CALTEX FUNDING TO HELP STUDENTS ABSORB HISTORY AT FORT LYTTON

Fort Lytton National Park – the birthplace of Queensland's military history – will stage a dramatic new educational program sponsored by the Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service (QPWS), Caltex’s Lytton Refinery and the Moreton Bay Environmental Education Centre.

Environment Minister Lindy Nelson-Carr and Member for Lytton Paul Lucas today launched the teaching project as Fort Lytton's historic cannon fired to mark the occasion.

“The program has been designed by QPWS and the Moreton Bay Environmental Education Centre and brought about as a result of $60,000 sponsorship from Caltex to run it over the next three years.

“This is an exciting program, created for Years 6-8 students, that uses theatre to teach the history of Fort Lytton.”

Mr Lucas said Fort Lytton was the front line of Queensland’s defence from the 1880s until the 1930s and a shipping access control point for the Brisbane River during World War II.

“The program will feature actors acting out scenes from a time when Fort Lytton and the adjacent Lytton Quarantine Station were operational.

“The role-play is set around the end of the World War I when soldiers who had come into contact with the Spanish flu epidemic were quarantined.

“The dramatic representation of this historic event takes students out of the classroom to help them connect with real-life events.”

Ms Nelson-Carr said this link with Queensland’s cultural heritage would help students gain a deeper understanding of how past events could shape our current environment and, more importantly, they could have fun in the process.

The Fort Lytton education program will be offered as part of a package, Go Back In Time, that is being trialled with local schools and promoted in local media.

It includes public and educational tours to Fort Lytton National Park and St Helena Island National Park which was a colonial prison from 1867-1932.

The Moreton Bay Environmental Education Centre also provides a range of environmental studies for school groups.

Schools wishing to take part in the program should contact the Moreton Bay Environmental Education Centre on 3906 9111 or email info@moretoneec.ed.edu.au

For more information about Fort Lytton and St Helena Island visit www.epa.qld.gov.au

Media contact: 3336 8004 (Minister Nelson-Carr) or 3396 0066 (Mr Lucas)