Permaculture Partners for Schools Gardens - 2011, 2 ` For more information, Please see websites below: ` Organic Edible Schoolyards & Gardening with Children http://scribd.com/doc/239851214 ` Double Food Production from your School Garden with Organic Tech http://scribd.com/doc/239851079 ` Free School Gardening Art Posters http://scribd.com/doc/239851159` ` Companion Planting Increases Food Production from School Gardens http://scribd.com/doc/239851159 ` Healthy Foods Dramatically Improves Student Academic Success http://scribd.com/doc/239851348 ` City Chickens for your Organic School Garden http://scribd.com/doc/239850440 ` Simple Square Foot Gardening for Schools - Teacher Guide http://scribd.com/doc/239851110

1. Warrawong Community Of Schools
Permaculture Partners
Newsletter
Term 2 2011
The aim of this newsletter is that each term the schools will give an update on progress with Environmental
Initiatives at their school that focus around their Permaculture gardens.
Program Overview
Each school is developing a permaculture garden to engage
students in classroom learning and environmental activities.
Across the curriculum there are subject specific goals in primary
school Stages 2/3 (Year 3 to 6) and in high school Stage 5/6
Science, Stage 4 D&T, Stage 5/6 Food Technology and
Hospitality, Stage 4/5 Visual Arts and Stage 4 HSIE. Programs are
differentiated according to stage so the goals for each year
group vary considerably according to curriculum outcomes.
Students participate in their living classroom with support from
a teacher trained in permaculture. A key element in this
approach is the use of a teacher professional development
trainer-training model. The class teacher learns on the job as
they work with the permaculture specialist to enhance the
curriculum by introducing the garden as a practical element into
classroom learning.
In addition to the core curriculum, each school uses the gardens
to focus on environmental sustainability, introducing new life
skills and healthy eating (childhood obesity). There are also
specific programs to maintain the gardens and re-engage
students with school.
Overall our permaculture living classroom programs provided
massive benefits in terms of developing student skills, building
student self-esteem, building community capacity by engaging
the community and promoting the work of our schools.
Images from the grand opening of the WHS Cob Oven June 2011
Major Achievements
Progress continues to be excellent across all six schools. Over the
last 12 months achievements include :
 Number of students and the way students are involved has
grown exponentially; well over 300 students across all six
schools are now involved on an annual basis
 Many more staff now have a variety of roles so there is a
significant distribution of teacher input and student
engagement in a variety of different ways
 Significant developments in the high school garden in terms
of both infrastructure and school programs
 With the high school garden now fully operational there has
been a significant broadening in the strategies where
students engage with the garden programs eg. permaculture
skills and garden art school re-engagement; inclusion in the
curriculum of animal systems including fish farming, worms
and possibly also chickens and goats
 Creation of our community of schools permaculture
education website so as an element in a bigger picture to
provided teachers with shared access to teaching resources
and ideas across our six schools
 Port Kembla Public School garden is now under construction
and scheduled to finish within the year
 At Lake Heights the design and initial development work is
under way
 Held two major promotional events to acknowledge our
sponsors; both December 2010 and May 2011 were well
received and attended. The May event attracted over 100
people, many of whom were seeking to link with and support
our programs
 There is so much interest in our permaculture programs that
a further sponsor’s event is occurring soon to celebrate the
operation of the new high school cob pizza oven
 A once a term permaculture partners e-newsletter has been
published and sent to over 200 subscribers; this is increasing
the interest in what we our achieving and attracted interest
from other educators eg. besides developing links with the
University of Wollongong, the Sydney Botanic Gardens
education arm is now discussing links
 Briefed and involved our new Permaculture Partners patron
the Federal member for Throsby, Stephen Jones who has
now attended and spoken at our various events

2.  Programs acknowledged as best practice example of life
skills development and environmental education through
the Department; we continue to field many enquiries from
other schools
 Major ongoing media interest leading to many media stories
and other spin offs as people seek us out to contribute and /
or learn from what we are achieving
 Several community links which offer potential for new and
better garden initiatives including very exciting (potential)
links with TAFE and through land care and water catchment
management
 Reviewed our business plan and made recommendations to
renew it so it reflects current practice
 Determined that we will place notice boards in each school;
contracted for a design template to be developed
 Negotiating with Port Kembla Community Project to
establish a city farm project on the high school site to
provide work for people in the community, opportunities
for students to learn skills and grow produce that would be
sold with the profits returning to the project.
Continued strong support from a range of corporate sponsors
Current progress in each school gardens
Warrawong Public School
 Garden ambassadors are stage 3 students; students
from the support unit are engaged in the garden and
utilising the produce for weekly cooking lessons
 The school has an action plan that outlines its
Environmental education overview linked to syllabus
documents (based on information on the Warrawong
CoS website)
 Teaching and learning units are being altered to
explicitly link learning to the utilisation of the garden
 Andrew built worm farm seats, awaiting worms and
good weather before holding a whole school worm day
Watering the garden @ Warrawong Public School June 2011
Lake Heights Public School
 Dan and Aaron addressed the staff; initial planning has
been very enthusiastic, with lots of good ideas
 Change in the overall site plan; with the old office
demountable being moved this space is a much bigger
and better site for the garden
 Dan and Aaron have visited one morning assembly
outline the plans for the garden and to promote the role
of students in the garden design
 The most likely approach is to start small; employ a
teacher to implement the garden program at a local level
rather than the full curriculum approach adopted in
other schools
 The garden will be built in stages with the overall plan to
be developed incrementally. The first stage will most
likely be a seating circle and small swale for a vegetable
growing area.
Two views of the new site for the Lake Heights PS garden.
Warrawong High School
 Garden now fully operational with massive strides in
terms of both the quality and breadth of programs now
operating
 Dan and Aaron both working with a range of classes and
in a range of programs eg. creating interpretative
signage; making mosaics on the discus rounds and
throughout the garden; working with disengaged
students in the garden as aides; a student community art
group introduced to increase attendance and school
participation each week
 Collegially working with community people to build the
outdoor kitchen; now taking shape and looking great;
kitchen is about 60% finished with Andrew Stranger
designing and building
 Infrastructure includes setting up the outdoor kitchen,
benches, sinks plumbed (sinks donated to WHS by
Cringila who got them from Coles), finish water systems,
worm farms, storage bins, garden fencing, gates and
signage, cob oven
 Support and IEC students are using an old cubby to build
a chicken house
 Ran a workshop on building a Cob Oven. Two day course
which involved 20 students some from surrounding
school. They used clay from the school grounds and
blended with sand. All involved enjoyed café, soup and
food.
 Dan has focused on integrating students eg. working on
the labyrinth to establish planting and growing food,
weeding and mulching
 The school has an action plan that outlines its
Environmental education overview linked to syllabus
documents that will run in the school (based on
information on the Warrawong CoS website

3. Cringila Public School
 All systems in terms of garden cycles and classroom
programs going ahead as per usual
 The new kitchen structure now built and secured;
electrical appliances and services being fitted with the
opening targeted for October/November.
 Garden looking fantastic - Aaron continuing with
garden ambassadors, planting new garden vegetable
and shrubs
 Entered into ‘Dig Ya Dinner’ competition as part of the
Sydney Organic Food Expo which the school won last
year. Gardens prepared and planted. Competition date
early August
 The school has an action plan that outlines its
Environmental education overview linked to syllabus
documents that will run in the school (based on
information on the Warrawong CoS website)
Produce growing well @Cringila Public School June 2011
Kemblawarra Public School
 Progressing well
 Lots of produce which they are distributing within the
community
 The school has an action plan that outlines its
Environmental education overview linked to syllabus
documents (based on information on the Warrawong
CoS website
Images from Kemblawarra PS including the NAIDOC wall and a custard apple.
The WHS garden continues to grow and flourish June 2011
Port Kembla Public School
 Garden construction has started and design finalised;
significant earth works and garden shaping has
commenced
 Totem poles have been designed to be placed in the
garden; worm farms being built; future plans include
chickens and a pizza oven
 The school has an action plan that outlines its
Environmental education overview linked to syllabus
documents (based on information on the Warrawong
CoS website)
 RFF teacher (Mary Duncan Assistant principal) will take
responsibility for teaching EE across the school
 Every class will have a responsibility and they will have
garden ambassadors however there will be students
selected from classes Year3 to 5 to work in the garden
one full day each fortnight
 A lot of parental support who are willing to assist by way
of working bees
 Port Corp coming on board with some donations initially
timbers from an old wharf. They have indicated ongoing
support for PKPS
Port Kembla PS Living Classroom under construction June 2011
Contacts: Cringila Public School Relieving Principal Lorna Kaer Phone 4274 1768 Fax 4276 2841 lorna.kaer@det.nsw.edu .au
School Website: www.cringila-p.schools.nsw.edu.au
Kemblawarra Public School Principal Eleanor Thompson Phone 4274 2024 Fax 4276 2971 eleanor.p.thompson@det.nsw.edu.au
School Website: www.kemblawarr-p.schools.nsw.edu.au
Lake Heights Public School Principal Peter Heddles Phone 4274 2024 Fax 4276 2971 peter.heddles@det.nsw.edu .au
School Website: www.lakeheight-p.schools.nsw.edu.au
Port Kembla Public School Principal Kevin Tucker Phone 4274 1041 Fax 4276 2840 kevin.tucker @det.nsw.edu .au
School Website: www.ptkembla-p.schools.nsw.edu.au
Warrawong High School Principal Stephen Goodley Phone 4274 0707 Fax 4276 2836 stephen.goodley@det.nsw.edu .au
School Website: www.warrawong-h.schools.nsw.edu.au
Warrawong Public School Principal Karen Hodge Phone 4274 1399 Fax 4276 2789 karen.hodge@det.nsw.edu .au
School Website: www.warrawong-p.schools.nsw.edu.au
A big thankyou to our ongoing sponsors