Activity Introduction

Quick summary: Students will apply their comprehension of information texts and maps to create a travel itinerary. Students will undertake research online to find the information needed to create their itinerary.

Activity developed in partnership with tasmania_hydro_200x84_300pxl

Hydro Tasmania has been at the forefront of clean energy innovation for one hundred years. It is Australia’s largest producer of clean energy – generating hydro and wind power – and the largest water manager. Hydro Tasmania has 55 major dams, operates 30 hydropower stations and has built some of Australia’s largest wind farms.

Hydro Tasmania also sells energy in the National Electricity Market through its retail business Momentum Energy, and sells its expertise internationally through its consulting business Entura. Visit the Hydro Tasmania website to learn how the business is working towards Australia’s clean energy future.

Learning goals:

  • This lesson is designed to foster students’ capabilities in finding facts, interpreting information, reading maps and applying text-processing strategies.

General capabilities: Literacy, Numeracy, Critical and creative thinking, Ethical understanding.

Cross-curriculum priority: Sustainability OI.7.

Australian Curriculum content description:

Year 5 English

  • Use comprehension strategies to analyse information, integrating and linking ideas from a variety of print and digital sources (ACELY1703).

Year 6 English

  • Select, navigate and read texts for a range of purposes, applying appropriate text processing strategies and interpreting structural features, for example table of contents, glossary, chapters, headings and subheadings (ACELY1712).
  • Use comprehension strategies to interpret and analyse information and ideas, comparing content from a variety of textual sources including media and digital texts (ACELY1713).

Year 5 Geography

  • Use criteria to make decisions and judgements and consider advantages and disadvantages of preferring one decision over others (ACHASSI103)
  • Present ideas, findings, viewpoints and conclusions in a range of texts and modes that incorporate source materials, digital and non-digital representations and discipline-specific terms and conventions (ACHASSI105)

Year 6 Geography

  • Interpret data and information displayed in a range of formats to identify, describe and compare distributions, patterns and trends, and to infer relationships (ACHASSI128)
  • Evaluate evidence to draw conclusions(ACHASSI129)

Syllabus Outcomes: EN3-3A, GE3-1, GE3-4.

Topic: Hydro Tasmania, Energy.

Time required: 60 mins.

Level of teacher scaffolding: Medium – oversee activity.

Resources required: Internet access, access to computers/tablets for online research, Student Worksheet (one copy per student OR computers/tablets to access the online worksheet).

Digital technology opportunities: Digital sharing capabilities.

Homework and extension opportunities: Includes opportunities for homework and extension.

Keywords: Energy, hydropower, travel, Hydro Tasmania. 

Cool Australia’s curriculum team continually reviews and refines our resources to be in line with changes to the Australian Curriculum.

Worksheets

Teacher Worksheet

Teacher Preparation

Overarching learning goal: Students participating in this activity will develop skills in finding facts, interpreting information, reading maps and applying text-processing strategies.

Teacher background information: Energy is the lifeblood of our modern life. It gives us light and keeps our food fresh. It powers our industry, fuels our cars, and charges our iPhones. Our energy is produced by burning fossil fuels and this has a range of environmental, social and economic impacts. One of the most significant is the emission of greenhouse gases. A solution is the transition to clean energy sources. The brilliant thing is that we have huge amounts of free, renewable and clean supplies of natural energies. These include sunlight, wind, running water, oceans and underground hot rocks.

According to the Clean Energy Australia Report 2013:

  • 14.76% of Australia's electricity came from renewable sources in 2013: enough to power the equivalent of almost 5 million homes.
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Student Worksheet

Thought starter: What is the highest mountain in Tasmania?

Instructions to students

In this lesson, you will create a travel itinerary. First, read the introduction and task Instructions below and do some research using the links provided. You have 50 minutes to work on this task. Whatever is not finished by the end of the lesson will be your homework.

An Introduction to Hydro Tasmania

Hydro Tasmania provides electrical energy for the people of Tasmania, Australia’s island state. The word ‘hydro’ means ‘water’. Hydro Tasmania has thirty hydropower stations in Tasmania and a wind farm on an island in Bass Strait. Hydro Tasmania operates two wind farms on mainland Tasmania under a joint venture. Hydro Tasmania catches the electrical energy from these sources and sends it to places where it is needed, to power people’s homes and businesses.

Your task

Imagine you are a travel agent. Your task is to make a travel itinerary for a family of five (two parents, two kids and one grandparen

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