ON a Tuesday afternoon at Railway Town Public School, the Year 5/6 classroom is empty as students spend time in the garden feeding chickens, planting vegetables, turning compost and sorting recycling.
Denise McInerney, or Mrs Mac as her students call her, has been running the school’s sustainability program for more than 20 years, and her ‘green team’ learn important skills through hands-on experiences rather than from a textbook.
“I’ve been here at the school 22 years, and the sustainability program has been running about 20 years,” she said.
“It’s grown and gotten bigger, and more children are becoming involved because they like gardening.”
Students who participate in the program are sorted into teams, with each team having specific roles and responsibilities such as looking after the chickens or ensuring recycling is sorted correctly.
In the school garden, the gardening team cares for vegetables and fruit plants.
“We have watermelon, cucumbers, eggplant, parsley, corn, squash, zucchini, pumpkin, rhubarb, mint, chives, strawberries and broccoli,” Ms McInerney said.
There’s also an orchard with fruit trees, and students occasionally pick lemons to make lemonade to share with their fellow students at lunchtime.
“We make fresh lemonade and bring it out on the playground, and all the children get to taste their own homemade lemonade,” Ms McInerney said.
At the front of the school, a bush tucker garden, which is exclusively for native outback plants, surrounds the school’s yarning circle.
“There’s a separate bush tucker garden for cultural awareness,” Ms McInerney said.
“We have things like native oregano.”
The school has 12 hens which produce eggs that are sold to parents for $5 per dozen.
All money raised goes back into feeding the chickens.
The most rewarding part for Ms McInerney is seeing her students take ownership and embrace responsibility.
“They learn by doing,” she said.
“It gives them confidence and show them that their actions can make a difference.”
