This term we have been learning about the Gold Rush. The unit was called My Hard Road Ahead. We went on camp to Sovereign Hill to start off the unit. Then we made a diorama to showcase our working. We were put in pairs and made a building and a second square. I was with Pat. We made the Post Office and a cottage.
During the unit Pat and I faced some challenges. When we were making our second square we made a pig, but all the legs fell off. We overcame this by using blue tack to stick the legs back on to the pig on the morning of the showcase.
I really enjoyed going to Sovereign Hill because we learnt a lot about how people would live in the 1800’s. I also enjoyed when we went on the mine tour at Sovereign Hill because it was really outside my comfort zone, but I felt good doing it.
A task that I enjoyed was making the diorama because it was really interesting to have to make something out of a box. It was also a bit challenging because Pat and I spent a bit too much time on our first building and left the cottage to the last moment.
Next time I would probably spend less time on the first square and more on the second square. I would also make sure to keep the pig out of the way of the Spheros and Dashes so it doesn’t get bumped over. I would also add more things on the inside of our buildings.
I learnt a lot about Pat during this unit because we hadn’t really spoken before. I learnt that Pat likes sunflower seeds and doesn’t like to use hot glue.
During this unit I learnt a lot. I learnt that lots of people were treated unfairly, most people lived in tents, lots of businesses were a family business, the Troopers stormed the Eureka Stockade early in the morning and Peter Lalor was never caught. I also learnt that Peter Lalor formed the Ballarat Reform League, James Scobie was murdered by James Bentley, the Eureka Stockade was on the 3rd of December and that the Post Office is still a working business.
This unit crossed most subjects including Reading, Writing and Maths. We made newspapers and did compare and contrasts in Reading. We wrote an informative blurb for our building in Writing. We used angles, location, shape and volume in Maths to program a robot to go around our diorama.
I used many PLA’s during this unit including Imagination, Curiosity, Communication, Collaboration, Resilience, Knowledge and Courage. I used Imagination when we had to design our building because we had to try to figure out how to make certain things. I used Curiosity when we had to make things that we couldn’t make at school. We had to use Communication when Pat and I had to decide who was taking home each square and when we had to decide who was doing what. We had to use Collaboration when Pat or I couldn’t do something, so it was left to the other person, like when Pat didn’t have a smock so I had to do all the painting. We had to use Resilience when our pig wouldn’t stand up and we had to find a way to make it’s legs stay on. We used Knowledge when we had to use our prior knowledge and new knowledge to make the cottage. I had to use Courage when we went on the mine tours.
Overall I really enjoyed the experience and would love to do it again. 
We did so much! First, we went to Sovereign Hill, then we completed the school program, then we researched our buildings and made a diorama and, finally, programmed a robot.
What was your favourite part of the unit?