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Experiencing the great outdoors
At St Aidan’s, our Outdoor Education Program focuses on personal development through interaction with others and connection to the natural environment.
Outdoor education supports the development of independence, confidence, initiative, decision-making and problem-solving skills. In fact, the social skills that are developed through outdoor education include collaborative and leadership skills and the ability to manage the challenge of an unfamiliar environment. Our school camps form part of the Outdoor Education Program and are carefully selected to give students a range of activities outside their usual environment.
Junior School
In Year 3 students travel to Camp Kindilan for an overnight stay in the great outdoors. They participate in traditional camp activities, travel on a possum glider and go canoeing together.
In Year 4 our students spend two days at Maroochy Waterfront Camp where they work with Character Builders and reflect on how they can step up, step back and encourage one another when trying something new that is out of their comfort zone. Students participate in standup paddleboarding (SUP), kayaking, dragon boat racing and beach activities.
In Year 5 our students spend three days camping at Camp Currimundi. They develop outdoor skills through activities such as high ropes, canoeing and archery. Many team-building exercises and personal growth improve their resilience and confidence. These camps are an exceptional opportunity for our students to develop independence and safe risk-taking behaviour. Accredited instructors lead physical activities to help grow the essential skills, knowledge and behaviours to live healthy and active lives. Each activity fits into a category and aligns to the Sport Australia Physical Literacy Framework, covering the Physical, Psychological, Social and Cognitive dimensions.
In Year 6, our students spend four days in Canberra visiting Parliament House, Questacon, CSIRO, Old Parliament House, the National Electoral Commission, the Australian Mint, and the the War Memorial. This provides our girls with a unique opportunity to develop important life as they learn to travel and navigate as a group in another Australian city. This camp is an integral part of the curriculum and contributes significantly to the personal growth of our students.
Senior School
In Year 7 students expand their comfort zones at Mount Tamborine. They build rafts, complete challenging high ropes courses, scramble and swim through creeks, fossick for thundereggs and develop their bush survival skills. Throughout the days and nights they have opportunities to participate in team-building challenges, build their collaboration and communication skills, and take part in an Indigenous experience.
In Year 8 students visit Adventure Alternatives in Kenilworth for a three night camp. They participate in orienteering, a high ropes team building belaying challenge and sustainability activities, and a giant ladder rope climb. They also take on a challenging hike in the Booloumba National Park undertake many personal growth activities.
The Year 9 students take on an expedition along the Blackall track between Mapleton and Flaxton. Over four days, they follow the National Park trail, echoing the footsteps of the First Nation Jinibarra people who would have travelled this path as they gathered for the annual Bunya nut festival. They visit well-known sites such as Mapleton and Kondalilla Falls, take on challenging hikes carring full packs, sleep three nights in tents and prepare their own food on portable stoves. They take on a mud challenge in Mapleton and develop ingenuity and persistence in a series of games based on the traditional Bunya nut festival.
