2P’s Outdoor Classroom Day 

Thursday 5 November 

What a glorious day 2P had on Thursday in the wonderful world of Penguin! We started our Wonder Walk this week by observing some of the many dramatic changes that have occurred within our school grounds along Ironcliffe Road as part of the redevelopment.  

We noticed with a heavy heart that sadly more native animals had lost their lives along Sports Complex Avenue since our last walk, and as a result, we have decided to contact the Central Coast Council to see if they can put up signs to encourage road users to slow down in the area to help reduce the number of animals killed.  

As we continued our walk past the Golf Course, we were visited by a new furry friend who desperately wanted to accompany us. Once we persuaded her to go home, with a lot of help from Sally, we explored the newly opened residential area on Dial Road and wondered who might live there in the future and if they would have children who would go to Penguin District School! 

After crossing the bridge, we ventured to the end of Hales Street where we compared the area to a map we had viewed of the undeveloped space in the early 2000s. We wondered about if, and when, the paddocks beyond the fence might be redeveloped in the future and if the land would become a residential area. 

To help celebrate Penguin’s nomination in the Keep Australia Beautiful Tasmania Community Kindness Awards, we hid hearts created as part of the 1000 Hearts Kindness Project throughout the town. 

Along the way we met a ‘detective dog’ named Oona and some lovely police officers who were the first recipients of our hearts, before we were surprised by Mr Grining, who joined us as we walked to the Penguin Community Op Shop.   

We were delighted to see that many of our ‘reusable artwork’ gift bags had been sold and thanked the volunteers for volunteering their time to support our shop. 

After lunch and a play, we continued our journey along the coastline, marvelling at the ongoing changes that have occurred along the foreshore over the past two weeks as the area is transformed to protect the land from the erosive force of the Bass Strait. 

We were fascinated by what we discovered to be a stump that had mysteriously appeared on the beach since our last walk.  

After arriving at Hiscutt Park we were blessed to be surrounded by baby ducklings as they foraged along the creek. The children transformed the park through their imaginative play into different areas including a meditation centre called ‘Nature’s Academy’. I encountered a friendly ‘fire spirit’ as I crossed his bridge who invited me to join him on his quest. Together we set forth to capture the ‘evil lightning spirit’ who had been seen lurking amongst the trees. Two ‘Dangerous Explorers’ discovered a muddy entrance way hidden on a grassy bank that they thought was connected to the elusive platypus. The children delighted in being close to the ducks and sat peacefully along the creek watching them as they moved from here to there.  

On our way back up Ironcliffe Road we stopped in awe to watch an arborist make the final cuts in the top section of a pine tree that then toppled down in front of our eyes.  

Wow! What a day! We are so grateful that we can learn in such an amazing community, where the whole town is our classroom. Thank you to all of the community members who greeted us along the way with a smile or kind word. Thank you for helping us to make many lasting memories. If you find one of our hearts, please let us know.

 Moira Paterson