2014 Environmental Learning Program for schools
Brisbane City Council environment centres
Environmental learning in Brisbane’s natural areas
The Downfall Creek Bushland Centre and Boondall Wetlands Environment Centre are an
integral part of Brisbane City Council’s vision of being a clean, green city.
The environment centres’ mission states:
‘Brisbane’s environment centres motivate and empower people for action to create a green and sustainable city. People of all ages are encouraged to appreciate, learn and connect with the environment and their community through stimulating and fun experiences. They provide information and hands-on experience for people to discover how to live in harmony with the environment’.
- Downfall Creek Bushland Centre is located within the Raven Street Reserve. The reserve includes 33 hectares of dry eucalypt woodland and heath understorey, a natural creek line with viewing platform, more than 115 different bird species and more than 200 native plant species. The reserve has several kilometres of walking and bike tracks, most with wheelchair access.
The 200-metre Mountains to Mangroves Senses Trail, located beside the centre, is designed as a self-guided walk and caters for a wide range of groups with special needs. Features include a continuous handrail, a range of interpretive signage with braille and raised text and self-guided audio tour and accompanying plant guide.
- Boondall WetlandsEnvironment Centre is located within the Boondall Wetlands Reserve. The reserve includes 1100 hectares of tidal flats, mangroves, grasslands, salt marshes, melaleuca and casuarina swamps and woodlands.
The internationally-significant wetlands are part of a chain of Ramsar-listed coastal wetlands linked with Moreton Bay. Boondall Wetlands has a rich Aboriginal history and is an important place for cultural learning. The wetlands feature contemporary Indigenous art totems and can be experienced by extensive walking and bike tracks – all trails have wheelchair access.
The Environmental Learning program
Every year, thousands of students visit Downfall Creek Bushland Centre and Boondall Wetlands Environment Centre to participate in fun-filled experiential lessons in Council’s bushland and wetlands reserves. All lessons are:
- developed by our team of environmental educators
- Australian and Education Queensland curricula integrated and focused
- flexible to ensure each lesson is adapted to meet specific year level requirements
- catered to specific year levels and group requirements via pre-visit consultation with our environmental educators
- supported by a teacher resource kit, complete with a lesson overview and pre-visit and post-visit activities
- evaluated by teachers for teachers.
Learning naturally at the Environment Centres
The following is a guide to Council’s Environmental Learning Program for Downfall Creek Bushland Centre and Boondall Wetlands Environment Centre. To reserve your lesson, please follow the ‘How to book’ section on the back page of this booklet. All lessons are two hours in duration unless otherwise specified in the lesson description. Lessons are delivered at the relevant centre, unless specified in the lesson location. For details, please see ‘Key to abbreviations and symbols’ at page end.
Australian Curriculum (Geography, History and Science, including General Capabilities and Cross-Curriculum Priorities) for each lesson are provided upon booking a lesson or on request. Lessons will be updated to include the remaining Australian Curricular as they are developed. Queensland Authority Senior subject linkages for each lesson are also available on request.
Lessons for Prep to Year 10
Name / Location / Description / Year level / Australian Curriculum Sub-strand (P – 10)Amazing arthropods / DCBC
/ Discover the amazing world of mini-beasts. Through interactive classroom and field activities, students will learn about the different groups of arthropods, their classification, habitats, life cycles and importance in the environment. / P / Science: Living things have basic needs, including food and water (ACSSU002)
Science: The way objects move depends on a variety of factors, including size and shape (ACSSU005)
1 / Science: Living things have a variety of external features (ACSSU017)
Science: Living things live in different places where their needs are met (ACSSU211)
2 / Science: Living things grow, change and have offspring similar to themselves (ACSSU030)
3 / Science: Living things can be grouped on the basis of observable features and can be distinguished from non-living things (ACSSU044)
Creek critters / DCBC
/ Students gain an understanding of waterway health and creek habitats through games and dip netting for creek critters. / P / Science: Living things have basic needs, including food and water (ACSSU002)
1 / Science: Living things have a variety of external features (ACSSU017)
Science: Living things live in different places where their needs are met (ACSSU211)
Geography: The natural, managed and constructed features of places, their location, how they change and how they can be cared for (ACHGK005)
2 / Science: Earth’s resources, including water, are used in a variety of ways (ACSSU032)
3 / Science: Living things can be grouped on the basis of observable features and can be distinguished from non-living things (ACSSU044)
Indigenous discovery / BWEC
/ A fun and informative look at Aboriginal culture in relation to the use of wetlands. Students learn about tools, artifacts, storytelling, art and the use of local plants. / P / History: How the stories of families and the past can be communicated, for example through photographs, artefacts, books, oral histories, digital media, and museums (ACHHK004)
Geography: The places people live in and belong to, their familiar features and why they are important to people (ACHGK002)
Geography: The Countries/Places that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples belong to in the local area and why they are important to them (ACHGK003)
1 / Geography: The natural, managed and constructed features of places, their location, how they change and how they can be cared for (ACHGK005)
2 / Geography: The definition of places as parts of the Earth’s surface that have been given meaning by people, and how places can be defined at a variety of scales (ACHGK010)
Geography: The influence of purpose, distance and accessibility on the frequency with which people visit places (ACHGK013)
4 / Geography: The custodial responsibility Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples have for Country/Place, and how this influences their past and present views about the use of resources (ACHGK023)
Marvelous mangroves / NBF / Come and explore the Tabbil-ban dhagun (place of salt water) boardwalk. This lesson involves fun, interactive activities and investigates the importance of mangrove areas. Students learn about the unique adaptations of the plants and animals that live in these areas. / P / Science: Living things have basic needs, including food and water (ACSSU002)
1 / Science: Living things have a variety of external features (ACSSU017)
Science: Living things live in different places where their needs are met (ACSSU211)
3 / Science: Living things can be grouped on the basis of observable features and can be distinguished from non-living things (ACSSU044)
Totem tales / BWEC / An interesting guided walk along the Nurri Millen totem track at Boondall Wetlands. Students explore Aboriginal history and how natural resources were utilised by Aboriginal people. / P / History: How the stories of families and the past can be communicated, for example through photographs, artefacts, books, oral histories, digital media, and museums (ACHHK004)
3 / History: Days and weeks celebrated or commemorated in Australia (including Australia Day, ANZAC Day, Harmony Week, National Reconciliation Week, NAIDOC week and National Sorry Day) and the importance of symbols and emblems (ACHHK063)
4 / History: The diversity and longevity of Australia’s first peoples and the ways Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander peoples are connected to Country and Place (land, sea, waterways and skies) and the implications for their daily lives (ACHHK077)
Backyard to bay / DCBC
and
NBF / A full-day program consisting of a morning and afternoon lesson, each two hours in duration. Students visit Raven Street Reserve and Boondall Wetlands, learning how to protect their waterways from ‘backyard to bay’. Students undertake waterway health assessments to investigate waterway health and connectivity from the top of a catchment to the bay. / 4 / Science: Living things, including plants and animals, depend on each other and the environment to survive (ACSSU073)
5 / Science: Living things have structural features and adaptations that help them to survive in their environment(ACSSU043)
6 / Science: The growth and survival of living things are affected by the physical conditions of their environment(ACSSU094)
7 / Science: Water is an important resource that cycles through the environment(ACSSU222)
Creek discovery / DCBC
/ Students are introduced to the concepts of catchments and water quality monitoring. Field activities such as dip netting for water invertebrates, surveying creek vegetation and water quality testing are used to examine the health of a creek. / 4 / Science: Living things, including plants and animals, depend on each other and the environment to survive (ACSSU073)
Geography: The importance of environments to animals and people, and different views on how they can be protected (ACHGK022)
5 / Science: Living things have structural features and adaptations that help them to survive in their environment(ACSSU043)
6 / Science: The growth and survival of living things are affected by the physical conditions of their environment(ACSSU094)
7 / Science: Water is an important resource that cycles through the environment(ACSSU222)
Geography: The ways that flows of water connect places as it moves through the environment and the way this affects places (ACHGK038)
Happening habitats / BWEC or DCBC
/ Through role-play, games and a guided walk, students learn what a habitat is and explore the dependence that native plants and animals have on their habitat. / 4 / Science: Living things, including plants and animals, depend on each other and the environment to survive (ACSSU073)
Geography: The importance of environments to animals and people, and different views on how they can be protected (ACHGK022)
5 / Science: Living things have structural features and adaptations that help them to survive in their environment(ACSSU043)
6 / Science: The growth and survival of living things are affected by the physical conditions of their environment(ACSSU094)
7 / Science: Interactions between organisms can be described in terms of food chains and food webs; human activity can affect these interactions (ACSSU112)
Life in a wetland (new) / BWEC / Spend time exploring the wetlands, investigating how the growth and survival of living things are affected by the physical conditions of their environment. Collect primary data about and predict patterns and relationships between the distribution of wetland community types and salinity. / 6 / Science: The growth and survival of living things are affected by the physical conditions of their environment (ACSSU094)
Mangrove discovery
(adaptations, food webs or classification focus) / NBF / Join us for a walk along the Tabbil-ban dhagun (place of salt water) boardwalk. This walk introduces students to the mangrove species of Moreton Bay and explores the adaptations of these unique plants. Students investigate the diverse food web that depends on mangrove systems and consider the various values of, and threats to mangrove communities. / 4 / Science: Living things, including plants and animals, depend on each other and the environment to survive (ACSSU073)
Geography: The types of natural vegetation and the significance of vegetation to the environment and to people (ACHGK021)
Geography: The importance of environments to animals and people, and different views on how they can be protected (ACHGK022)
5 / Science: Living things have structural features and adaptations that help them to survive in their environment(ACSSU043)
6 / Science: The growth and survival of living things are affected by the physical conditions of their environment(ACSSU094)
7 / Science: Interactions between organisms can be described in terms of food chains and food webs; human activity can affect these interactions (ACSSU112)
Science: There are differences within and between groups of organisms; classification helps organise this diversity (ACSSU111)
Wings of the world / / Discover the story of Tom the Red-Necked Stint, a tiny migratory wader bird who embarks upon an epic cross-continental journey from the cold reaches of Alaska to the sunshine of Boondall Wetlands. Through story and an interactive presentation, students learn about the amazing annual migration of wader birds, their reliance on wetlands globally, the threats they face and what is being done to protect them. / 4 / Science: Living things, including plants and animals, depend on each other and the environment to survive (ACSSU073)
Geography: The importance of environments to animals and people, and different views on how they can be protected (ACHGK022)
5 / Science: Living things have structural features and adaptations that help them to survive in their environment(ACSSU043)
6 / Science: The growth and survival of living things are affected by the physical conditions of their environment(ACSSU094)
7 / Science: Water is an important resource that cycles through the environment(ACSSU222)
Wetland webs (new) / BWEC / Join us for a walk along the Billai dhagun (place of she-oaks) track and discover the various wetland community types that make up the Boondall Wetlands. Identify the common species of plants and animals found here and use them to create food chains and explore food web interactions. / 7 / Science: Interactions between organisms can be described in terms of food chains and food webs; human activity can affect these interactions (ACSSU112)
Mangrove discovery / NBF / Join us for a walk along the Tabbil-ban dhagun (place of salt water) boardwalk. This walk introduces students to the mangrove species of Moreton Bay and explores the adaptations of these unique plants. It also investigates the diverse food web that depends on mangrove systems and considers the various values of, and threats to them. / 9 / Science: Ecosystems consist of communities of interdependent organisms and abiotic components of the environment; matter and energy flow through these systems (ACSSU176)
Lessons for Years 10-12
Name / Location / Description / Queensland Authority Subjects (10 – 12)Diversity or development? / BWEC / A full-day program consisting of a morning and afternoon lesson, each two hours in duration. Students will gain a theoretical and practical understanding of how human activity impacts on water quality and how disturbance and poor water quality negatively impact on biodiversity. Practical components include a water quality and riparian assessment of two sites and a biodiversity exercise. / Biology, Geography, Marine Studies, Science 21.
Urban catchment assessment / BWEC or DCBC
/ During this lesson, students learn about urban catchment environments and compare the health of two separate creek sites. Students assess water quality (including phosphates, nitrates and dissolved oxygen) and riparian vegetation as indicators of waterway health. / Biology, Earth Science, Marine Studies, Science 21.
What is a wetland? / BWEC / Students discover what a wetland is and explore the functions and diversity of the wetland types in the reserve. Students identify threats to wetlands and using ecological health surveys, determine which threats impact Boondall Wetlands. / Biology, Science 21.
Key to abbreviations and symbols
Lesson locations
DCBC – Downfall Creek Bushland Centre
BWEC – Boondall Wetlands Environment Centre
NBF – Nudgee Beach Foreshore
Important lesson information
Lesson may be adapted to be delivered at your school, local reserve or special event. Timings and costs to be arranged in consultation with environment centre staff.
How to book
- Contact environment centre staff to discuss the most suitable environmental lesson for your group.
- Make a booking. School lessons are run on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Alternative days can be arranged, depending on availability. Off-site programs are run on Mondays and Fridays. Please note that the maximum group size is 30 participants. We encourage early bookings (a minimum of three weeks’ notice is recommended).
- A booking confirmation form and teacher resource kit will be forwarded to you prior to your visit.
- You will be issued with your invoice following your participation in the lesson. Payment in full is required within 30 days after issue of invoice.
Contact information
For all bookings and enquiries, please contactenvironment centre staff.
- Downfall Creek Bushland Centre: Phone (07) 3407 2400; Fax (07) 3407 2404; Mail Downfall Creek Bushland Centre,815 Rode Road, McDowall Qld 4053; Email
- Boondall Wetlands Environment Centre:Phone (07) 3403 1490; Fax (07) 3865 3723; Mail Boondall Wetlands Environment Centre,31 Paperbark Drive, Boondall Qld 4034; Email
Cancellation/postponement
Please note that lessons will continue in light rain, so be prepared for this to occur. If weather forces us to postpone lessons, an alternate date will be arranged. Please notify us as early as possible if you need to cancel or postpone a booked lesson.
Transport
The centres are accessible by car or bus. In addition, Boondall train station is approximately 1.5km from Boondall Wetlands Environment Centre. Brisbane Transport Charters can offer bus charters at competitive prices. For further information and an obligation-free quote visit and search for ‘bus charters’.
Free travel with Green HeartSchools
Do you have waste free lunch days or a school environment club? If your school is actively involved in sustainability initiatives then you may be eligible for free transport to Council’s environmental learning facilities. Please note, some restrictions on group size and lesson combinations may apply. Visit to apply.