Tracking roos to lunar landscapes, all part of learning about Mildura
Fourteen Year 2 students spent two weeks in Mildura for their rural immersion and, apart from clinical observations, the students experienced some exciting aspects of country life which they might not have otherwise seen.
Amazing Race
Students gained a very quick introduction to Mildura by forming teams led by a Year 3 student and navigating to find various Mildura landmarks / locations. As part of the ‘Amazing Race’ a small task had to be performed at each spot.
The race took students and their drivers-in-the-know across the width and breadth of the city, before finishing at the clinical school for a sausage sizzle.
The ‘race’ has been used previously with new students and is an immensely popular and fun-packed activity for both new and existing students … and the staff!
Tracking a friendly roo – well, hopefully friendly – is all part of the experience for Mildura students taking part in the amazing race.
Farm visit
Students looked a bit tentative as they ‘helped’ with the calf gelding exercise.
Each year the Year 2 students are introduced to the realities of outback farming while learning about animal-borne diseases under the guidance of local veterinarian Dr Bill Sutherland.
This semester, their animal observations included pregnancy testing on cows, and gelding calves.
Mungo national park tour
A day trip to the Mungo National Park, about 110 kilometres north east of Mildura, which encompasses The Walls of China always has its surprises!
Rose and Michael Gilby escorted the bus-load of students to Mungo, and also provided a fascinating overview of the area’s cultural history and importance to local tribal groups. Remains of the earliest known humans to inhabit the Australian continent have been found in Mungo National Park, dating back to nearly 40,000 years ago. Mungo is thus the site of one of earth’s longest continuous human habitations. Originally a vast lake system, the current lunar-type landscape of the region is fascinating including the so-called Walls of China shapes.
While the students were exploring the Park, Nadine and Jenny were trying to staff the barbecue but were terrorised by the local crows who obviously hadn’t seen human food for a long time. They (the crows, that is) diligently pecked their way through the sides of plastic containers to get to the bread; since they had already made off with two tubs of butter it was appropriate that the bread would be their next target.