Cairns Regional Council has used its resources to prepare a suite of activities and toolkits for the region’s school curriculums.
The Teacher’s Link program aims to engage both primary and high school students and encourage hands-on learning in Cairns classrooms.
The program includes a range of practical and creative activities developed by Council, including information on recycling, libraries and solar energy.
“Teacher’s Link is designed to be engaging and interesting for students, with practical ideas to help explore their region, as well as the services that Council provides,” said Mayor Bob Manning.
“It brings together all of the educational resources that Council has available to make it easier for teachers to plan class activities.”
Resources are split into six key curriculum areas: Maths, Health and Physical Education, Arts, Humanities and Social Science, English and Science and Technology.
Division 6 councillor and Teacher’s Link patron Linda Cooper said that, through the program, Council could tailor experiences to suit the needs of individual schools.
“The idea is to make the program easily adaptable to what students are already learning in class,” said Cr Cooper.
“For example, there’s information on how to access educational online resources through Cairns Libraries and suggestions for class outings that take in significant historical or cultural sites.
“It also builds on our already successful school tours of waste and recycling facilities to teach students about the importance of recycling and what happens to their waste once it’s collected.
“For classes that are learning about renewable energy, we have a Solar Tool Kit, which actually lets students set up a solar panel at their school to directly power a connected fan, radio and light.
“This sort of hands-on learning can be invaluable for young minds.”
Teacher’s Link content can be accessed via Council’s website at www.cairns.qld.gov.au/teacherslink or in hard copy in the form of the user-friendly Teacher’s Link booklet, which is being delivered to all schools in the Cairns region.
