Tourism: Issues and Challenges at Rippon Lea Estate
This program at Rippon Lea Estate examines the past through family history, children's life, schooling and domestic work. It includes toys, games, sports, period clothes and exploration activities.
The house was completed in 1868. It was built for Frederick Sargood. Sargood made his money selling soft-goods on the goldfields. The house is named after his mother’s maiden-name, Rippon. Lea is an English word for meadow. The property was a large, self-sufficient farm, about twice the size it is now. The mansion was originally 15 rooms; it currently has 33 rooms. Sargood moved in with his first wife, Marian, and their 9 surviving children. There were 7 maids, a butler, 7 gardeners, a coachman and a groom.
About the Program
Rippon Lea Estate is a significant tourist venue, attracting over 80,000 visitors annually, presenting an outstanding option for VCE Geography students to undertake on-site or remote fieldwork as part of Unit 2: Tourism: Issues and Challenges. Students will complete a range of physical and social geographic investigations, practising key fieldwork skills, and then applying and processing the data they collect.
The fieldwork program provides a comprehensive guide for students and educators on the site, with activities linked to the Unit 2 Study Design. It includes information and fieldwork tasks focused on change, distance, distribution, movement place, process, region, scale, spatial association and sustainability. If conducting fieldwork on site at Rippon Lea, you and your students will have the opportunity to meet the property manager to discuss the challenges of managing Rippon Lea Estate (subject to availability, bookings essential).
Program Details
Monday – Friday during school terms.
Self-Guided
Minimum 8 students
Teacher/carer:student ratio: 1:12 (onsite visits)
Remote Fieldwork
Purchase the fieldwork resource pack for $45, and use that to deliver remote fieldwork in your classroom.
Onsite fieldwork
$15 per student (min 8 students), includes the resource pack, entrance to Rippon Lea gardens for each student, access to statistics, and a 30 min meeting with a Rippon Lea manager where students can ask questions about visitor safety, visitor enjoyment, animal health, and property maintenance. (Meeting with the manager is subject to availability.)
Please advise our bookings team if your students require wheelchair-friendly access; some accommodations can be made. The mansion has a set of stairs which is not acessible.
To book, complete the Online Booking Form. For enquiries, email [email protected] or phone (03) 9656 9889.
Rippon Lea Estate Education Programs
192 Hotham St,
Elsternwick VIC 3185
Our students loved the role play tasks; learning to dance in the ballroom and pretending to be servants by washing clothes and serving drinks. They were full of ideas and thoughts about these experiences in the days following the excursion.
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