Sustainable schools

Students learn about sustainable transport (primary school) and explore electricity production impacts on climate change (secondary school) in an empowering, engaging and age-appropriate way. 

No additional work for teachers: Sessions are delivered by experienced facilitators. We provide all materials and required resources – teachers have the option to participate or simply supervise.  

 Learning outcomes: Primary school, suitable for Grades 3-6

• Connect to Earth’s natural resources and understand how transport is a major contributor to climate change and global warming
• Understand the impacts of combustion engines and electric engines and their effect on our environment
• Explore sustainable transport solutions and how they can be applied to their local communities to help lower greenhouse gas emissions

 Learning outcomes: Secondary school, suitable for Year 7-8

• Explain what climate change is and the effects it has on our environment
• Identify the major global systems that are contributing to climate change
• Discuss actions they can take on an individual level to create positive futures and how this ties into collective action
• Students can generate unique solutions to questions related to current energy practices in Australia
  
  

Please note: Schools can book a minimum of two sessions and maximum of four sessions, to be delivered on the one day.

Limited places available so please book in early to avoid missing out.

How to book

Please visit Ceres School of Nature and Climate and follow the prompts to register your interest. We will contact you to confirm your booking.

For Prep through to Grade 6

We offer Council-funded incursions to local primary schools right throughout the year. These curriculum-aligned incursions are designed to be easy for teachers and schools to accommodate. It is a free service, so all local schools can participate. Most importantly, it’s a really fun, feel-good way to engage kids and families in recycling and building connections to our local environment.

• Linked to the Victorian curriculum
• No extra work for teachers
• Tailored to suit year level
• Fun, interactive and educational
• Encourage family conversations about waste, recycling and the environment 

"We had just started a conservation unit in inquiry learning and this was a fabulous introduction for our students. The mixture of learning, activities and movement were perfectly targeted to this age group. The presenters were kind and informative, encouraging students to think and take control of resources used in school. The lovely bonus for the students was being able to take a magnet home to continue using the information learnt beyond the incursion and into their everyday lives."
Teacher, Altona College

Register your interest here. 

For secondary school students, Year 7-8 

Runs 1-5 June 2026: Across one week in Term 2, Council offers waste and recycling education sessions to local secondary schools, aligning with World Environment Day. 

In these 45-minute sessions, students learn what goes in each bin, and the journey our waste takes beyond the bin. The structure includes a presentation complemented by a variety of engaging, age-appropriate activities.

• Linked to the Victorian curriculum 
• No extra work for teachers
• Tailored to suit year level
• Fun, interactive and educational
• Encourage family conversations about waste, recycling and the environment

What teachers have said about the program: 

• “It was amazing. Engaging. Lovely presenter.”

• “Lots of engagement from students and inspired critical thinking and questioning. A very informative session that taught the students (and teachers) some great ways to deal with waste.”

• “My students enjoyed the mix and match organising activity. Good balance for this age group of screen, pen and paper, sorting and discussion.”

Register for the 2026 program here.

Your school is invited to learn about our incredible local species and their unique habitat at a free, fun-filled and educational day at Werribee Open Range Zoo. The excursion is designed to broaden student knowledge about local species and environmental issues. 

The excursion will take place in Term 3, 2026 and includes free buses from your school to the zoo and back.

On the day students will be engaged to:

• foster a greater understanding and appreciation of Hobsons Bay’s endangered species

• gain knowledge on local environment, Indigenous and sustainability issues

• look at positive actions we can take as individuals and as a community to lessen our environmental impact and reduce threats to endangered species and habitats.

Conditions

 To be involved in the Love Your Locals excursion, we require some class preparation including:

• class attendance to an online webinar in Term 3

• class response to an ideas 'prompt' that will be provided upon registration. The response could be a model, poetry, artwork, song, play, poster, digital presentation or any other creative format to highlight how green and wildlife friendly the western region could look in the future. For example, the 2025 prompt was:

 "We need smarter, greener towns for people and wildlife. How can we create a Victorian western region that is sustainable for people, and creates safe habitats for animals such as the Eastern Barred Bandicoot, Orange-bellied Parrot, Swift Parrot, Brush-tailed Rock-wallaby, Golden-rayed Blue Butterfly, Grassland Earless Dragon, Growling Grass frog, Plains-wanderer or any others that live in the west?"

• Spaces are limited to 10 students per school. Please select students who are inclined towards leadership and have an interest in environment or sustainability, eg: students from your Green Team. If spaces open up, we will invite you to bring more students.

• Teachers are responsible for management of student behaviour on the excursion.

• Participating schools are expected to share their learnings with the rest of their school after Love Your Locals day. 

• Student work may be kept and showcased for a period of time to raise awareness about our precious western wildlife species.

• This program is designed for grade 5/6 students. Grade 4 students are welcome to join if they are a member of your school's Green Team or equivalent. 

Register your interest 

Please click here to register your interest.
For more information, please email ranger@hobsonsbay.vic.gov.au.

As of September 2025, we are no longer offering waste and recycling incursions for local kindergartens.

You can still teach children about waste and recycling using our Kindergarten Lesson Plan(PDF, 6MB), designed for ages 4–5. All resources mentioned in the plan can be accessed below for your convenience.

Activities 

• Print our Waste and recycling sorting cards(PDF, 12MB)
• Sustainability Victoria colouring sheets:
  • Mixed recycling bin(PDF, 144KB)  
  • Food and garden bin(PDF, 118KB)
  • Glass bin(PDF, 260KB)

• Sustainability Victoria cut + paste sheets (You can use these as bin signage when they're finished!):

• Mixed recycling bin(PDF, 6MB)  
• Food and garden bin(PDF, 661KB)  
• Glass bin(PDF, 631KB)  

 Lesson plans 

Access free lesson plans, created by Council and our recycling partner VISY, Clean Up Australia and Cool.org. These lesson plans are created for early years education settings and align with EYLF Learning Outcomes.

• Hobsons Bay City Council - Beyond The Bin(PDF, 6MB)
• VISY - Activity one: What is Recycling?
• VISY - Activity two: What Is It Made From?
• VISY - Activity three: What Goes in That Bin?
• Clean Up Australia: Connecting Children to Nature - Exploring Waste and Taking Action

• Visit Cool.org for more early years recycling teaching resources

Educational signage

If you use Council's waste and recycling service, we can provide your centre with A2 illustrated signs to display by your bins. These can be collected from the Altona Civic Centre upon request - email us at enviro@hobsonsbay.vic.gov.au. 

Kinder clean-ups 

Kinders can take part in clean up events, either as part of the annual Clean Up Australia Day or by hosting their own event anytime throughout the year. Visit our community clean ups page for more information. 

Free food scraps caddy 

Does your centre have a compost, worm farm, or food and garden bin? Visit the Altona Civic Centre or any Hobsons Bay Library to collect a free food scrap caddy and paper liners.

The children can use this to collect their food scraps after meals, then transport it to the main bin when it's full. 

Use these resources to continue your school's sustainability education beyond our sessions.

• Print our waste and recycling cards(PDF, 22MB) to use with your class
• Access Clean Up Australia's curriculum-aligned lesson plans around waste and the environmental impacts of litter 
• Watch this video about the Environmental Sustainability in Schools Policy
• Recycle your batteries: Did you know that Australia has a battery stewardship scheme to stop batteries from going to landfill? Follow the links to find out more about B-cycle battery stewardship and battery recycling in schools
• Take a virtual tour of the VISY materials recovery facility - where all our recycling and glass goes!
• Use the Which Bin? tool to check your classroom's knowledge 
• Find environmental teaching resources at Cool.org

School clean-ups 

Schools can take part in clean up events, either as part of the annual Clean Up Australia Day or by hosting their own event anytime throughout the year. Visit our community clean ups page for more information.