Australian Desert Nature Study & Math in Nature: Area & Perimeter

Introduce desert biomes by taking a virtual trip to visit deserts of the world such as the Sahara, then step into the Outback to admire and nature journal our magnificent landforms like our red rock, Uluru. Visit Australia’s largest salt lake and lowest point at Kati Thanda – Lake Eyre.

Have you wondered how  wildlife or plants  survive the desert? Examine the extraordinary adaptations of the animal and plants that grow in the back of beyond.

Investigate and map desert ecosystems and walk with explorers and the First People of the Red Center. Hop with the Red Kangaroo, run with the dingo and burrow with the bilby. Gallop alongside the perentie, bend down to observe a throny devil and learn about the confusing behaviour of a bandy bandy.

Termite architecture, honey-pot ant food storage solutions and witchetty grubs will amaze you. Fly with the wedge-tailed eagle and whistling kite, then amuse a curious emu. Try yabbing and learn about fish that migrate across the desert sands. Yes! There’s fish, turtles and frogs in the desert.

Admire desert wildflowers then take a look at mulga and spinifex ecosystems. How will you survive a desert on a short term visit? Explore bushcraft skills, where to look for water and build a simple lean to shelter.

Surprise yourself by delighting in math with this desert inspired guide that explores arrays while investigating Indigenous Gunyah camps and area at Kati Thanda – Lake Eyre. Define perimeter at the Dingo Fence and compare Australia’s largest cattle stations. Did you know that one cattle station in the Outback is larger than the country of Israel? Learn new math symbols like the square root and how it’s applied to area.

Examine Indigenous art symbols and create a geometrical piece of art. Investigate the surface area of polygons while examining the geometric shapes of crystals. Design a desert zoo on grid paper then create a zoo outdoors. Glance at unit conversion and prefixes in measurement words. Once this unit is complete, sit the children down with their last activity, then make yourself a cuppa and ponder on mathematical thinking with an inspiring video just for you.

Come along. Walkabout with us!

Desert Sample Lesson

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