Pre-excursion tasks
Please complete the following task with students prior to your Brewongle excursion.
Cool Australia is a non-profit organisation which provides quality teaching resources on a range of topics. Resources are free - you just need to sign up to the site. Their activity on Plant Adaptations and Fire provides a perfect foundation for this excursion. Students should use the resources provided on the site to complete the student worksheet.
Other useful links include:
- Kidcyber - Though this refers to adaptations in general and not specifically adaptations to bushfire, it gives a very useful and age-appropriate explanation of adaptations.
- Otway Greening - Australian Forests and Fire Regeneration: Fire adaptability in Forest Species.
- Australian Museum: What is cultural burning? - This 11 minute video explains the practice of cultural burning and compares it to hazard reduction burning.
Post-excursion tasks
Task 1. Your Local Environment - Processing Geographical Information
Can you find any trees at school or nearby which are the same species as those you identified at Brewongle? You might be able to use the Freeform file you created on your excursion to help identify plants.
What can you do to reduce the risk of (mitigate) bushfire in your local area while managing natural habitat and biodiversity?
Task 2. Bushfire Disaster in Your Local Region - Communicating Geographical Information
Research a bushfire disaster in your local area (for example, the Gospers Mountain Bushfire of 2019/20) and make a creative presentation (poster, infographic, etc) including the following:
- Identify the location and extent of the bushfire
- Describe the impact of the disaster on natural vegetation
- Evaluate the damage caused to communities
Task 3. Your Future
How can people be more prepared if they live in bushfire prone areas? Design a project to teach your local community how to:
- Identify bushfire risk, and
- Prevent and minimise the effects of a bushfire
Wildlife Recovery
Wildlife recovery has been slow and while some species may never recover, others have shown incredible instinct (or luck) to survive fires. Wildlife rescuers and supporters have received funding to set up wildlife feed and water stations in bushfire affected areas. The YouTube videos identify a range of species utilising a wildlife feed and water station in Colo Heights after the Gospers Mountain Bushfire.
Watch the videos:
