Year 3 Camp to Tyalgum

Year 3 embarked on their first school camp on Wednesday 30 October 2019. With much excitement and anticipation, the students met at Sara Carrigan Gate ready to board the buses bound for Tyalgum Ridge Retreat.

Our day began at 7.15am and we arrived at Tyalgum by 10.00am, NSW time. We were met by the friendly staff of Tyalgum Ridge Retreat who provided a healthy snack before we set off on our first activity. The skies were clear and the fresh air filled our lungs as we headed out in our groups to the flying fox, archery/low ropes, group initiative and waterfall walk. Other activities that were to follow on the camp were canoeing, camping skills and visiting the baby goats which were born only four weeks ago.

On our first night, we were visited by the very talented Fauna Fetchers, Bridget and Sophie, who brought their collection of rescued reptiles. We all had an opportunity to hold or pet a lizard or snake. Some of us were open-minded and demonstrated the learner profile of being a risk taker to hold the variety of friendly reptiles.

The second day was the busiest. We commenced six-hours of activities starting at 8.30am (NSW time) with morning tea, lunch and afternoon tea in between. By 4.00pm, we were exhausted but not too tired to have free time and practise our performances for the talent show!

That evening, we witnessed some of the best acts ever to be seen on the Year 3 camp. There were magic tricks, art and craft lessons, dancing, singing, jokes, acting and many other performances. Many students received a prize for their act.

Rise and shine for the final day and we had one last activity to complete before we had to leave. But first …. It was time to clean out our rooms and pack our bags. We had a lot of trouble putting our sleeping bags away, but with a little teamwork, we all packed up just in time (well some of us did).

Before we headed back to school, we had one last stop to make: The Green Cauldron Farm owned by a Year 3 family. We arrived in our buses at the farm ready and excited to explore a real working farm. We discovered that the Green Cauldron Farm produced a huge amount of vegetables and edible flowers that were completely organic, meaning they don’t use and insecticides or pesticides on their plants. Six quick rotations around the machinery, packing room, greenhouse, propagation area and out into the fields or crops, added to the student’s knowledge of Sharing the Planet and sustainability. After a brief lunch, we hopped back on the buses and made our way to school to meet our families. We were so excited to see them, that some of us even forgot our bags when we went home!

We had the best time on camp and we can't wait until our next camp in Year 4.