Chinese Museum visit consolidates learning

Year 7s toured the Golden Dragon Museum and enjoyed lunch in the garden to conclude their Ancient Civilisations Unit with a focus on China.

The students participated in an Ancient History tour aligned with the curriculum and the course of study this semester. They also enjoyed a Chinese lunch at the restaurant. Following that, the students participated in a scavenger hunt to test their knowledge of what they had experienced in the museum. This was a great opportunity to consolidate the learning for this first Year 7 Martyn Literacy and Humanities unit.

Mrs Leah Cordedda, Martyn Program Coordinator

Student Reflection

During recess, we got on a bus, and drove to the Chinese museum. When we got to the museum, everyone was excited and the teachers had to calm people down. When everyone was calm, the tour began. The tour guide welcomed us to the museum and gave us a little bit of history. He taught us about some of the Chinese dragons at the entrance and how they were part of the Chinese beliefs and ceremonies. We entered a room with double doors and vases beside them. Inside we found all sorts of relics and crafts. We walked down the centre of the room and up to the first stand, which was about the ancient Chinese coin. It has a square hole in the middle and the coin itself represents the universe and the square represents China, at the centre of the universe.

We then moved on to a hand-crafted dragon. Its name is ‘Sun Loong’. Sun Loong was mainly a ceremonial dragon, but was also used in Chinese dancing and culture. The tour guide showed us a few more exhibits and then we went to have lunch, which was supplied in the next room. We had tables and chairs reserved for us. We each got a plate of rice, dim sims and spring rolls. I really liked the food! After we had finished eating, the waitress collected our plates, we thanked them, and went back into the museum where we could explore the rest of the museum with our friends. We were also handed a worksheet to fill in. To do so, we had to go to several exhibits and find information and write it in the boxes provided.

We then proceeded outside to the Chinese Garden. There were lots of plants and grass, all green and blooming and in the centre was a pond with a variety of fish. At the other end of the garden was a pergola overlooking the pond and garden. This was the end of our tour and we jumped back on the bus and got back to school in time for lunch.

Overall, I really enjoyed the trip. It was great fun and there were many exhibits. I would highly recommend going as a family, or even for a school trip!

Matthew Wolters CH4