An Interesting Mix

Lesson 2 – 30 minutes

Learning outcomes

• Identify dangers at their beach
• Identify the variety of items that can be found on the beach
• Recognise the difference between natural items and rubbish on the beach
  

Preparation

• Large rubbish bag.
• Look around the beach for any obvious dangers you can point out to participants during your walk

Activity 1

• Sit the participants in a group on the beach.
  1. Tell them you are about to go for a walk along the beach and set some rules for the walk.
  2. Stay in a group (a good idea is to place a helper at the back of the group to look after the slower walkers).
  3. Keep close so you can hear what is being talked about.
  4. Don’t touch any animals you might find.
  5. Don’t go in the water.
  6. Take the participants on an eco-walk along the beach.
  7. As you walk point out the interesting items you come across (items might include: seaweed, plastic items, dead sea animals, crabs, shells etc).

• Each time you find something discuss it by asking the following questions:
  1. What is it?
  2. Where did it come from? (i.e. the sea, beach, rock pools, humans etc).
  3. Does it belong at the beach? (i.e. natural items most likely belong there, man-made items like rubbish don’t).
  4. Where should it be? (man-made items – rubbish – belong in the rubbish bin).

• Areas you might like to take the walk could be:
  1. Along the high tide line (best place to find random things that have come in with the surf/tide).
  2. Beside the sand dunes (don’t have the group walk all over the sand dunes).
  3. Over the rocks (Safety Tip: Discuss the dangers of walking over rocks before moving onto the rocks).
  4. Around the outside of the surf club.

• Ask the participants to put any rubbish they find along the beach into the rubbish bag.

Discuss

• Sit the participants in a group on the beach.
• Ask the participants the following questions to introduce dangers at the beach:
  • What is a danger? (something that can hurt us, not a good thing etc).
  • What kind of dangers can we find at the beach? (glass, holes in the sand, large waves, rips, sharp sticks etc).
  • What do lifesavers do to warn us of dangers and make the beach safer? (put up signs, talk to us, give us a safe place to swim between the flags)

Activity 2

• Tell the participants you are about to go for a walk along the beach and set some rules for the walk.
• Stay in a group (a good idea is to place a helper at the back of the group to look after the slower walkers).
• Keep close so you can hear what is being talked about.
• Don’t go in the water.
• Take the participants on a walk along the beach.
• Point out dangers you find along the way and discuss them in relation to whether they are environmental, people or animal dangers.
• Ask the participants to point out any dangers they see and discuss why it is a danger.
• You can also point out any safety signage that is warning us of a danger (i.e. red and yellow flags, rip sign, exposed rocks sign etc)

*AGE MANAGER TIPS

Introduce the participants to a lifesaver on patrol and ask the lifesaver to discuss some of the day’s dangers they have identified.

Encourage the participants to find interesting things of their own to talk about