Presented by Shrine Education Staff in the classroom, programs are free of charge and last for 1.5 hours. Only available to schools with low socio-economic profiles within the greater Metropolitan, outer suburban and inner regional areas of Melbourne. The Metropolitan Outreach program is proudly supported by the Portland House Foundation.
For a selection of Student Stories also funded through Portland House Foundation please click here.
PROGRAMS
Smithy’s War – An Australian soldier in the First World War
(For Years 5-8, VELS levels 4 and 5)
Through the hands-on exploration of authentic artefacts, uniforms, and equipment of the First World War, students will discover the reasons and motivations which caused Australians to enlist in the ‘War to End all Wars’ and will follow an Australian soldier’s journey through recruiting, training, and into the trenches of Gallipoli or the mud and barbed-wire of the Western Front.
The program has a strong focus on the human experience, common to soldiers of all nations during the First World War. Students will gain an understanding of the fear, joy, and privations of day-to-day life in the trenches and the bonds which hold soldiers together in war. Themes of commemoration and remembrance are deeply interwoven in the content of the program.
“Digger” – The Australian experience of war
(For Years 9 and 10, VELS level 6)
Using authentic uniforms and artefacts from the First World War, The Second World War, and the Vietnam War, students explore the similarities and differences of the human experience of conflict, as seen by Diggers across multiple generations.
By touching, wearing, and discussing everyday items used by Australian soldiers, students will gain an insight into the heat, jungle, and mosquitoes of Vietnam, the dust storms and desert fleas of the Second World War North African Campaign, and the mud, fear, barbed wire, and trenches of the First World War.
Through understanding these very different conflicts in a global context, students engage with changes in technology, medicine and communication, exploring the costs of war and journeys from conflict to cooperation and peace.