iServi News | 29 July 2022 | Term 3, Week 2
Students in the Learning Diversity Centre have celebrated NAIDOC Week in a variety of ways. We learned about Aboriginal dance, music, art and Dreamtime and how it has been used for thousands of years to tell stories that connect the past and the present.
The week began with an incursion to watch a performance by the Wadumbah Aboriginal Dance group in the Auditorium. The dancers used their bodies to represent Australian animals such as kangaroos, emus and dingoes. Afterwards, we tried our own dance moves to tell the story of the kangaroo mob being chased by dingoes. It was so much fun!
The importance of the music used to tell stories was also acknowledged. We learned about some famous Aboriginal musicians and researched instruments such as the didgeridoo, clapsticks, seed shakers and the hand drum. Thanks to Mr Burrows, we were able to try our hand at playing some of these instruments, discovering tempo, rhythm and timbre along the way. What a crescendo!
The week concluded by exploring Indigenous artwork. We learned about cave and stone engravings and found out about the symbols used to represent human and animal tracks, food, water and the yarn circle. We looked at how Indigenous art has developed over time and how bark, fibre and canvas became used for dot paintings. We really enjoyed going to the Alexis Resource Centre where we were able to see examples of dot paintings on display. Finally, with the help of Mrs Lombardi, we created our own dot paintings to tell the story of The Rainbow Serpent.
Ms Alice Thomas
Learning Enrichment Teacher and Literacy Coach
I liked the Aboriginal dot paintings and enjoyed trying to paint my own.
Lucas Costarella (AN5)
My favourite Aboriginal symbol used in art is the kangaroo tracks. They remind me of my holiday to Shark Bay as we saw so many there in the sand.
Demarco Gough (SE5)
I loved watching the Wadumbah dancers!
Owen Hayes (SC5)
The musical instruments were so much fun!
Billal Mher (AN3)
