Semester Two

Shaping a Democracy
Fed Square provides a meeting place for communities to gather and have their voice heard in times of both celebration and protest.  Since Fed Square opened on 26 October 2002, it has hosted close to 17,000 events of significance, including Sorry Day and a visit by the Queen.  In this fieldwork experience, students will explore the factors that led to Federation and learn about recent experiences of democracy and citizenship.
Where: Fed Square precinct
When: Monday – Friday, throughout the Semester
Duration: 1 hour
Age: Year 6
Price: $5 per student
Bookings: feded@fedsquare.com

Patterning the Square
Federation Square is festooned with a crazy swarm of triangles seemingly random, but generated by a simple algorithm, first described by Princeton Mathematician John Conway.  In this workshop, students will break the code, unlock the pinwheel grid and in the process explore the language of symmetry and aperiodic/periodic tessellation.
Where: The Atrium or Deakin Edge
When: Monday – Friday, throughout the Semester
Duration: 1 hour
Age: Year 7
Price: $5 per student
Bookings: feded@fedsquare.com

Circle the Square Tours
Circle the Square is Federation Square’s tour for schools and explores the themes surrounding Fed Square’s role as Melbourne’s dynamic city square including: public spaces, community, cultural events, and interpretations of Fed Square’s distinctive architecture, design and history.  With so many events and activities held at Fed Square, each tour provides a different experience and makes a great addition to your Melbourne city school excursion or camp.  Fed Ed tours can be tailored to suit the needs of your group.  See the following descriptions for examples of subject-specific tours.
Where: Fed Square precinct
When: Monday – Friday, throughout the Semester
Duration: 1 hours
Age: All ages
Price: $5 per student
Bookings: feded@fedsquare.com

Circle the Square – History
This tour focuses on Australian history, drawing links between the coming together of Australia’s colonies at Federation in 1901 and the modern-day coming together of Melbournians at Federation Square.  Bridging past and present, students take a journey where they will encounter the stories of the people who once lived and worked on the land where Federation Square now stands, including in its past incarnations as an Indigenous camp site, telegraph office, morgue and train station.  Touching on Indigenous history, colonial settlement, the gold rush and Federation, this tour evokes the connection between memory and place and brings our history to life.

Circle the Square – Sustainability
A guided tour of Federation Square’s unique architecture and complex engineering will give students an understanding of the site’s civic unity and cultural space.  Students will learn about the two-stage design competition to redevelop the precinct, investigate the site’s environmental sustainability practices and de-code the iconic fractal façade.

Circle the Square – Visual Art & Poetry
Treading the Square gives students the chance to explore Carter’s artwork Nearamnew in an interactive and creative way using the technique of ‘Headstone rubbing’.  Using thick tracing paper laid over the stonework, students trace lines of the text using chalk, charcoal or wax.  The poems they create can then be displayed as living poems from the Square.