Old Government House - Schools Program 2007

Old Government House is Australia’s oldest surviving public building.

It was built by governors John Hunter and Lachlan Macquarie between 1799 and 1818. The house is restored and furnished to the
Macquarie period (1810-1821).

Whispers, Tales and Gossip is a simple role-play that enables students to gain different perspectives of life in a colonial household.
Governor Macquarie is in trouble; his enemies have been complaining to the British parliament.

Commissioner Bigge has been sent from England to report on the management of the colony.

Students travel back in time as reporters to interview the residents and visitors to the house in order to understand what life was like in colonial Parramatta and to gather different opinions on Governor Macquarie.

Students can:

EXPLORE the nature of historical information investigation through primary and secondary sources.

LEARN about significant people in the development of the colony.

COMPARE and evaluate different perspectives and viewpoints

PARTICIPATE in an engaging role-play to develop an understanding and empathy for peoples of the past.

EVALUATE the significance of Old Government House as a heritage site.

BOOKING INFORMATION
	Number of students - 45 max
	How long? 90 minutes
	How much? $7.00 (GST incl)
	Bookings - (02) 9635 8149
	Pre-visit kit - available
	Email - oghouse@bigpond.com
	Joint Booking with The Thief, The Farmer and the Surgeon at Experiment Farm Cottage at a reduced cost of $9.00 for two programs.
	Risk Assessment- click here

This program aims to provide students with an insight into the school lives of primary-aged children in the early 1800s and the daily lives of the masters and servants who lived and worked at Old Government House at this time. Students will participate in a school lesson role play where they learn the school rules, etiquette, maths, spelling and currency of the time. During the house tour, students are encouraged to make comparisons between their own lifestyle and those of the masters and servants of the house and to observe the important siting of the house in the development of early Parramatta.

Students can:

DEVELOP an understanding and empathy for children of the past.

COMPARE their own experiences of school and home with those of people living in early colonial Australia.

EVALUATE the significance of the site of Old Government House and its collection.

BOOKING INFORMATION
	Number of students - 45 max
	How long? 90 minutes
	How much? $6.00 (GST incl)
	Bookings - (02) 9635 8149
	Pre-visit kit - available
	Email - oghouse@bigpond.com
	Risk Assessment- click here
	Joint Booking with The Thief, the Farmer and the Surgeon at Experiment Farm Cottage at a reduced cost of $8.00 for two programs

Old Government House and Parramatta Park are both on the site of the earliest colonial settlement outside of Sydney Cove.

In 1788 Governor Phillip travelled upstream from Port Jackson in search of arable land to support a starving colony. Fire-stick farming practices in the Rose Hill region by the Darug people had cleared the land, making it suitable for the development of a farm by Governor Phillip. From this early agricultural settlement the town of Parramatta developed.

The park surrounding Old Government House, and the house itself, are preserved intact. Students gain access to the layers of land use, from pre-contact Aboriginal occupation to the present day.

Sighting the Past uses material, pictorial and written evidence to learn about the layered history of Old Government House and the surrounding park landscape.

OGH

BOOKING INFORMATION
	Number of students - 45 max
	How long? 90 minutes
	How much? $7.00 (GST incl)
	Bookings - (02) 9635 8149
	Pre-visit kit - available
	Email - oghouse@bigpond.com
	Risk Assessment- click here