Image Ngan'gi seasons calendar

TLF ID M013096

This is a seasonal calendar developed by the Ngan’gi people of the Northern Territory in collaboboration with CSIRO. The resource contains an introduction, a richly illustrated calendar and related links. The introduction includes information about the people’s wish to document traditional knowledge of their Daly River and wetlands Country and the environmental indicators they use as cues for the collection of particular foods. The calendar shows the 13 Ngan'gi seasons and what the plants,especially wurr panangalan (speargrass), animals and people are doing in each season. In and around the calendar are images of plants, animals and landscapes in Ngan’gi Country.





Educational details

Educational value
  • This is a valuable information resource for early childhood teachers planning the implementation of the geography and history curriculums. It is particularly relevant to the year 1 content description in geography about the seasons of places and the ways Aboriginal peoples describe them. It is also of some relevance to the year 1 history content description that refers to how the present, past and future are signified by changes such as the seasons. With considerable teacher scaffolding, the image of the Ngan'gi seasonal calendar may perhaps be suitable for year 1 children to work with.
  • The resource is especially valuable for the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander histories and cultures cross-curriculum priority. It is particularly supportive of the priority's central theme of identity, linked to, among other things, Aboriginal peoples' deep knowledge traditions; in this case Ngan'gi knowledge of the seasons, key plants and animals, environmental indicators and the importance of rivers, tides and wetlands.
  • The seasonal calendar and the rich information it contains are of value for the science curriculum in year 4, particularly for content descriptions about the life cycles of living things, and about how science involves making predictions and describing patterns and relationships. The life cycle of wurr panangalan (speargrass) is described across seven seasons and is reflected in their names. Aboriginal use of environmental indicators is well documented in northern Australia and is based on sustained observation to identify patterns and relationships.
  • The background information, images and the related link to the Indigenous socioeconomic values and river flows study (2008-10) may also be of use for content descriptions in year 7 geography and science. In geography it supports the content description about the environmental, economic, cultural, spiritual and aesthetic value of water for Aboriginal people in the unit of study Water and the world. In science the relevant content description refers to the way science knowledge can develop through collaboration and connecting ideas.
Year level

1; 2; 3; 4; 5; 6; 7

Learning area
  • Geography
  • History
  • Science
  • Humanities and Social Sciences

Other details

Contributors
  • Contributor
  • Name: Education Services Australia
  • Organization: Education Services Australia
  • Description: Data manager
  • Address: VIC, AUSTRALIA
  • URL: http://www.esa.edu.au/
  • Copyright Holder
  • Name: CSIRO
  • Organization: CSIRO
  • URL: http://www.csiro.au/
  • Publisher
  • Name: CSIRO
  • Organization: CSIRO
  • Description: Publisher
  • URL: http://www.csiro.au/
  • Resource metadata contributed by
  • Name: Education Services Australia Ltd
  • Organisation: Education Services Australia Ltd
  • Address: AUSTRALIA
  • URL: www.esa.edu.au
Access profile
  • Generic
Learning Resource Type
  • Image
  • Text
Rights
  • © Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation, 2003-2013. This material may be downloaded, copied, used and communicated free of charge for non-commercial educational purposes, provided all acknowledgements are retained.