Primary students looking into glass case

Victorian Stories discovery trail for primary schools

What: Self-directed
When: Terms 1-4, Mon–Fri, 10.15am & 12.15pm
Year level: Years 3-6
Minmum student numbers: Minimum 10 students
Maximum student numbers: Maximum 50 students
Cost: Education service fee
Booking information: Bookings email us
School visit information

The Victorian Stories discovery trail is a self-guided program designed to give Years 3–6 students an introduction to the permanent exhibitions on display at the Immigration Museum.

Pre and post visit resources are available online.

For teachers

Please acquaint yourself with the contents of the galleries before arriving at the museum.

MV Teachers subscription provides free entry to the museum and you are welcome to visit and scope your excursion prior to your class visit.

You may want to create your own activity program based on the details below, or use the activities on the following pages.

Please feel free to contact the Humanities Education Programs Coordinator via Bookings and Enquiries (03) 9927 2754.

First Floor gallery map

Your excursion will focus on the following galleries on the first floor.

Immigration Museum First Floor map — Immigration Museum: First Floor map

Gallery and exhibition details

Leaving Home
Using sound, objects, still and moving images we explore the reasons why people left their countries to come to Australia and what they brought with them.

Immigrant Stories and Timeline
This gallery explores why people have migrated to Victoria, where they settled and how they started a new life here. The stories change annually and represent a diverse array of time periods, motivations and cultural backgrounds. Some feature Museum Victoria collections, others have been developed through partnerships with families and communities.

Customs Gallery
The Immigration Museum occupies the Old Customs House, one of Melbourne's most important 19th-century public buildings. For over a century the Customs House was the focal point for Victoria's trade and shipping.

Getting In
Since the 1800s, various immigration policies have dictated who gets in. This exhibition shows how and why our immigration policies have changed.

Suggested activities

Activity 1 - See Think Wonder (Years 3-6)

In the museum

Use the See, Think, Wonder strategy and have students spend 10 minutes in each gallery space.

Download or create a template for students to use and ask them to respond to either an object or an exhibit in each of the four galleries.

Back at school

Once you return to class have students share their observations with others either focusing on one particular gallery at a time or across the entire four galleries at once.