Challenge
Conservation Challenge
Students become conservation biologists — investigating real threatened invertebrates and designing a plan to protect them.
In partnership with Invertebrates Australia, student teams choose a threatened Australian invertebrate, research the threats it faces, and create a Conservation Pitch Deck proposing a solution. Six lessons that turn your classroom into a conservation science lab.
Register for FreeYear levels
Years 3–6
Duration
6 lessons (~45 min each)
Submissions
Dates TBC
Prize
Featured on arludo.com
What students do
- Learn about the ecological role of invertebrates in Australian ecosystems
- Select a threatened Australian invertebrate species from a list curated by Invertebrates Australia
- Research the threats facing their chosen species — from habitat loss to climate change
- Analyse what would happen if the species was lost from its ecosystem
- Design a conservation plan and create a Conservation Pitch Deck
- Submit the pitch to the Arludo Conservation Challenge (optional)
The science behind it
The Conservation Challenge is built around the ACARA Science understanding strand for Years 3–6 relating to ecosystems, food chains, and the roles of producers, consumers and decomposers.
Students engage in authentic conservation thinking: identifying real threats, evaluating evidence, and proposing evidence-based solutions. Developed in partnership with Invertebrates Australia — a charity dedicated to protecting Australia’s invertebrate species. Skills developed include critical thinking, data literacy, and science communication.
Access Lessons via the Arludo Science Portal
Create your free teacher account to access all six Conservation Challenge lessons, download the teacher resource pack, and share lesson links with your students.
Get started freeIn Partnership with Invertebrates Australia
Invertebrates Australia is an environmental charity dedicated to the science and conservation of Australia's incredible invertebrates. They curated the list of 12 threatened species for this challenge and provided expert cheat sheets on each one.
- 12 threatened Australian invertebrate species to choose from
- Species from both terrestrial and marine environments across Australia
- Threatened Species Cheat Sheet provided for every species
- Real conservation context — students tackle actual threats to real species
How the Conservation Challenge Works
Learn
Students are introduced to Australian invertebrates, their ecological role, and the threats they face from habitat loss, climate change, and human activity.
Research
Each team selects a threatened invertebrate species and researches its specific threats, using the Invertebrates Australia Cheat Sheet as a starting point for their investigation.
Pitch
Teams complete their Conservation Pitch Deck — a structured presentation proposing a creative and evidence-based conservation solution for their chosen species.