School engagement program

Hunter Local Land Services’ School Engagement Program is educating school students to become future land management champions.

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Video transcript

Our School Engagement Program

hunter local land services

has partnered with hunter water

corporation for many years to provide

the school engagement project

the project provides engagement

activities based around

catchment improvement water quality and

catchment health

information on threatened species and

pest animals

as well as sustainable agricultural

practices

and emergency management so the great

thing about this program has been that

it's all about local issues

raymond terry sits on the junction of

the williams and hunter river

so learning about the hunter river and

the hunter river turtle

is a really localised issue for us we

partner

very closely with the save our species

program

with local government with aboriginal

organizations

to provide some great educational

activities for school students

some of the activities that we provide

include in-school activities and

presentations

catchment crawls where we take students

on a bus tour of their local catchment

local field studies to

a local river or wetland where students

are able to undertake water testing or a

water bug survey

as well as online activities and

presentations

when we had our testing wall quality

and looking at the bugs i really enjoyed

those things because

it was very kind of a new of an

experience and it really taught me how

to take care of things

with all our messaging there is a call

to action

so the students are actually feeling

empowered to be able to make a change

so the learning doesn't just stop in the

classroom they then go

home and they feel inspired and

empowered to make changes

at home and also amongst their local

community

now they all want to know more they want

to learn more they want to find out more

and they want to do more

and that's probably been the main effect

for our students is that they all want

to

do more and me and my friends

we started to do things about it like

at home i tried to stop my dad using

plastic

because that he would normally put that

in the bin and sometimes

when it's in the garbage truck he'll

fall out and the rain will carry

down the storm drain and then turtles

might think it's

food and eat it and then they get sick

inside

or get choking or plastic bags

as an educator i think it's just been

the passion that's come from this

program

i think just the expression on all of

their faces really it hasn't even had to

be in words

just the excitement on their faces there

was a hunter river turtle and a manning

river turtle

the hunter river turtle was short-necked

and was quite confident to go out

and look around what i think is most

important though is that

we're embedding this information into

our students this isn't just

you know a short-term program they'll

take this information away

with them and you know even as they

leave our school

information about the hunter river

turtle and the benefits and the

predators and all of that thing will

stay with them forever

i think it's very important that we

learn about these things in school so

we understand how bad it could get when

we get older and

say we have our own house so we can make

sure it's

safe for the river bringing a little bit

more awareness to people

say if you live in this area there is a

lot of

waterways near you so you can be a bit

more mindful

of your recycling and your rubbish and

all of that

school engagement is important to hunter

local land services

we have been really fortunate to have a

long-term

partnership with hunter water

corporation which has

enabled us to provide a whole range of

fantastic

educational opportunities to school

students in our region

i feel really passionate about the

hunter of total being alive here

because that's one animal in australia

that cannot live anywhere

else on earth and you have to keep them

safe here

you

Project objectives

This project will inspire students to become change makers and give them the confidence and knowledge to make a difference in their community.

Project delivery

The activities of the School Engagement Program are hands-on and focus on localised issues and solutions. 

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Resources for teachers

Local Land Services can provide printable resources or in-person presentations that are suitable for both primary and high school students and are tailored accordingly.

Topics include:

• water quality and catchment health
• pest animals
• cultural burning
• sustainability
• threatened species.

Get the resources

Local Land Services have also teamed up with Enviro-stories and Adventures at your place to deliver additional resources for teachers.

Sustainability days

Local Land Services can make learning about sustainability fun by providing a range of activities either at a local site (preferable) or at school. The School Engagement Officer can assist to determine a suitable site for your school.

Depending on availability and location, students may participate in:

• water testing
• a water bug survey
• vegetation assessment
• animal habitats
• a catchment relay and more!

Other organisations can also be invited to attend and provide activity sessions, such as:

• Hunter Water
• Local Council
• Landcare
• Birdlife.

If you would like to organise a sustainability day for your students, please contact us.