Ask a Quintilian child what they learned this week, and you might hear about stepping back in time at the Subiaco Museum, street art in the CBD, or the stories behind a residential estate built upon a former world-class athletics stadium. You probably won’t hear about a worksheet, and all this is by design.
When the 2026 Parent Survey asked families which extracurricular offerings appealed most to their children, 71% named excursions and incursions. This is more than physical education, music, or team sports. The message from parents is clear and unmistakable: learning that leaves the classroom matters.
Why Parents Value Learning Beyond the Classroom
The numbers tell a compelling story. Excursions and incursions outranked every other activity in parent appeal, yet their value goes far beyond keeping children entertained.
Quintilian’s approach to learning rests on a simple belief: young minds are naturally curious. The school’s job is to channel that curiosity into meaningful, real-world experiences. An incursion with a guest speaker or an excursion that brings a topic to life transforms abstract concepts into tangible understanding. This is active, structured learning, which is the kind that fosters confident, engaged learners.
Inquiry Learning Comes Alive
At Quintilian, inquiry learning underpins every subject, every classroom conversation, and every excursion. The Kath Murdoch inquiry cycle (Tuning In, Finding Out, Sorting Out, Going Further, Making Conclusions, and Taking Action) mirrors how human beings naturally learn. Students begin with what they already know and what they’re curious about. They gather information through investigation and conversation. They also organise, compare, and make sense of that information. Then they apply their understanding to new contexts.
Excursions and incursions are where this cycle comes alive. Studying local history? Visit heritage sites and reconstruct stories from primary sources. Learning about ecosystems? Dig in the school garden, observe insects in their natural habitat, and track changes across seasons. The classroom becomes a launchpad, not a destination.
A Snapshot of Recent Adventures
The school calendar reads like a travel itinerary. Year 2 students explore Kings Park. Year 4 visits the Shipwreck Museum and the Nostalgia Box. Year 3 heads to Perth Zoo. Year 6 tours Parliament House and takes surfing lessons. Pre-primary students spend days in the Outdoor Classroom, learning through nature. All these extra-curricular events are woven into the curriculum, each one designed to challenge and inspire. The Outdoor Classroom program and sustainable partnerships with Friends of Lake Claremont, most notably, connect indoor learning with real-world impacts. Students read about sustainability, and then go out to visit water treatment plants and participate in waste-wise workshops.
Building Resilience and Confidence
Regular excursions and class camps from Year 1 foster resilience, confidence, and an amazing sense of fun and camaraderie. The first away-from-home school camp marks a significant milestone in developing independence. Children learn to navigate new environments, work with peers outside their usual friendship groups, and cope with the unexpected.
Teachers design learning activities that are engaging and immersive. They respond to a child’s desire to explore by connecting lessons to authentic experiences. This approach draws on decades of educational research, recognising that children learn most deeply when they’re physically, intellectually, and emotionally engaged.
The Whole World as a Classroom
Quintilian’s immersive education philosophy refuses to stay confined to textbooks or worksheets. It creates rich, multi-sensory environments where children actively participate in constructing their own knowledge. They touch, see, hear and manipulate materials. They work with natural objects, digital tools, art supplies, and construction materials.
This kinaesthetic, multi-modal approach creates stronger neural pathways and deeper retention than any single-mode instruction could achieve. Students demonstrate improved retention and deeper understanding because they’ve lived with concepts, not just memorised them. They arrive each day with enthusiasm because learning feels purposeful and connected to their world.
Why It Matters for Prospective Families
For families considering Quintilian for their children, the commitment to excursions and incursions signals something important. This is a school that values experience over repetition, curiosity over compliance, and the whole child over the test score.
The survey results confirm what parents already know: excursions and incursions are central to how Quintilian educates. They turn the world into a classroom and remake abstract concepts into memories that stick. When children step onto a bus bound for Kings Park, the Shipwreck Museum, or Parliament House, they are stepping into their education. And that makes all the difference. Book a tour today.
