Challis Community Primary School celebrated NAIDOC week, beginning with a special assembly on Monday June 21.
City of Armadale Mayor Ruth Butterfield was invited to the school to attend their assembly and male a presentation to the school on behalf of the city, which donated bush tucker plants for the school garden.
Ms Butterfield told the Examiner Newspaper NAIDOC week provides opportunity to learn about the Indigenous peoples of Australia.
“NAIDOC week celebrations are the ideal time to think about and experience some of the ways Aboriginal people used local plants for food, medicine and cultural practices,” she said.
“The City of Armadale and the Armadale Gosnells Landcare Group are pleased to donate these plants to add to the bush trucker garden at Challis Primary School.
”Students benefit from hands on learning opportunities outside of the classroom, and their teamwork in creating and looking after a native bush tucker garden teaches them about biodiversity and awareness of where food comes from.”
The students will plant the new bush tucker plants in their new bush tucker garden as part of their NAIDOC celebrations.
“It is interesting when you realise that Australia is home to thousands of native edible plant species and yet most of the food we grow in our backyards today was originally from overseas,” Ms Butterfield said.
“Getting their hands dirty during the hands-on experience will strengthen the students understanding of the native bush food garden and how it requires less maintenance and a small amount of water to produce native bush foods with plenty of goodness and flavour.
“At the end of the project, I’m sure they will all enjoy eating herbs and veggies they’ve grown themselves.”
