Transformation: YEAR 1 - HASS - Explain

Little J finds a Hawk Moth caterpillar on the Tar vine in the backyard that he names ‘Sausage’. He wants to take it to school but the caterpillar has other ideas and disappears underground. Nanna teaches Little J the story about the Yeperenye caterpillar of the Arrernte people from central Australia. Sausage finally returns to give Little J a further lesson on life cycles. Sissy wants to perform a dance for the school with Big Cuz, but Big Cuz feels ‘shame’.

Explain - Draw simple conclusions based on discussions, observations and information displayed in pictures and texts and on maps

Theme - PLACE

After viewing Little J & Big Cuz, Episode 10 ‘Transformation’, ask students to identify parts of the story focused on continuity and change and the traditions and country of the Arrernte people.

Profile of the Arrernte People

Introduce students to the cultural history of the Arrernte People of central Australia. As a class, view Arrernte Welcome to Country (video) and  ‘Yeperenye (Yipirinya) Dreaming stories' (pdf).

Question students about what they see and hear in the video clips. Refer students to the meaning of ‘primary sources’ of evidence and have students observe and identify if these are primary sources. Ask the students:

  • Who is speaking?
  • What the speakers are speaking about?
  • What is the speaker’s proximity/relationship to the story?
  • How do they tell the story?

Introduce students to the Arrernte Dreaming stories, particularly about Tnorala (Gosse Bluff) and the terms associated with them, such as ‘coolaman’ or ‘turna’.

Explain that the history and language of Aboriginal peoples and/or Torres Strait Island peoples are passed down orally through ‘songlines’, and these songlines are recorded in artworks, music and dance.

Suggested teacher resources:

NITV has produced a series on the songlines of various Aboriginal peoples and/or Torres Strait Islander peoples:

Question students about what they see and hear. Refer students to ‘primary’ and 'secondary' sources of evidence. Ask the students to determine which source is primary or secondary though questioning:

  • Who is speaking?
  • What the speakers are speaking about?
  • What is the speaker’s proximity/relationship to the story?
  • How do they tell the story?

Using Google maps, have students find the town, Alice Springs, on a map, and the landmarks of Tnorala and Finke Gorge. View the land map as a satellite study, and as a road map. Provide students with a map of the Northern Territory with Arrernte Country outlined. Have students mark as many landmarks on their map, including Uluru in Anangu land, and draw a line between it and Alice Springs. Have students suggest other landmarks to mark on their map, such as Arnhem Land, Darwin, and the main Northern Territory rivers, such as the Victoria River, Finke River, and Palmer River, etc. Refer to the Larapinta Trail Map.

View examples of artworks and examine these as various versions of ‘maps’ and ‘stories’ of the land and explain how artists use the iconography (symbols of the land and people) to construct story/meaning in the paintings.

Have students view various Arrernte artists whose work is held by the National Gallery of Australia, such as:

Tim LEURA TJAPALTJARRI

Kaapa Mbitjana TJAMPITJINPA

Emily Kam KNGWARRAY

 Albert NAMATJIRA

Compare the various ways the artists have used to represent the landscape of Arrernte Country and the traditional stories of its people. Have students use the I See I Think I Wonder visual thinking strategy to explain the meaning they understand from the artworks.

Have students use the map they created (where they plotted the landmarks of the country), as the basis of a drawing/painting that they visualise to be the land of the Arrernte people. Ask students to name and include several landmarks, and their own illustrations of Arrernte Dreaming spirits.

Alternatively, ask students to map their own local area using symbols and labels for the landmarks. Illustrate their own images of the spirit stories to include on the map. Invite all students to explain the meaning of their artworks and how they are representing their country.

** Teacher notes: Please discourage students from ‘copying’ any Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander image and/or painting techniques. Many of the traditional images are sacred to the People who create and believe in these images. Permission should be sought from the custodians before using their images. It is advised to encourage students to be creative and use their own imagination, and preferred illustration technique/s to represent their understanding of stories, places and objects.

Further teacher references: