10 September 2021
This week our Year 9 (as well as some of our Year 7 and 8) students have participated in an interactive storytelling of the history of Aboriginal culture through a blanket activity.
The blanket activity begins with a number of blankets being arranged on the floor to represent Australia before the arrival of European explorers and settlers.
Throughout the activity, students were taken on a journey through time; with the blankets representing the land and students representing Aboriginal Australians.
Due to the interactive nature of the activity students were able to see how circumstances affected the population of Aboriginal people – through loss of land, conflict with settlers, and introduction of new diseases.
At the end of the session students participated in a yarning circle using a message stick to communicate how they felt about the information presented, discussing things they had learnt or anything else they were thinking.
Throughout the activity our special guests shared their own family history.
The activity allowed students to explore the nation-to-nation relationship with Aboriginal people, working towards reconciliation and empowering people to build bridges to understanding and respect.
This activity was initially planned for NAIDOC Week but had to be rescheduled due to restrictions at the time.
A big thank you to Charmaine Climo and Renarta Coyne for delivering the activity and for sharing your stories.
