‘Outdoor Education and Community Engagement Program’

 

This grant will help us to develop and expand our current programs and help us work towards achieving our vision.

The materials and equipment that we would be able to have access to through this grant will be invaluable in helping us to encourage more visitors to the reserve, allowing more people to connect with nature and experience this very unique environmental, geological, educational, cultural and recreational resource. Engaging greater numbers of visitors, both locally and from outside the area, will also help us access and utilise valuable resources (financial and human) to help ensure the future care and management of the reserve.

Tania Moloney, Founder of Nurture in Nature and a representative of the Mount Leura and Mount Sugarloaf Development Committee, designed the program to be a multi-sensory, experiential treasure hunt.

“The Nature Bucketlist Challenge is a great opportunity for families to get outside for some good, old-fashioned outdoor fun. At the same time they get to learn about and interact with this incredible natural place we have right on our doorstep”.

The kids reported back that on their adventure they saw a wallaby and had also kept an eagle eye out for some of the fantastic birds of prey we have on the reserves. Unfortunately they didn’t see any on the day but they were excited to come back again in the future to see if they could spy one of the Wedge-tailed Eagles that can often be seen catching the updrafts between the Mounts along the Panorama Trail.

The adventure was capped off by the kids drawing some fantastic pictures of the volcanoes and of wildlife they’d seen, followed by some excellent cubby building and a pretend campfire (the kids were very aware of the importance of “no real fires” on the Mount) …  and, of course, there were marshmallows too!

Be sure to keep an eye on the Friends of Mount Leura Facebook Page or on this website for this event coming again in February 2016!

During 2015 there has been lots of work done to finish the upgrading of the old classroom generously given to the Management Committee by Camperdown College in late 2014. The photos below show some of the many tasks undertaken by members of the Management Committee and Friends of Mt Leura as well as school students and various local contractors.

The Volcanic Education Centre was officially opened by Mayor Chris O’Connor at our Annual Community Planting Event on Sunday September 13th. Since then, it has been used by various groups for such things as meetings, nature play activities for kids, families and schools.

Anyone interested in using the building should enquire through the Friends of Mt Leura link.

We were sad to farewell Grant Coverdale as our Project Officer in September 2015. In his 18 months he had definitely added his stamp to the Reserve. This included amongst the day-to-day tasks : removing old internal fencing (thank you from the resident wallabies), setting up vegetation monitoring quadrants, and working with the Green Army on the removal of non-indigenous vegetation from the quarry site.

During the July 2015 school holidays, nature was both the canvas and the inspiration for kids and families for a two ARTS, CRAFTS & NATURE Day’s hosted at the Mt Leura and Mt Sugarloaf Reserves by Nurture in Nature Bush Playgroup and Family Nature Club.

The kids got busy and showed their creativity and wonderful imaginations by making all sorts of things out of natures loose parts. There were some marvellous paintings, sculptures, leaf rubbings and even a bit of wood whittling!

And, of course, there was plenty of unstructured outdoor play and looking for bugs too!

It was wonderful to have the use of our new fantastic Volcanic Education Centre building too.

Be sure to keep an eye on the Friends of Mount Leura Facebook Page or on our website for upcoming events.

The Mt Leura and Mt Sugarloaf Reserves are a wonderful place to explore for kids of all ages … from 0-99!

On Saturday 21st February 2015, as part of Corangamite Shire’s Recreation Give it a Go 2015, Nurture in Nature Bush Playgroup and Family Nature Club hosted a fun family challenge that guided families on an exciting, interactive, experiential and educational nature adventure!

Tania Moloney, Founder of Nurture in Nature and a representative of the Mount Leura and Mount Sugarloaf Development Committee, designed the program to be a multi-sensory, experiential treasure hunt.

“The Nature Bucketlist Challenge is a great opportunity for families to get outside for some good, old-fashioned outdoor fun. At the same time they get to learn about and interact with this incredible natural place we have right on our doorstep”.

The kids reported back that on their adventure they saw a wallaby and had also kept an eagle eye out for some of the fantastic birds of prey we have on the reserves. Unfortunately they didn’t see any on the day but they were excited to come back again in the future to see if they could spy one of the Wedge-tailed Eagles that can often be seen catching the updrafts between the Mounts along the Panorama Trail.

The adventure was capped off by the kids drawing some fantastic pictures of the volcanoes and of wildlife they’d seen, followed by some excellent cubby building and a pretend campfire (the kids were very aware of the importance of “no real fires” on the Mount) …  and, of course, there were marshmallows too!

Be sure to keep an eye on the Friends of Mount Leura Facebook Page or on this website for this event coming again in February 2016!

If you’d like inquire about booking your group or school in for your own NATURE BUCKET LIST CHALLENGE or for more information on the Bush Playgroup and Family Nature Club and the many other programs and activities that Nurture in Nature offers, please contact:

Tania Moloney
Tel: 0409 843 965
Web: www.nurtureinnature.com.au
Facebook: www.facebook.com/nurtureinnatureaustralia
Twitter: @naturechildhood

In our very first Nurture in Nature Bush Playgroup & Family Nature Club outing on Saturday 4th October 2014, we visited Mt Leura and Mt Sugarloaf Reserve in Camperdown.

It was a wonderful turn out for the first session, with a total of 22 Participants (12 Kids and 9 Adults) from 7 Families. The children were aged from 2 to 8.

After a brief welcome, introduction and simple safety briefing from me, the families mingled and meet each other and enjoyed exploring the natural area around the lower shelter.

A major aim for the group is to encourage families to engage in free, unstructured play in nature, and in the welcome and introduction parents/carers were encouraged to take a step back and let the kids make their own first discoveries and lead the way in their play and exploration.

We talked about the recent tree planting day that had been held there a couple of weeks prior, and my children Nash (5) and Taylor (3) busily went to check on “their” Running Postman and Kangaroo Grasses to make sure that they were still growing nicely. They reported back that they were all looking “just right”.

After about only 10 minutes of free play and exploring around the lower shelter, plans changed and the original planned activity for the start of the session (“Nature Chatterbox”) was left for another time. The kids’ had decided they wanted get moving and ”Climb the Volcano” and “See the big hole in the middle of the mountain”, so as encouraged to do so initially, the adults followed the kids’ lead and off we headed.

Some walked, a couple crawled and the very little ones were carried up to the Shelter area near the crater. There was an excited air of anticipation as the kids scampered up the decent incline and everyone was looking forward to “seeing inside the Volcano” but they hoped there was “no hot smoking lava” in it today.

Along the way, Nash was excited  to point out to everyone where one of the Geocache Boxes was located, and informed the group that “there was also another one at the top of the mountain but it had been taken by some naughty people and luckily Grant had put another one there for people to find”. Nash had reminded Grant to make sure he put a new one there EVERY time he saw him after we originally found it missing, and when it was replaced, Grant made sure he sent me a message to pass on to Nash that he had done it. Nash was impressed, and very happy.

We stopped for a snack and a drink at the Shelter area and the kids pondered and chatted as they peered down into the crater.  We read on the information board about the dinosaurs who walked these volcanic plains in pre-historic times and about the indigenous communities who inhabited the area in times past and for whom it holds special significance today. The kids were excited to think that dinosaurs were here and about the lava and scoria “spewing out of the mountain”.

The kids were innately drawn towards the small water trough at the back of the Shelter where they played and chatted for quite some time. They discussed what they thought the trough was for and decided that animals would “probably use it to drink out of if they were thirsty”.  When asked what animals they thought might drink from it, the kids suggested wallabies, kangaroos, cows, sheep, dogs and maybe some birds. “They dinosaurs probably drank from here too”, one of them remarked.

 On the way back down, we met up with Greg Farmer, former Project Officer from the Friends of Mt Leura and Mt Sugarloaf. Greg was doing some work around the reserve, and stopped to chat with us. He provided members of our group with copies of the Mt Leura and Mt Sugarloaf Booklet, “The Volcanic Edge”.

Once down back at the Lower Information Shelter, the families said their farewell’s and said they’d had lots of fun and were looking forward to the next session.

All of the families attending the session had been up to Mount Leura in the past, but most of the parents stated that “we don’t come up here often enough”. They commented that it was nice to meet and hang out in a relaxed group environment with other families, get outdoors together with their own family and to explore our areas great natural places.

Nash, Taylor and I stayed and played around the lower information shelter for a while after everyone left, eating our pre-prepared scroggin to “refuel our engines”. Nash decided to show Taylor “how to make shadows with sticks to tell the time”. He estimated that it was almost 3.15pm (that time being perhaps coincidentally when his favourite showThomas and Friends is on TV).

Greg Farmer made the great suggestion that next time we visited, if we wanted to walk further on the Mount, that we could organise to meet at the top and walk down the walking track, leaving one car down at the Information Shelter. That way we could walk all the way down and then ferry parents back up to get the cars afterwards. Walking down might be a bit easier on littler legs! A great idea indeed, and one we’ll do I’m sure, but I will say that I’m in awe of how those littler legs scampered up the hills, and although they may have been tired when we finished, the kids were really proud that “they made it all the way on their own”. Such experiences are invaluable for children in inspiring confidence, capability, persistence and a great feeling of acheivement.

Three weeks after the session, one of the parents reported to me that their kids repeatedly asked when they saw Mt Leura when they were going to “Get to go back up to climb inside the volcano”.

The families are looking forward to meeting up again for our November Session and the venue will be the Camperdown Botanic Gardens.

Word of mouth, Nurture in Nature’s website and social media were the primary ways that people found out about the new Bush Playgroup and Family Nature Club. In future, one of the strategies to help boost numbers will be to work with Council on using avenues of promotion they have. Other strategies will include getting some local media coverage, as well as promoting the group through Childcare Centre’s, Kindergarten’s, Schools, Community Newsletters and other relevant avenues.

If you’d like inquire about more information on the Bush Playgroup and Family Nature Club and the many other programs and activities that Nurture in Nature offers, please contact:

Tania Moloney
Tel: 0409 843 965
Web: www.nurtureinnature.com.au
Facebook: www.facebook.com/nurtureinnatureaustralia
Twitter: @naturechildhood

Greg Farmer finishes 13 years as part time Project Officer on Friday 17th January 2014.

Greg is to be congratulated on all the fantastic work he has achieved during his time in this role.

All are welcome to acknowledge his hard work and dedication to the role on:

Sunday 16th February 2013 at Community Plant Propagation Workshop (see ‘Latest News’ item).

Greg Farmer at newly installed entrance gateway.

Check out our page featuring Geo caching at Mount Leura for your next adventure.

 

Every one welcome.  Great family event and no skills required.

Learn more about our indigenous “wild flower” plants.

All plants propagated will be planted at Mt Leura Lower Shelter Indigenous Garden

in September at our annual planting day.

Event to be held at Camperdown College Nursery commencing at 10 am.

No charge and join us for our “famous” free bbq.

Photo from 2013 Workshop

Chocolate Lilies – one of the many different indigenous “wildflowers” propagated each year

 

 

 

Thirty-five friends of Mt Leura celebrated 2013’s achievements with the Mount Leura and Mount Sugarloaf Management Committee at the lower shelter on December 20th.

A great opportunity for friends to catch up and chat.