Old Dog and Elly fear goannas, Ms Chen fears geckos, and Big Cuz fears the dentist. Little J boasts he isn’t scared of anything, but this may not be true. When Mick, Ally, Little J and Old Dog go to the beach, Little J discovers that his hero, Mick, is scared of Hermit crabs. Together, on the cliff, Mick and Little J overcome their shame of being afraid and help each other to be brave.

Engage - Explore ideas, experiences, observations and imagination to create visual artworks and design, including considering ideas in artworks by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artists.

Theme - GECKO (KULPAI)

Revisit the events of Little J & Big Cuz, Episode 11 ‘Nothing Scares Me’, and have students concentrate on the animals that the characters were afraid of, such as a goanna, a gecko, and hermit crabs. Quiz students on why these animals were feared – their appearance and physical features, size, behaviours, colour, texture, or potential to harm a person if frightened themselves.

Gecko

Instruct students to take note of the shape, size, colour, texture, patterns, etc. of an Australian gecko.

• Aussie Geckos – CrittaCam
• Southern Leaf-tailed Gecko
• Gecko images
• Amazing Australian Geckos 

Using three squares drawn onto a sheet of paper, have students draw three pictures of a gecko.

• Square 1: Focus on the shape and comparative size of the gecko.
• Square 2: Focus on a detail of the texture of the surface of the gecko.
• Square 3: Focus on the colour and pattern of the gecko.

Have students also find out the type of tracks that the gecko leaves.

View National Gallery of Victoria artworks by Aboriginal artists and/or Torres Strait Islander artists with the subject of ‘gecko’, such as

• Gecko brooch (1999), Irene Mbitjana Entata
• ‘Tjangura, the Blue-tongued Lizard and Naraba, the gecko’ (1948), Unknown Artist

Discuss with students how these artworks, by Aboriginal peoples and/or Torres Strait Islander peoples, are special to them. Have students observe how each artist represents the animal, particularly its size, shape and pattern, and how each artist fills the shape and patterns and the background.

Examine the artworks to see how Aboriginal artists sometimes show the pattern of the skin of the gecko in their artworks.

Ask students to design an artwork where the same shape of the gecko is repeated three times in the composition. Suggest students change the size of the gecko and use the patterns and textures of the gecko’s skin to fill each shape.