Australia - Down Under!

 Group 1:  AUSTRALIAN HISTORY

For many millions of years, Australia was cut off from the rest of the world. The first humans travelled across the sea from Indonesia about 70,000 years ago. Australia's original inhabitants are called the Australian Aborigines.
The first Europeans ever to reach Australia were Dutch traders and Dutch and English pirates. But in the 18th Century, the continent was still almost unknown to Europeans, until the English explorer James Cook sailed towards Australia.

On 19 April 1770, Cook's sailors sighted the Australian coast. They went ashore and were surprised: They were surrounded by hundreds of completely unknown plants and animals. When their ship sailed a bit further up the coast, something terrible happened: it was badly damaged by a huge coral reef. It took a long time to repair the ship, but in the end, a year after the accident, the explorers were safely back in England.

While the ship was being repaired, both sailors and scientists, who had come along too, had a lot of time to explore the new land. They were most amazed by an extraordinary animal: It stood on two hind legs. It made long, big jumps! And what was most exciting of all: From a large pocket on the stomach of the mother animal appeared the little face of a baby animal. Yes, for the first time, Europeans were looking at a kangaroo.

On 22 August 1770, Cook claimed all eastern of Australia for the English King George III. Back home, the explorers suggested that prisoners could be taken to Australia. English prisons were extremely full, and Australia was a vast and empty space! Australia's first European settlement was founded on 26 January 1778. 26 January has become the day Australians celebrate the founding of the Australian nation.

Many Australian Aborigines however, do not celebrate Australia Day. For them, this date means the sad beginning of the end of their traditional way of life.

TASK:

1. Gather information about Australia´s History and take notes.

2. Try to find information about Australian public holidays. Do they have
    any historical background? (Take a closer look at the "Australian Day").

3. Find out the lyrics of the National Anthem and listen to it. What is "Waltzing
     Matilda"? What are the songs about and in how far are they important for the
    Australians?

4. Compare the results with your group members and discuss which pieces of
    information are important. Write them down and structure them.

    Difficulty: Try to make it short but nevertheless detailed enough to get the idea
                        behind the bullet point and its date!

5. Create a handout for your classmates and a poster for your classroom!

Helpful Links...
...Australia in general
...Australian History
...Australia Day
...National Anthem
...Waltzing Matilda 1  , Waltzing Matilda 2

--> For further information use search engines like "Google". Watch out from
        which websites you take your information! Not everything which is said on the
        internet is correct! Make sure it´s a reliable source!
        Don´t forget the bibliography on your handouts!

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Group 2:    ABORIGINAL AUSTRALIA

Australian Aborigines were the first people to inhabit Australia. Their ancestors arrived in Australia at least 50,000 years ago - some historians say it might even have been as long as 150,000 years ago. The Australian Aborigines were hunter-gatherers for most of their history. When Australia became British in 1770, their lives changed dramatically. They lost most of their land and the white settlers in some parts of Australia were allowed to shoot them like animals.

In the early 20th Century, many Aboriginal families were separated from each other. By order of the Australian government, white Australians took Aboriginal children from their mothers, so they would grow up in white families and forget their own culture. Aborigines now have the same rights as white Australians, but they are still disadvantaged. In 1998 Australians held the first "National Sorry Day" - the Australian people apologised for all the horrors that had happened to the Aborigines.

Much of traditional Aboriginal culture is based on "the Dreaming" or "Dreamtime". The Dreaming is the way traditional Aboriginal people explain life and how the world came into being. The Dreaming is told in songs, dances and paintings. Aboriginal paintings show many circles, curved and straight lines, or the tracks of animals. Circles often stand for "waterhole", "camp site" or "important place". Curved lines stand for "rain" or "water travelling underground". A C-shaped figure might mean a "person". Australian didgeridoos are often decorated with such symbols.

TASK:

1. Gather information about the Aborigines and take notes.
    --> Including: History, Naming, Culture, Social Structure

2. Find out what "Dreamtime" or "the Dreaming" means.

3. Take a look at Aboriginal Art and Music and take notes.
   --> Including: Aboriginal Symbols and the "Didgeridoo" 

4. Compare the results with your group members and discuss which pieces of
    information are important. Write them down and structure them.

5. Create a handout for your classmates and a poster for your classroom!

Helpful Links...
...Aborigines
...Indigenous Australians
...Indigenous Australia
...Didgeridoo
...Aboriginal Art

 --> For further information use search engines like "Google". Watch out from
        which websites you take your information! Not everything which is said on the
        internet is correct! Make sure it´s a reliable source!
        Don´t forget the bibliography on your handouts!

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Group 3:    AUSTRALIAN LIFESTYLE

If you visit Australia, be prepared that Australians have their own way of speaking English. Some people call it "Strine". Strine has its own words, like "snag" for "sausage", and shortened words like "barbie" for "barbecue", "mozzie" for "mosquito", "roo" for "kangaroo", "bickie" for "biscuit" or "arvo" for "afternoon". Strine is famous for its expressions that seem typical of the Australian lifestyle. Take this one for example: "He is a snag short of a barbie" is used to describe a person who seems a bit mad - after all, what sort of person tries to have a barbecue without any food, not even a sausage, to put on it?

What else is special about the Australian Lifestyle? If you think summer, sun and beaches, you are quite right. Australia wouldn't be Australia without its many beaches. One of the most popular water sports is Surfing. Australia was the first place in the world to have surf lifesaving clubs. Every summer, thousands of volunteer lifesavers patrol beaches and provide first-aid when needed.

Another sport that is very popular in Australia, especially in the summer season, is cricket. Cricket is a tiny bit like baseball - although one match can last up to five days! "Batsmen" try to hit the ball as far as they can into the field so they can score points by running while the opposing team gets the ball back. Just in case you are talking to a cricket fan: don't say their favourite game is like baseball - they don't like it!

For many Australian families, cricket plays a big role, especially at Christmas. December 26th always sees the Start of an international game at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. 90,000 spectators come and watch it live, many more Australians follow the event on TV.

TASK:

1. Gather information about the Australian Lifestyle. This may include Culture,
    Food, Sports, Music, Arts, Attitude, Values, Beliefs etc.

2. Try to find stereotypes which describe "The typical Australian". What do you
    think, why did they appear and what are they based on?

3. Most English speaking countries have their own accents. The Aussie Slang is
    sometimes very hard to understand. Write down 20 expressions/words you find
    very interesting / funny / useful.

4. Compare the results with your group members and discuss which pieces of
    information are important. Write them down and structure them.

5. Create a handout for your classmates and a poster for your classroom!

Helpful Links...
...Culture of Australia
...People, Culture and Lifestyle
...Lifestyle
...Lifestyle Statistic
...Aussie Slang Dictionary
...Aussie Slang Phrases 

 

--> For further information use search engines like "Google". Watch out from
        which websites you take your information! Not everything which is said on the
        internet is correct! Make sure it´s a reliable source!
        Don´t forget the bibliography on your handouts!

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Group 4:   PLACES TO GO / GEOGRAPHY

The Australian outback is also called "the never-never" or "the back of beyond" - an area which is far away from civilization. It is difficult to say where exactly the outback begins and where it ends. For most Australians, the outback refers to the huge deserts in the heart of the country with their characteristic red sand. There are many popular tourist attractions in the outback. The most popular of them all is Ayers Rock, or Uluru, as the Aborigines call it. It is a huge rock in central Australia, more than 860 metres high. Depending on the time of day and the weather, the rock changes its colour and can glow blue, or violet, or in all shades of red. The Aborigines believe that it is inhabited by spirits and to them the rock is sacred.

If you want to travel through the outback, it is very important that you prepare your journey well. Always tell someone about your route and when you plan to be back. Make sure you have enough spare petrol for long distances. Take plenty of water with you and enough food. You need a high-frequency radio in case your car breaks down. Mobile phones don't reach far enough. In case of an emergency stay near your car in the shade and wait for help. Most problems in the outback happen when people go to look for help. It is much safer to wait for Australia's famous Royal Flying Doctor Service. This is why you need a high-frequency radio: In the outback you can contact doctors with it, and they can help quickly because they use planes as ambulances.

TASK:

1. Gather information about Australia´s Geography and take notes.
   --> States, Capital City/Big Cities, Mountains, Oceans, etc.
   --> What is special about each region? e.g. the Outback --> not many
         Inhabitants, In case of emergency -->Flying Doctors

2. Why Australia is called "Down under"? What other naming besides Australia
     and Down Under exist and what do they mean?

3.  You are planning a trip to Australia. Get yourself informed which places you
     should visit including cities, National Parks, Sights etc.

4. Compare the results with your group members and discuss which pieces of
    information are important. Write them down and structure them.

5. Create a handout for your classmates and a poster for your classroom!
     Including a map of Australia which supports your places of interest best!

Helpful Links...
...States and Places to go
...Things to do in Australia
...Australia
...Natural environment (more links at the end of the page)

 

--> For further information use search engines like "Google". Watch out from
        which websites you take your information! Not everything which is said on the
        internet is correct! Make sure it´s a reliable source!
        Don´t forget the bibliography on your handouts!

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 Group 5:    AUSTRALIAN WILDLIFE

If you think of Australia's wildlife, you will probably think first of cute koalas or hopping kangaroos. However, Australia's fauna isn't only famous for these loveable creatures, but also for its extremely dangerous animals. Have you ever heard of the most poisonous animal on earth, the box jellyfish? Well, here is the place to find out more about it.

Box jellyfish can be found in the waters near the North Australian coast. They have large transparent bodies shaped like a box. They carry strong poison in their long tentacles. They are extremely dangerous no other animal's poison can kill a human in less than four minutes. The poison on their tentacles is so strong that the few people who have survived contact with it describe it as like a powerful electric shock. Box jellyfish have caused more deaths in Australia than snakes, sharks and salt water crocodiles put together. The reason for this is that they are hard to see and their poison comes from all their long tentacles, which means that it can enter the victim's body at different parts at the same time. The effects are so painful that swimmers who brush against the tentacles often don't make it back to the shore to take the antidote. The only way of protecting yourself against box jelly fish is to only swim in safely netted areas or to wear protective clothing.

And there are the snakes and spiders. Australia has hundreds of different species, and quite a lot of them are deadly. However, even though Australia's most poisonous snake, the taipan, has enough poison to kill 100 grown men, it is not half as dangerous as the box jellyfish, because in most cases there is enough time to take the antidote. A person will die only if a snake bite is untreated for several hours. This is also true for spider bites.

This all sounds very frightening, doesn't it? But the truth is, most of Australia's poisonous animals do not want to attack humans. So enjoy Australia's great outdoors, just be careful where you swim or where you sit down!

TASK:

1. Gather information about Australia´s Wildlife and take notes.

2. Create a hit list:
    --> Which animals are most poisonous?
    --> Which animals are most in danger of extinction?
    --> Which animals exist only in Australia?

3. Find information about their habitats, search for photos of the animals and put
    them down on a map. Of course located where they use to live.

4. Compare the results with your group members and discuss which pieces of
    information are important. Write them down and structure them.

5. Create a handout for your classmates and a poster for your classroom! Including a
     map of Australia which supports your places of interest best!

 Helpful Links...
...Australian Animals & Wildlife (including hit lists)
...Animals - in the air, on the ground, in the water

--> For further information use search engines like "Google". Watch out from
        which websites you take your information! Not everything which is said on the
        internet is correct! Make sure it´s a reliable source!
        Don´t forget the bibliography on your handouts!

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 EXTRA TASK

Your Group has finished? 

--> Take another look and make sure that you did everything you had to do and
        that you are able to present your results! Don´t forget that your poster, the
        handout and your presentation will be marked.

 --> You definitely finished everything? Yes?

 --> Congratulations! You did a great a job! Not every group has already finished.
       Therefore you get an extra task, but no worries - this time it´s no work at all.
       It´s fun!

 --> At the end of this website you´ll find 3 different Australia games which you
       can print and play together with your group members. Have fun! :-)