School program FAQs
Teachers, click the relevant tab below to get answers about our excursions and incursions.
Excursion FAQs
What do we do when we arrive?
Your CERES Educator will meet you at your bus or the school’s entrance if you beat us there. Your Educator will then take you to your home base where you can have a snack, use the toilet and wait for your program to begin.
Is there somewhere to leave our bags?
There will be a spot at your home base to leave your bags. We recommend leaving any valuables at home as CERES is a public space, and for teachers and attending adults to keep their belongings with them at all times.
What happens if it rains?
CERES’ programs are all-weather programs – please dress appropriately. Information on extreme weather can be found here.
Who has duty of care for our students on the day?
Your classroom teacher. We require at least one school teacher be present for all the sessions, as CERES Educators do not have Duty of Care.
Will we be sharing the space with other schools/community groups?
There may be multiple school groups onsite on the day you visit, however each school will have a separate home base area. Please bear in mind that CERES is an open park so there may be members of the community and other CERES staff on site too.
We have a student in a wheelchair, will the excursion be suitable for them?
CERES is an inclusive park and we encourage everyone to visit us. However due to the nature of our site, some areas can be tricky to navigate for wheelchairs. We recommend getting in touch with our bookings team at studentprograms@ceres.org.au to discuss your requirements further.
How do we pay?
We will invoice you after your visit, emailed directly to your accounts department. Payment terms are 14 days from the invoice date.
Can we buy lunch at the cafe at CERES?
We have two cafes on site at CERES. We recommend that teachers and parents wanting a coffee and a snack utilise the Grocery Cafe for purchasing as the Merri, while wonderful, can often have long wait times. We ask students to please bring their own lunches to avoid long queues and overcrowding at the Grocery.
Do you have rubbish bins onsite?
As part of your learning at CERES, we encourage you and your students to bring rubbish-free lunches and ask you to be responsible for any rubbish you create – such as soft plastics and wrappers. We will provide you with one bin for recyclables and one for any food scraps to feed to our wonderfully hungry chickens and worms!
Can parents come on the excursion?
Please! We love having additional parent helpers. We do however ask you to keep to the ratios provided on the program homepage where possible. Additional aides and parent helpers come at no extra charge to you.
How do we best prepare for our excursion?
Talk to your students about your upcoming excursion at CERES and the importance of living sustainably. Utilise the Teaching Guide provided on the program homepage.
Where can our bus park for the day?
There is no all day bus parking on site at CERES. If you have minibuses, they can park at the Cretin Brothers car park near CERES on the corner of Nicholson and Stewart Streets. If you are arriving by coach, Merri-bek Council advises to park near Mayer Park on Normanby Road in Thornbury.
Are there toilets available?
We have toilet facilities, including accessible toilets at various places throughout the park. Your home base will be located close to toilet facilities for your convenience.
Do you have a risk assessment?
Yes we do. You can find all additional required documents here.
What do we do if we are running late on the day?
Don’t stress, just give us a call. You can reach us at 9389 0144 If you arrive late, we may need to reorganise your running times to ensure you still get the best out of your day.
Do the teachers/educators have a WWWC?
All of our teachers have a current WWCC. You are welcome to take a copy for your records on the day, however we don’t provide these in advance.
What happens if we can’t run our Excursion face-to-face due to COVID policies?
If this looks likely, we will be in touch prior to your booking. We have the option of delivering your excursion online, or rescheduling to another time.
What happens if a student is sick or injured while at CERES?
The School of Natures and Climate takes any incidents on site very seriously and will keep a record in our incident register. We have first aid kits on site and will support you in administering first aid to any injured student, however it’s important to note that school teachers have Duty of Care for students and will be responsible for first aid treatment. We can assist you in calling emergency services should this be needed. CERES has quiet space available for any sick or injured child to recover while waiting to be collected by parents.
CERES and COVID safety
Do you have a COVID Safe plan?
Absolutely. You can find our COVID Safe Plan and additional documents here.
Face masks and physical distancing – what are the rules?
Check the Victorian Government Roadmap to Recovery for details on any restrictions or rules you must follow. We encourage you to leave a 1.5m space between yourself and other groups.
Incursion FAQs
Are you insured?
We certainly are. You can find our Public Liability and Certificate of Currency here.
Do the teachers/educators have a WWWC?
All of our teachers have a current WWCC, which they will bring to your school on the day of your incursion. You are welcome to take a copy for your records on the day, however we don’t provide these in advance.
Do you have a Risk Assessment?
You can find all additional required documents here.
How do I prepare for the sessions?
We have both pre and post Incursion documents to help you best prepare for the day. You can find those here.
How do we operate?
CERES is a Not -For-Profit Organisation, with all funds being put back into CERES to support and educate our community, and help everyone ‘fall in love with the Earth’ again. By supporting us, you are supporting the community.
Can parents watch?
We’d love to meet your parents! However this is up to the discretion of your school.
Where can I give my feedback?
Direct feedback can be given to your CERES Educator on the day, or emailed to us at studentprograms@ceres.org.au
What happens after we choose an incursion?
Once we receive your incursion booking enquiry, we will check our calendar against your preferred dates and email you with next steps. You can expect to hear from us within 3 working days of submitting your booking enquiry.
Who has Duty of Care for the students during the incursion?
Your classroom teacher. We require at least one school teacher be present for all the sessions.
How much do they cost?
Costs for Incursions vary depending on which program and how many sessions you select. Find out more about costs here.
Is there a limit to where you can deliver school incursions?
We can deliver to schools within a 60km radius of CERES. Additional travel charges apply to schools located more than 30kms from CERES’ East Brunswick site.
Schools outside of our delivery zone are encouraged to book in for our extremely popular Virtual Excursion programs or get in touch to see if your school is eligible for a free Student Leadership Virtual Program
What kind of teaching space do you need?
We would appreciate using the same classroom for all sessions so equipment doesn’t have to be shifted around. Further, details on space requirements can be found in your Program Teaching Guide – this will be sent to you when you book with us.
What happens on the day of our Incursion?
Your CERES Educator will arrive approximately 30 minutes before the start time to get set up. We appreciate a parking spot close to your school to make this easier for our Educators and safer for your students. Sessions will be run in the same classroom, with 10-15 minutes in between each session to enable a reset of equipment. We will need the classroom teacher to be present for all sessions as CERES Educators do not have Duty of Care.
Are they hands on?
YES! While there is always a little listening involved for students to understand initial concepts, we have designed our incursion programs to be as engaging and hands on as possible.
Are there any risks involved?
Our programs are designed to be both educational and safe. However there is always a slight risk when equipment and kids are involved, so we ask you as a classroom teacher to be engaged with all sessions to further monitor and reduce any possible risk.
Do you have links to the Vic Curriculum?
All of our programs are linked to the Victorian Curriculum. You can find the links relevant to your chosen program on the program homepage.
How long will the Incursion go for?
This depends on how many sessions you select, sessions run for approximately 45 minutes, with a minimum of 3 sessions per day. To make the day easier for you, we will work around your school schedule.
Do you have a public liability certificate?
Yes we do! You can find all additional required documents here
How do I pay?
We will invoice you after our visit, emailed directly to your accounts department. Payment terms are 14 days from the invoice date.
Do you have a COVID Safe plan?
Absolutely. You can find our COVID Safe Plan and additional documents here. Please note that for visits to your school, we will need a copy of your school COVID Safe Plan as well.
What happens if we can’t run our Incursion face to face due to COVID?
If this looks likely, we will be in touch prior to your booking. We have the option of delivering your incursion online, or rescheduling to later in the year.