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Talkback Classroom, 2007: Yirrkala bark petition

In this clip Franchesca Cubillo (senior curator at the Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory) talks to secondary students about the significance of Aboriginal artwork and the Yirrkala bark petition of 1963. She says that when a bauxite mine was proposed on the Gove Pensinsula, the Yolngu people at Yirrkala had ...

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John Curtin's Australian Journalists Association badge, 2007

Prime Minister John Curtin's journalistic instincts came in handy during World War II when he kept the media onside with secret press briefings. He wore his AJA badge every day he was in office. 'John Curtin's Australian Journalists Association badge' is an episode from the series 'The prime ministers' national treasures', ...

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Immigration: fill it or lose it, 1992

This video clip looks at the political forces and propaganda campaigns that tried to fill Australia with 'pure white' immigrants. 'Immigration: fill it or lose it' is an excerpt from the documentary 'Admission impossible' (54 min), produced in 1992. For much of the 20th century, successive Australian governments pursued ...

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'Gold digging in Australia 1852: bad results'

This is the first of a pair of oval watercolours, measuring 20.2 cm x 26.4 cm, painted by Samuel Thomas Gill (1818-80), a famous colonial artist. It shows two gold miners sitting dejectedly beside their mine, probably on the Victorian gold fields. Behind the men is a windlass, as well as their wheelbarrow, pick and spade. ...

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'The claim disputed', c1852

This is a watercolour, measuring 19.4 cm x 25.4 cm, by Samuel Thomas Gill (1818-80), a famous colonial artist. It shows a well-dressed man - presumably the Gold Commissioner - arbitrating a dispute over a claim involving three diggers, probably on the Victorian gold fields. Two of the diggers are in animated discussion ...

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Concert room at Ballarat, 1855

This is a watercolour, measuring 22.8 cm x 31.9 cm, by Samuel Thomas Gill (1818-80), a famous colonial artist. It shows Charles Thatcher (1831-78), a comic singer well known on the gold fields, performing popular songs on stage at the Charlie Napier Hotel in Ballarat with a female accompanist. The painting has the artist's ...

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Character Sketches

What techniques do storytellers use to create characters? In this lesson, students will analyse how a character's personality traits, actions and motives influence the plot of a story. They will use their senses to create character sketches, then dramatize the character for an audience.

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Mythological Characters

How do Greek mythological figures inspire modern day characters? In this lesson, students will explore the connection between Greek mythology and modern culture. They will analyse Greek culture, mythological characters, and apply elements of mythology. They will design and paint original mythological characters with watercolours.

Downloadable

Movie magic

This resource provides eight lessons about the process of movie making in Australia through the various production steps from writing, shooting and editing the film to promotion of the finished film. It considers the legal rights of the creators and the responsibilities of consumers. The lesson plans are accompanied by ...

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Landscape Painting

This teaching activity explores the ways that artists render foreground, middle ground, and background in a landscape painting. Students will then create a landscape painting using various techniques to portray illusions of depth and reflection.

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How can movement and music tell a story?

In this teaching activity, students will choreograph a sequence of ballet movements to tell a story. Students will explore conceptual and practical elements of classical ballet and learn basic ballet vocabulary through demonstration.

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Albert Namatjira: Unit of work

This unit of work has been written to support the book Albert Namatjira in which award-winning artist Vincent Namatjira tells the life story of his great-grandfather, Albert Namatjira, one of Australia’s best-known artists. This unit includes practical ideas for using this book in your classroom.

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The Mark of the Wagarl: Unit of work

This unit of work has been written to support the book The Mark of the Wagarl. The book tells the story of Maadjit Walken, the Sacred Rainbow Serpent, mother spirit and creator of the Nyoongar Country of south west Western Australia. The story shares how a young boy receives the Maadjit Wagarl for his totem. This unit includes ...

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The Swamp

This resource features the Yolngu-made film The Swamp. Students are provided with the opportunity to watch it and engage in a discussion exploring its genre, deviations from traditional documentary format, its impact on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander storytelling, challenges faced by the Yolngu people, and the film's ...

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Fire in song

Explore the deep cultural importance of fire ('Gurtha') in Yolngu culture, that links to ancestral traditions, land, and water, shaping laws and knowledge through rich songs, dances, and designs. Fire embodies a connection to the past and sacred landscapes.

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Living off our waters

Teachers can enrich their curriculum by teaching students about Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander sustainable resource management, highlighting the profound link between Indigenous cultures and the environment. Different land areas need to be managed differently, in this resource students will investigate a range of ...

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Understanding and respecting cultural narratives

Teachers guide students to explore cultural narratives through a film that highlights the rich traditions, morals, and storytelling techniques of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People.

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Elements of Myth

In this lesson, students will read myths, discuss the elements of this literary form, and dramatize a myth of their choice. They will write scientific, research-based reports, as well as fantastical stories to explain the natural phenomena of the world.

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Performing a Haiku: How can spoken word transform a poem?

In this lesson, students will reflect on small moments of peace or happiness to write an original haiku. Students will demonstrate spoken word to perform a haiku for an audience.

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Balancing Mobiles

In this teaching activity, students will apply mathematical, science, and engineering concepts to experiment with balancing levers. They classify types of levers to design and build a simplified mobile and explore suspended and standing mobiles by sculptor Alexander Calder.