High potential and gifted education programs

Observatory Hill EEC’s High Potential and Gifted Education programs provide enrichment opportunities for primary and secondary students through creative, scientific and inquiry-based activities. These curriculum-aligned programs extend student thinking, build intellectual, creative and social emotional skills, and offer authentic opportunities for problem-solving, leadership and environmental investigation. Each one-day program offers meaningful, challenging learning experiences that develop students’ abilities.

HPGE programs are held on selected days at a variety of sites, and are led by specialist DoE teachers from the Observatory Hill Environmental Education Centre and other subject experts.

HPGE Programs include:

World Town Planning Day

(Creative and Intellectual domains)

Date: Friday 6th November

Location: Various sites in the inner city area.

This program supports high performing and gifted geography students who are interested in a career in Town Planning. The program is designed to coincide with, and celebrate, world town Planning Day. Students will learn from real town planners about the knowledge and skills required for a profession in town planning. They will view the city planning model and visit, and compare, well planned city precincts with underdeveloped and underused inner-city precincts. They will then work in town planning teams to master plan the underdeveloped precinct using the knowledge they have learnt. Prizes will be awarded to the best teams plan.

Environmental Leadership Workshop and Primary School Sustainability Expo

Date: Environmental Leadership Day, Thursday 20th August and PS Sustainability Expo Wednesday 21st October 2026

Location: Taronga Zoo Mosman and The Coal Loader Centre for Sustainability - Waverton

The Leadership and Sustainability Expo is a two-day event that supports abilities in the creative, social-emotional and intellectual domains. It is run by specialist NSW Department of Education teachers as well as community sustainability leaders. Students attend an environmental leadership workshop at Taronga Zoo where they consider and explore sustainability issues using skills in processing and understanding. This is followed by a follow up event involving a Sustainability Expo with local primary students. The high school students deliver an environmentally themed workshop thus transferring their learning and developing their skills in environmental leadership.

Science @ the Coal Loader S5

(Creative and Intellectual Domains)

Various dates throughout the year.

‘Science at the Coal Loader’ is an exciting science program located at the iconic Coal Loader Centre for Sustainability. The program is run by teachers from the Observatory Hill Environmental Education Centre. Students will be engaged in a series of hands-on lessons which immerse them in the S5 Science topics of ‘Energy’ and ‘Environmental Sustainability’. The program has four focus areas including experiments to test thermal comfort, an exploration of the Centre’s many sustainability features, an investigation of the urban heat island effect using infra-red thermometers, and an exploration of renewable and non renewable energy sources, including making and testing solar cars. The program provides a springboard to support school sustainability STEM projects.

Cockatoo Island Stage 3 Writing Day

Date: Wednesday 25th November

Location: Cockatoo Island

Observatory Hill is developing a writer’s day at Cockatoo Island for talented stage 3 writers. Students will visit Cockatoo Island by ferry and be immersed in the convict and colonial history of this historic site with a local guide. They will then be guided through a writing exercise, with a children’s author specialising in historical fiction, to create a collection of short stories about convict and colonial life on Cockatoo Island.