General News
17 June, 2024
Students benefit from Urban Camp
Ten students from Talbot Primary School and two students from Tarnagulla Primary School enjoyed a taste of city life as they ventured to Urban Camp. Earlier this month, students spent a total of three days and two nights at the Royal Park facility...
Ten students from Talbot Primary School and two students from Tarnagulla Primary School enjoyed a taste of city life as they ventured to Urban Camp.
Earlier this month, students spent a total of three days and two nights at the Royal Park facility, with many students walking through Melbourne for the first time.
Many of the grade five and six students enjoyed their visit to the Melbourne Sports and Aquatic Centre, Scienceworks and the Melbourne Zoo.
Talbot Primary School teacher Brenda Katzer said the students had a blast exploring the big city.
“We all had a great time at Urban Camp, we had two students from Tarnagulla with us as well and they slotted in beautifully and made new friendships,” she said.
“The enthusiasm of the kids to participate in everything was fantastic — we had one student who was unsure about going but chose to go because they really wanted to make new memories with their friends and they have come back buzzing.”
The school sends their senior students to a camp every year, alternating between a city camp and a more traditional adventure camp each year.
Ms Katzer said it is important for regional kids to experience the city in a controlled environment to help bolster their confidence.
“Urban Camps are a great way to familiarise our students with the city — as kids from a small rural school, it gives them experiences that they may have never had before,” she said.
“I am pretty sure most of our kids wouldn’t have gone into the centre of the city, experience life in the big smoke and how it differs from our tiny town.
“The oohs and aahs of kids travelling on trams told me none of them had been on trams before or had even tapped on and off with their Myki.
“On the first day they were pretty overwhelmed by how big it was, but eventually the kids had the confidence to travel around Mel-bourne and not be scared by all the cars and all the people.”
Urban Camp CEO Elizabeth Compton agreed with Ms Katzer’s comments, stating that the school camp has helped bridge the gap between urban and rural life for 40 years.
“School camps are a very formative experience, it is often students’ first experience away from home and it is often their first time in the city,” she said.
“Because we are an urban camp, especially for regional kids we are really trying to bridge that gap between regional and city as well as compare and contrast how the city is different to their hometown.
“It gives students a balanced holistic view of the country that they live in and if we can do it through Urban Camp in a beautiful and safe environment where they can go out exploring, it builds their confidence and opens them up to new ideas.”
Talbot students also visited the Old Melton Jail and Parliament House as part of their camp to coincide with their learning topics this year.
“We work with the schools to put together their programs for the three days so we will understand what they have been learning in the classroom and what would be relevant for their students to see,” Ms Compton said.
“You can learn in the classroom, but when you’re here in the city and going to the jail, the zoo, Scienceworks or Parliament House, you are bringing to life a lot of the principles you have been learning and foster that love for learning.”