School Activities

The Village plays host to schools from all over Queensland annually. A visit to the Village focuses on changes to our lifestyle, transport, communication since early settlement.

The Village is made up of 70 buildings, housing some 110,000 items and set on 12 acres. There is a Tearoom and Café on site for light refreshments.

School visits are conducted on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays subject to demonstrator availability.

Activities Available

 

BLACKSMITH - Our Blacksmiths will make every effort to be in the Village on days when schools are visiting. The students will see how fire is used to heat metal and our Blacksmith will demonstrate how an anvil and cold water is used to change the shape of the metal. This demonstration will last for about 15 minutes.

MARITIME MUSEUM - Our Demonstrator will talk about the First Fleet and what it was like for those who arrived on our shores at this time.  This demonstration will last about 15 minutes.

PRINT SHOP - Our Demonstrator will talk about the history of printing and show how some of our printing machines work. Students can make a bookmark using the vintage print machines.  This demonstration will last about 15 minutes.

TRANSPORT THEN AND NOW - Our Demonstrator will explain the history of Transport from horse and cart through to the airplane. This demonstration will last about 15 minutes.  The Queensland Department of Transport has installed a display titled, “Transport, Then and Now”, in our Railway Museum. This display is directly aimed at primary school children so please make the time to see it during your visit also.

OLD SCHOOLHOUSE - Our Demonstrator will talk about when this schoolhouse was first built and where along with what type of classes were taught from it.  This demonstration will last about 15 minutes.

WASHING THE OLD FASHIONED WAY- In this demonstration we discuss the various ways washing was done in the 1800s and early 1900s. The students can participate in washing items using an old washing copper and wringer. Each group can be about 24 in size and the demonstration will last about 15 minutes.

TRAIN - All students are offered a ride on the train which runs on a 500-metre track within the Village. This activity does not require booking. Watch for some surprises on the ride. For safety reasons our train does not run when there is heavy rainfall.  (This ride is dependent on volunteer availability and the weather on the day.)

OLD PUMPS AND ENGINES - The Antique Machinery Restoration Society Queensland provides a 'hands-on' activity where it is demonstrated how water was pumped by hand and then generator and also how light was originally by candle, then kerosene lamp and finally electric light bulb.  This iis a very interesting presentation and will last for about 15 minutes.

QUEENSLAND PRISON MUSEUM - Housed inside the police station the museum focuses on the history of the prison system in Queensland.  Two historic timber lock-up cells are also located at the back of the police station.  Volunteers Mick and Steve can give a demonstration of some items and do have a presentation on the local prison history that is very interactive and placed at Year 5 level and above. The demonstration will last about 40 minutes and is available on a Wednesday.

GEM SIEVING - The Caboolture Gem Club runs a 'hands-on' activity called “sieve-a-gem”. For $2.00 (no GST) the students get a lucky dip and using a big sieve and a drum full of sawdust they “sieve-a-gem”, much like panning for gold. No student walks away without a collection of pretty coloured gems. Bookings for this activity are essential and for the 2023 School Year is only available on a Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. An invoice will be presented to the school, on the day, from the Caboolture Gem Club who is a separate entity.

LEARNING RESOURCES - We have placed a Workbook, available for download, on our website for students to take on their journey through the Village exhibits. They fill out the answers during the day to re-enforce the learning experience.  A separate Workbook is available with the answers provided.

Sch.Child(Blacksmith)(-min