Lauren Kennedy 30125179

Social Education and Humanities

Assessment Two

Social Education and Humanities Unit Plan Template

NAME and student number: Lauren Kennedy 30125179

COURSE (highlight) Bachelor of Education P-6; P-10; Early Childhood; Physical Education
Tutors name Kylie Snibson

Tutorial Group Day online

CURRICULUM TITLE: Exploring Early Australian Culture prior to European settlement

INTRODUCE AND SUMMARISE YOUR UNIT

This unit of study takes students back to Australia pre-European settlement, it looks at the way that Indigenous Australians interacted with the
land and how they lived their day to day lives; we look at the way information was transferred between people with the use of stories, song and
dance and the way that children were taught through different methods such as games (Australian Government, 2015). This unit has been
designed as an introduction to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander culture, looking at many different aspects, from food and cooking, to social
roles and responsibilities. Focusing on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders way of life, students are able to critically think about the
differences between now and then throughout the unit. This unit has been developed to include students of all abilities with tasks catered
towards varying levels. I have attempted to also incorporate all of the senses within this unit plan as well, subtlety engaging students on
diverse levels, for example, we taste and smell during cooking, touch is explored through games, slight is all around us, but students will use
this sense through experiences such as the Art Centre visit, and sound has been used to create atmosphere. One of the tasks students will be
required to write down a recipe from a voice recording this will challenge their listening and comprehension skills. This unit ends with students
creating their own dreamtime story as a class, using elements of traditions as well as other information they have learnt over the course of the
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Social Education and Humanities
Assessment Two
unit, students will create images to help tell their story, this will reflect what has been learnt through the art component of the unit. There are
many social themes throughout the unit, both in the content and the way it is delivered, to achieve success within this unit students must have
an understanding of Early Australian culture and they must work as a collective to achieve results.

Humanities discipline:

History

Victorian Curriculum statement: The diversity and longevity of Australias first peoples and the significant ways Aboriginal and Torres Strait
Islander peoples are connected to Country and Place (land, sea, waterways and skies) and the effects on their daily lives (VCHHK078)
Year level: Level three
List of Victorian Curriculum interdisciplinary content
History:
Identify the origin and content features of primary sources when describing the significance of people, places and events (VCHHC067)
Describe perspectives of people from the past (VCHHC068)
Identify and describe continuity and change over time in the local community, region or state and as a result of the effects of European
exploration (VCHHC069)
Identify the origin and content features of primary sources when describing the significance of people, places and events (VCHHC067)
Civics and citizenship:
Investigate why and how people participate within communities and cultural and social groups(VCCCC006)
Geography:
Identify and describe the characteristics of places in different locations at a range of scales (VCGGC071)
Identify and describe locations and spatial distributions and patterns (VCGGC072)
Identify and explain the interconnections within places and between places (VCGGC073)
Collect and record relevant geographical data and information from the field and other sources
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Social Education and Humanities
Assessment Two
The many Countries/Places of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples throughout Australia, and the custodial responsibility they
have for Country/Place, and how this influences views about sustainability (VCGGK080)
Mathematics:

Model and represent unit fractions including 1/2, 1/4, 1/3, 1/5 and their multiples to a complete whole(VCMNA136)

Media arts:

Identify intended purposes and meanings of media artworks considering who makes media artworks and the characteristics of
audiences who view them in different social, historical and cultural contexts (VCAMAR028)

Music:

Use voice and instruments to sing, play and arrange music from different cultures, times and locations, and improvise and compose
music in different forms (VCAMUM026)

Science:
Heat can be produced in many ways and can move from one object to another; a change in the temperature of an object is related to
the gain or loss of heat by the object (VCSSU063)
Visual art:

Explore ideas and artworks from different cultures and times as inspiration to create visual artworks (VCAVAE025)

Technology:
Develop simple solutions as visual programs (VCDTCD024)
Explore a range of digital systems with peripheral devices for different purposes, and transmit different types of data (VCDTDS019)
Recognise different types of data and explore how the same data can be represented in different ways(VCDTDI020)
Please note this template is an adaptation from Understanding by Design ASCD Grant Wiggins, Jay McTighe. Source
UbDQuikvue1005.pdf
Stage 1 Desired Results
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Lauren Kennedy 30125179

For the students to gain respect and

Social Education and Humanities

Assessment Two
TRANSFER students will be able to independently use their learning to

knowledge of the diversity and longevity of

Students will be able to independently use their learning to show respect for the traditional

Indigenous Australians as well as their

owners of the land, understand the ways in which Indigenous Australians lived prior to

connection to country and land within their

European settlement. Which will enable them to understand with greater depth as they begin

daily lives prior to European settlement.

to explore more in depth topics such as settlement (or invasion) and the stolen generation.
Having sound knowledge of how Indigenous Australians lived prior to these topics will make
them more sensitive to the Indigenous people of Australia.
MEANING students will understand that
Students will understand that Indigenous

culture and history is of great importance to

Australian History, even prior to European

Who are the traditional owners of the

land and what does this mean?

What role did Indigenous Australians

play in Australias history?

settlement.

How Indigenous Australians lived

before European settlement?

What values and beliefs did/do

Indigenous Australians have?

How do Indigenous Australians pass

on information between generations?

ACQUISITION Students will know

The students will be able to identify who the

Students will be skilled at

Respectfully recognising Indigenous

traditional owners of the land are and what

Australians and their place in

that statement means.

Australian history.
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Social Education and Humanities

They will be informed of how people lived in

Assessment Two
Collaborating with peers

the past prior to European settlement.

Researching from limited sources

Students will be able to discuss the roles and

Public speaking

responsibilities of people within each tribe and

Explaining aspects of Indigenous

how this made Indigenous people were self-

Australian culture prior to European

sufficient and reliant within their tribes.

settlement.

Students will understand the significance and

Critical thinking skills

of dreamtime stories to Indigenous

Australians and how they were used within
tribes.
Stage 2 Evidence
EVALUATIVE CRITERIA
By the end of this unit students will be able to
describe how Indigenous Australians lived
before European settlement. They will be able

ASSESSMENT EVIDENCE
PERFORMANCE TASK(s)
-

Reading and creating the movie as part of a group presentation for assembly (see
lesson 11, 12, 13).

to respectfully and thoughtfully reflect on this

After researching different ideas for performance tasks, I found the key was to have the

lifestyle and identify aspects they found

children engaged in doing something that interests them. Hedberg, (2003) discusses the way

interesting and/or challenging about this

in which the tools used within the classroom have changed and the importance teachers to be

lifestyle.

implementing these tools to engage students. This is why I thought a digital presentation
would work well with these children.
OTHER EVIDENCE
Students will be assessed on their contributions to group discussions

Lauren Kennedy 30125179

Social Education and Humanities

ability to follow a recipe

Assessment Two

ability to write a recipe

Participation in class
Ability to work in a group
Ability to work independently
Ability to follow instruction
Ability to describe similarities and differences
Stage 3 Learning Plan summary of key learning events
#

Five Es

Present sequence of learning events as snapshots

Brief resources and materials

Visit from a local village elder (presentation)

Boon Wurrung Foundation

phase
1

Engage

This presentation will be conducted by a local village elder. The elder will
demonstrate a traditional dance and song using traditional instruments, then
discuss with the students the significance of the local area of Stonnignton within
Indigenous History.
While the focus of this unit is predominately prior to European settlement, some
aspects of this talk will include the way in which Indigenous Australians from the
local area have help to shape what it looks like today.
Running time: 50 minutes
2

Engage

Who are the traditional owners of the land?

Protocols for Recognising Traditional

Throughout this session students will be given the opportunity to research and

Owners.

explore the topic of Indigenous Australians. How to discover the Traditional

http://www.dpc.vic.gov.au/index.php/

Lauren Kennedy 30125179

Social Education and Humanities
Owners of the land. This lesson focuses on the local area of Stonnington, its
culture and history.

Assessment Two
aboriginal-affairs/protocols-forrecognising-traditional-owners

We begin by analysing a map. Looking at all of the different tribes that have lived
across Australia. Recognising that all of the different tribes had different names

Map

and spoke different languages. The aim of this lesson is to explore the diversity of

http://aiatsis.gov.au/explore/articles/

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders, developing understanding of how original

aboriginal-australia-map

tribes may have lived.

Acknowledgement of Country

Students will be given time in this session to go to the library and gather

and Anthem

information from the books within the library. This develops students independent

Https://www.youtube.com/watch?

learning skills

v=yti22ozGRNA

Running time: 50 minutes

3

Explore

Traditional food, hunting, finding water, living off the land.

Instructions for scavenger hunt

Throughout this lesson students will delve into the world of an Indigenous
Australian and explore the way they were able to follow the rivers and navigate the

Items placed around the school prior

land in order to find food and also water. Students will be reminded much of

to session commencing.

Australia is dessert and water would be much harder to come by. Students will get
to leave the class room and hunt around the school using clues. Exploring the

Students given (fake) spears (most

way in which Indigenous Australians where able to read the land and move from

likely use rulers)

area to area as food sources dwindled.

Running time: 90 minutes
4

Explore

Cooking experience, food and tasting

Recipe

In this session we will look at traditional foods and how they were prepared.

http://www.abc.net.au/local/photo

Students will participate in making traditional bush bread or seedcakes. The first

s/2013/07/11/3801235.htm

Lauren Kennedy 30125179

Social Education and Humanities
step students will need to write down the recipe as they listen to the recoding. After

Assessment Two
Bottlebrushs

we have as a class agreed on the recipe its time to head outside. This experience

Jug

will be conducted outside, at the back of the oval and a risk assessment will be

Burnt out ashes

carried out prior. Students will also get to try traditional drinks prepared from Nectar-

Flour

baring flowers like bottlebrush soaked in water.

Salt

Running time 60 minutes.

Water
Measuring equipment
Foil

Explain

Acknowledgement of country

http://splash.abc.net.au/home#!/medi

Throughout this session students will delve into the meaning behind country to

a/2182479/meet-

Indigenous Australians. Exploring many different elements. As a class we will

uluru%E2%80%99s-traditional-

discuss how they respected the land and only took what they needed. Students

owners

will be asked to brainstorm what country actually meant to Aboriginals in the local
area.
Why is it important to Indigenous Australians to protect the land? Students will
contemplate this as they watch a video about the Anangu people and Uluru.
Each traditional land mark has meaning to Indigenous Australians.
Running time 60 minutes
6

Explain

Archaeological sites.

X5 copies of Discovering

Following on from the previous session students will examine early archaeological

Aboriginal Australia by Trish

sites that show the longevity of the Aboriginal people. 5 sites will be researched

Albert

Nauwalabila, Malakunanja, Devils Lair, Lake Mungo and Preminghana.

X 5 copies of First Australians:

Plenty Stories Discovering

Lauren Kennedy 30125179

Social Education and Humanities
Students will be broken into five different groups and each group will be asked to

Assessment Two
Aboriginal Australia by Trish

research one of these landmarks. The students will be given questions and be

Albert

asked to create a power point presentation or a poster to present to the class

Students will be given a web

which will be approximately 5 minutes in length and present back to the group.

quest with the following sites

Through this experience students are gaining group working, negation skills as

to explore for information:

well as presenting skills.

http://austhrutime.com/mungo_man.h

At the end of the session students will play around the world to help entrench the

tm

knowledge they have developed throughout the session. The first round will be

http://www.aboriginalartonline.com/re

about their own landmark, then the group left in gets smaller the questions will be

gions/tasmania.php

about the other landmarks making it more challenging. House points or a sticker

http://austhrutime.com/devils_lair.htm

for chart to the winner of the game depending on the group and knowing what

http://austhrutime.com/malakunanja.

reward motivates them.

htm

Running time: 120 minutes

http://austhrutime.com/nauwalabila.ht
m
-

The web quest will contain the

questions that students will
answer in their presentations

Explain

Games!

Ipads

Projector

http://www.creativespirits.info/aborigi

In this session the students get physically actively involved in their learning.

nalculture/sport/traditional-aboriginal-

We will play three or four (time permitting) Indigenous games. The teacher will

games-activities#axzz49LVgffj0

explain the meaning behind each game as well as the rules prior to each game.
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Lauren Kennedy 30125179

Running time 60 minutes.
8

Elaborate

Social Education and Humanities

Social systems

Assessment Two
https://www.youtube.com/watch?

Indigenous Australian tribes had many cultural values that they held of close

v=mNtPcW4t1PY (family and

importance. Throughout this lesson students will explore different elements of

kinship)

these. As the students enter the class room they will be assigned a role. Students
will be given ten minutes to find a small group in the class that is able to help them

projector

preform their task for the day, they will need to work out the other students roles
and if they will in fact be helpful to their cause. Students will be asked to critically

Ipads

think about what or who they may need to help them and why. Eg, if you were a

Game:

hunter, would you need more hunters, or would you need someone that could

http://www.uow.edu.au/wic/safekoori

cook?

kids/

Discussion about family and the meaning of this to Aboriginal and Torres Strait
Islanders.
Religion played a big role within Aboriginal culture. Children were taught by village
elders and lessons were passed on through dream time stories.
Students will play the bush component of this online game to develop a better
understanding of Indigenous lifestyle include mens business and womans
business
9

Elaborate

Dreamtime, Music, dance, and arts

https://www.youtube.com/watch?

Continuing on from the previous session students will begin to developing an

v=hOWzcLuupi0 (dream time)

understanding of how dreamtime stories taught lessons from generation to

generation. As a class we will read How the Kangaroo got her pouch. We will

How the Kangaroo got her pouch

http://aboriginaldreamtimestories.

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Social Education and Humanities
then investigate, how Indigenous Australians used music and dance to also tell
stories.

Assessment Two
com.au/for-kids/how-thekangaroo-got-her-pouch/

Running time 60 minutes

10

Elaborate

Excursion - Burrinja Cultural Centre

Work sheet

At the beginning of this excursion students will be given a question sheet. They will

School bus

have to answer questions as they come up along the tour. On the back of the

Parent permission forms

questions will be a scavenger hunt. The first three students that can correctly

Medications (asthma pumps,

identify where all of the items on this list are will receive a prize. Students will have

epipens, etc.)

a guided tour through the centre where the art works will be discussed and the
meaning behind them will be described.
11

Elaborate

Dreamtime storys
After many session about the way of life of Indigenous Australians students are
able to enjoy some dreamtime stories in this session analysing their meanings and

by M. Albert

what this story could teach people. After each story there will be a group

At the end of the session the students will be asked to think of the elements that
are reoccurring within each story, what are the themes and the purpose of telling
stories in this way?

How the Kangaroos Got Their

Tails. By P. Lofts

discussion and ideas will be brainstormed.

How the birds got their colours

The Rainbow Serpent. By D.

Roughsley

Dingos tree. By G. Milroy &

J.Milroy

Running time 60 minutes

12

Evaluate

Creating a movie!

Pens, paper, pencils, texters, etc.

As a group we will begin to write a story, going around the circle each student will
add a sentence to the story after deciding on a theme and title as a group.
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Lauren Kennedy 30125179

Social Education and Humanities
Each student will then be given some time to draw their sentence(s). As the

Assessment Two
Computer with movie maker or

students are drawing, the teacher will record each student individually reading

photo story and a recording

their sentence.

device

Running time 120 minutes

13

Evaluate

Showing our work

Projector

At the weekly school assembly we will present our movie to the rest of the school.

Microphone

We will prepare a speech summarising the key points that we have learnt in this

Computer

unit and these will be read out by the class before showing the movie we made.

Copy of our story (usb or cd etc.)

Time 15- 20 minutes

Reference and Resources list
(2014). How the kangaroo got her pouch http://aboriginaldreamtimestories.com.au/for-kids/how-the-kangaroo-got-her-pouch/
Albert, M. (2004). How the birds got their colours. Scholastic Press.
Albert, T. (2008). First Australians: Plenty Stories Discovering Aboriginal Australia. Pearson Education Australia.
Albert, T. (2010). Discovering Aboriginal Australia. Pearson Education Australia.
Australian Government (2015). Australian Indigenous ceremony song, music and dance. Australian Government retrieved
from:http://www.australia.gov.au/about-australia/australian-story/austn-Indigenous-ceremony
Berk, L. (2013). Child Development, 9th edition. USA: Pearson Education.
Brewin, R. (2013) NAIDOC Week: how to make bush damper. Retrieved from:
http://www.abc.net.au/local/photos/2013/07/11/3801235.htm
Bureau of Meteorology, (2014). Climate, Weather and Culture. Retrieved from: http://www.bom.gov.au/iwk/climate_culture/culturebelief.shtml
Department of Premier and Cabinet. (2014) Protocols for Recognising Traditional Owners. Victorian Government Department of Premier
and Cabinet. Retrieved from: http://www.dpc.vic.gov.au/index.php/aboriginal-affairs/protocols-for-recognising-traditional-owners
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Social Education and Humanities
Assessment Two
Fallon, S., & Enig, M. (1999). Australian AboriginesLiving Off the Fat of the Land. Price-Pottenger Nutrition Foundation Health
Journal,22(2), 574-81.
Hedberg, J. (2003). Ensuring quality ELearning: creating engaging tasks. Educational Media International, 40(3-4), 175-186.
http://www.education.vic.gov.au/school/teachers/support/Pages/e5.aspx
Indigenous Australia, (2013). Aboriginal Bush Foods. Retrieved from: http://www.Indigenousaustralia.info/food.html
Lofts, P. (2009). How the Kangaroos Got Their Tails. Scholastic Press.
Milroy, G. & Milroy, J. (2012) Dingos tree. Magabala Books
Monroe, H., M. (2016) Australia: The Land Where Time Began A biography of the Australian continent. Retrieved from:
http://austhrutime.com/index.htm
Munday, P. (2008). Teacher perceptions of the role and value of excursions in years 710 geography education in Victoria,
Australia. International research in geographical and environmental education, 17(2), 146-169.
National Geographic Kids! (2015) All About Archaeology | Nat Geo Kids Archaeology Playlist [video] Retrieved from:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qMzpA5oCGNY
Roughsley, D. (1992) The Rainbow Serpent. Scholastic Press.
Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority (2016). The Victorian Curriculum F10. State Government of Victoria. Retrieved from:
http://victoriancurriculum.vcaa.vic.edu.au/
Victorian Department of Education and Training (2014) The e5 Instructional Model. retrieved from:
http://www.education.vic.gov.au/school/teachers/support/Pages/e5.aspx
Victorian Department of Education and Training. (2013) Principles of Learning and Teaching P-12 and the Components. Retrieved from:
http://www.education.vic.gov.au/school/teachers/support/Pages/components12.aspx
Victorian State Government for Education and Training. (2013). Authentic Tasks. Retrieved from:
http://www.education.vic.gov.au/school/teachers/teachingresources/discipline/maths/assessment/Pages/authtasks.aspx#1
Critically Evaluative Reflection on Unit Planning Process
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Lauren Kennedy 30125179

Social Education and Humanities
Assessment Two
This unit plan took me much longer than expected, searching through so much different information available in an attempt to find teaching
resources that are actually valuable for students in a grade three class room. I wanted to make them as practical and effective as possible so I
wanted lots of interactivity. This was hard to do with so much information readily available about European settlement and the stolen
generation, however, prior to Settlement there isnt as much. I started from the Curriculum statement, looking at the elaborations to inspire
individual lesson plans and this is where I gathered information on the landmarks and Archaeological sites (which is something I hadnt thought
of). I attempted to use a balance between the on the surface teaching with things such as looking at food and how it was prepared, then
travel more in depth to look at aspects of family life and how Indigenous Australians used and treated the land and its creatures. My main goal
throughout this unit was for students to develop an understanding, to initiate conversations and show respect for the traditional owners of the
land, the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders. As a teacher I feel it is important to teach all aspects of culture at an age appropriate level, I
have attempted to include topics which will challenge the students thinking without being too difficult that it will not be understood. I gathered
information from many sources before beginning the planning process and find that this has helped to develop a well-rounded picture of life in
Australia prior to European settlement.
Paragraph on how your pedagogy addressed the chosen discipline
As a teacher I believe that students should be given hands on opportunities for learning, thought out this unit plan I have created many diverse
ways to teach students, this includes group discussions, videos, physical games, books, online games and the final assessment the students
get to work together to create a digital resource, this is something they can show as evidence of their learning, it will also be something I
believe that they will be able to remember when they think about this unit. The Victorian State Government for Education and Training (2013)
discusses the need for assessment tasks to be engaging and purposeful as well as offering opportunities for learning and higher thinking.
Through this unit student given a range of different learning experiences, many of which are hands on. I believe children learn through doing.
With this in mind I have tried to create many lessons that are interactive, keeping the students minds active and critically analysing the
information presented. This is why I also subtly incorporated the senses through the lesson plans, engaging different senses prompts
responses from different parts of the brain, meaning it is more likely for students to retain information (Berk, 2013). I believe before students
can delve into the topic of European settlement they must first have this background knowledge about Australias native culture and how the
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Social Education and Humanities
Assessment Two
Indigenous people were self-sufficient and reliant within their tribes. This is why the unit has been developed solely around Indigenous
Australian culture.

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