arrived at school in preparation for travelling by coach to our nation’s capital, Canberra. The Canberra Tour was in part funded through the generosity of the PACER Grant which we gratefully acknowledge. This enables the students the opportunity to fully immerse in the hands on learning opportunities at a variety of venues when visiting Canberra.
There was quite a bit of excitement from everyone, but also quite a few nerves, as this was the first camp for some of our students, and the first camp for the majority due to Covid restrictions.
As we were getting ready to board the coaches, many hugs and kisses were exchanged, much to the embarrassment of our students.
The week was full of activities, from the moment of our arrival in Canberra to the final afternoon.
Following are two student reflections about one of the many highlights they experienced.
The Australian War Memorial is a place to commemorate the sacrifices of Australians who have died or have served our nation in times of conflict. It is similar to the Shrine here in Melbourne, but much larger in size. Within the Memorial, some of the artefacts included planes, tanks, a landing boat from Gallipoli and several dioramas of battles. They have many different displays representing the different places that the Defence Forces have served, both during wars and in peace keeping times. One of the rooms that we visited was the tomb of the unknown soldier. The soldier’s body was brought back to Australia after World War 1 and represents all of Australia’s soldiers that passed away overseas after fighting. I learnt that the Eternal Flame that is in the Pool of Reflection, is a symbol of eternal life, meaning the names of Australian soldiers will always we remembered. The Pool is used to not only reflect the names of those who have fought and died, but also to give visitors a moment to reflect on those who have gone before them. - Upulni 6B
I felt so excited about going to Parliament house because I couldn't believe that I was going to the enormous building where the government meets. The House of Representatives and the Senate were amazing. The House of Representatives had green as its main colour and the Senate was red. Both colours had a symbolic meaning to it. Green represented the grey-green leaves of the eucalyptus trees, while red represented the ochre of the landscape. I also learned a lot more about the whole political system, like where the government sits and where the opposition sits during the role play, when I was the Usher of the Black Rod. It was very interesting to learn how a bill becomes a law during the role play. During our time at Parliament House, I got to know that the person who keeps order during the debating of a bill in the Lower House or House of Representatives is called a Speaker and, in the Senate, that person is known as the President. This is because our system of government is based on the West Minster System in England and the Washington System of America. At the end of the tour of Parliament House, we saw a huge model of the building made entirely of Lego, which was very cool. More than 150,000 pieces of Lego were used to create this model, and took 740 hours to build, and every time there is a change in the building, the model is also updated to show the change. I would have liked to have seen parliament in session, but we were not so lucky. But overall, I learnt a lot and really enjoyed our tour. - Japjeet 6C
As can be seen from the reflections above, our students had both an educational and enjoyable experience. Many of them visiting places they hadn’t been before and learned a great deal about not only our nation but also themselves and their friends. One student reflected that it was a camp they are unlikely to ever forget.
It was pleasing to hear feedback from the different venues on the behaviour of our students. They are a credit to both the school and their families.
Thank you again to all our students and staff who supported and organised this trip. It was a unique opportunity for our students to learn and grow.
