Year 7 History Excursion

On Monday the 10th of March year 7 history students went on an excursion to The Big Dig,  an archaeological site in The Rocks and then to Observatory Hill and the original Fort Street High School. At the Big Dig we were split into our class groups and then did activities in these groups. The activities were:

• We looked at artifacts that had been found within the site (e.g. old pieces of plates or dolls) and then filled out a worksheet about what we could see (what was it made of, what would it have been used for, was it broken etc.)
• Then we got pieces of paper with years on them and special events that had occurred in these years and built a timeline from the colonisation of Australia all the way to the 2020s/now.
• We then proceeded to go on a tour of the site and learn about the rich history of the street (the people that lived there, the events that had occurred there and the things that had happened to the people while they had been living there.) This was personally one of my favourite parts of the entire excursion.

We then walked up to Observatory Hill and the original Fort Street High School and had lunch while looking at the beautiful view from up there. We then got a big booklet and walked around the site observing our surroundings and learning about the history of the old school and the area surrounding it. I really enjoyed having a go at drawing the view from on top of the rotunda and seeing how funny it turned out to be.

All in all I really enjoyed this excursion and learnt a lot from the rich history of the area.

Solomon, Year 7 Student.