Service Learning Trip

ACTIVITIES

The itinerary of this field trip is highly flexible and will be tailored to the needs of your group. In addition to the service work that students will be conducting on the conservation project and in the local community, there are several other experiences that you can add to your trip:

• Participate in wildlife monitoring, using research methods to record the seasonal movement, habitat preferences and territories of various species.
• Participate in practical conservation work in the field. Depending on the needs of the reserve at the time, this can include removing wire snares used in poaching, removing invasive plants and building erosion control structures.
• Walks in the bush where your students will learn to identify animal tracks and other signs of animal presence. They’ll also rig up camera traps to monitor elusive wildlife remotely. After the walk, they’ll analyse the camera trap footage.
• A night time drive to spot nocturnal wildlife in their natural habitats, observe the African skies, cook on a campfire and discover the art of bushcraft.
• Game drives and bush walks and a sleep-out in a private area of the Kruger National Park, home to elephants, lion, black and white rhino, cheetah, African wild dog, and many other species.
• A guided tour of an endangered species centre or a behind-the-scenes experience at an animal rehabilitation centre. During these visits your students will learn about the handling and care of a variety of different animals.
• White water tubing down a pristine river which includes a water ecology lesson
• A tour of Johannesburg with a route that allows students to experience the cultural and economic contrasts that divide modern-day South Africa.
• A trip to Soweto, the township in Johannesburg pivotal in the anti-apartheid struggle, including a visit to the Apartheid Museum and Nelson Mandela’s house, which is now a museum.

LEARN

• Implementing observation and recording techniques used in the monitoring of wildlife. Through this students will learn how to identify animals, plants and habitats and how to use camera traps.
• Learn how past unsound ecosystem management has negatively impacted diversity and how this can be rectified through removal of invasive plant species and erosion control.
• Understand the effects of poaching and how this can be prevented by tracking the presence of people in the area.
• Through exploring the bush through walks and sleeping, students will learn bushcraft, such as how to reduce their impact on the environment.
• Develop intercultural understanding through service work in a local community and touring the township of Soweto.
• Understand how animal sanctuaries and rehabilitation centres play a role in the conservation of endangered species.