Primary Programs
We can accommodate a typical class and up to a maximum of 60 students at a time (in other words two classes to make your bus costs more economical). A visit usually runs from 10 am till 2 pm but this is flexible. The programs outlined below are not fixed and can be adjusted for composite classes or specific learning needs. To discuss your program please contact us.
All students and adults visiting the MDC are asked to watch the following safety induction video before visiting. The Programs below also have videos that might be of use either before or after visiting, and worksheets to use while watching the videos are also provided in some cases. Additional teacher resources, such as copies of the posters on display at the MDC, are also provided below.
Ocean literacy poster on display at MDC: Why is the ocean important?
Posters on display in primary touch tank room:
Pre-kinder (e.g. Launch into Learning)
We can offer a one and a half hour visit for pre-kinder groups to explore the MDC and engage in discovery play. Due to the nature of the facility, the children and the number of adults we prefer to have only a maximum of 25 children.
Home educators
Home educators are welcome to book a visit. However, to make it economical we suggest organising a group. Contact our bookings officer to discuss options
Kindergarten
Explore aquarium gallery and touch tank room, make a live mini aquarium.
Marine-themed art activities.
View baited video camera.
Feed pool animals.
Foundation/Prep Program
Explore aquarium gallery and touch tank room, make a mini live aquarium with three different types of animals.
Compare human and fish anatomy, include augmented reality human skeleton.
Sort touch tank animals into groups based on external features.
Observing how objects move using magnet wall rails.
Sorting fasted to slowest animals.
View baited camera.
Feed animals.
Foundation curriculum links: AC9SFU01, AC9SFU02, AC9SFH01, AC9SFI05
Worksheet to accompany above videos: External features
Year 1 Program
Explore aquarium gallery with focus on habitats, also a back-room tour of how we look after the animals. Explore touch tank room and do scientific drawing of invertebrates.
Habitats of the ocean and bioluminescence.
Make a mini-box diorama of habitats.
Food web wall and explore plankton with microscopes.
Explore nearby seagrass and sandy seafloor habitats with remotely operated underwater vehicle.
View baited camera.
Feed animals.
Year 1 curriculum links: AC9S1U01, AC9S1H01
Worksheets to accompany above videos:
Year 1 poster on display at MDC: Marine habitats
Year 2 Program
Explore aquarium gallery, touch tank room and do scientific drawing of invertebrates.
“What is sound and how can marine animals use it?”:
Explore the MDC with a hydrophone, and a sonar in the pool.
Explore waves propagating along a spring.
Explore nearby seagrass and sandy seafloor habitats with remotely operated underwater vehicle.
Explore sound vibrations on the surface of water.
Explore the wide range of cetacean calls.
View baited camera.
Feed animals.
Year 2 curriculum link: AC9S2U02
Year 3 Program
Explore aquarium gallery and touch tank room and scientific drawing of invertebrates with an emphasis on classifying animals.
Explore the metamorphic lifecycle of moon jellies.
Explore nearby seagrass and sandy seafloor habitats with remotely operated underwater vehicle.
Classify a collection of objects as living, once living or non-living and explaining their reasoning.
Microscopy: Explore plankton larvae, and sand from different parts of the Channel.
View baited camera.
Feed animals.
Year 3 curriculum links: AC9S3U01, AC9S3U02
Poster on display at MDC: Growing up in the sea
Worksheet to accompany above video:
Year 3 poster on display at MDC: What is a living thing
Year 4 Program
Explore aquarium gallery, touch tank room and do scientific drawing of invertebrates with an emphasis on producers, consumers, and decomposers.
Explore the food web with a model, tumble tower trophic levels and explore plankton with microscopes.
Explore nearby seagrass and sandy seafloor habitats with remotely operated underwater vehicle.
Explore habitats and food chains in VR.
Record timelapse video of introduced northern pacific seastar compared to native species.
View baited camera.
Feed animals.
Year 4 curriculum link: AC9S4U01
Worksheets to accompany above video:
Year 4 antarctic food web more challenging
Year 4 poster on display at MDC: Living with others (symbiosis)
Year 5 Program
Deploy baited camera.
Explore aquarium gallery and touch tank room and do scientific of invertebrates with an emphasis on adaptations.
Bioluminescence adaptations.
Plankton adaptations.
Explore nearby seagrass and sandy seafloor habitats with remotely operated underwater vehicle.
Flounder camouflage: which substrate are they best adapted too?
View baited camera.
Feed animals.
Year 5 curriculum links: AC9S5U01, AC9S5H01
Resources to download:
Year 5 poster on display at MDC: Adaptations of dangerous marine animals
Year 6 Program
Explore aquarium gallery, touch tank room and do scientific drawing of invertebrates.
Physical conditions of a marine habitat:
Explore nearby seagrass and sandy seafloor habitats with remotely operated underwater vehicle.
Turbidity (measure the turbidity of various water samples).
Salinity (make solutions of various salinity levels then calculate the salinity of the local habitat).
Thermohaline circulation (investigate what happens when water bodies meet of different temperature and salinity meet).
View baited camera.
Feed animals.
Year 6 curriculum link: AC9S6U01
Worksheet to accompany above video:
Life on the rocky foreshore worksheet Year 6
Two Class Raptor Refuge and MDC visit
The MDC as teamed up with Raptor Refuge (www.raptorrefuge.com.au) and Parks & Wildlife, to offer two classes of a maximum of 50 students in total, a half day visit to each facility. This is a fantastic opportunity for students to get up close and compare and contrast of Tasmanian wildlife from very different habitats, all in one day.
The day is highly suited to schools that want two classes to share a bus on the same excursion, thus saving on costs. One class spends the morning at the Raptor Refuge, while the other class visits the MDC (less than 10 minutes away), then the classes swap over at lunch time.
Raptor Refuge maintains live birds such as eagles, owls, and other raptors, that are either permanent residents or are recovering after injury before returning to the wild. Students use the recently built education centre and are guided through activities by a Parks and Wildlife Discovery Ranger.
Please contact Raptor Refuge and the Marine Discovery Centre to organise your program.
