Creating meaning and understanding in the ELC

‘Aboriginal people are like the big boys of Australia.’ – Felix ‘Aboriginal people are very old.’ – Jayden M ‘Black is for the people. Red is for the land. Yellow is for the sun.’ – Evan ‘I am English-Chinese. I am Australian because I live in Balwyn North.’ – Benji ‘Wominjeka means welcome.’ – Zac ‘They came first.’ – Yvon

Indigenous culture is becoming embedded in our ELC and can be seen and experienced in various ways. Through the Early Years Learning Framework’s ‘Being, Belonging and Becoming’, we are sharing knowledge with our students about the history, tradition and culture which influences and shapes our thinking in positive ways. As we embed discussions, stories and experiences of Indigenous culture into our children’s daily rhythms, we can see them create meaning and understanding through storytelling and the use of symbols.

In Term 3, the children and staff spent time learning about and celebrating the rich history and diverse cultures of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders using NAIDOC Week to frame our discussions.

At Trinity, we are fortunate to be able to connect with Indigenous staff within our community. We invited two Indigenous staff members, Chris Johnson and Nathan Newcastle, into our space to share stories about their family heritage

Chris Johnson shares the AFL Indigenous Round jumper he designed Isaac engages with our national flags through puzzles

Joe Fisher has fun with beads in the Aboriginal colours

and their culture. Mr Newcastle brought Aboriginal artefacts and used these to illustrate his stories about his family. Mr Johnson brought the Fitzroy jumper he designed for the Brisbane Lions in this year’s Indigenous Round of the AFL competition. He spoke about the symbols represented on the jumper and referred to them as ‘totems’. We learned that totems represent things you respect on your Country, things that are special and meaningful for you.

We were also fortunate to see the jumpers Trinity’s Indigenous students designed for the Indigenous Round of the AGSV competition. These students are part of the school’s Dadirri Program. The designs captured the stories of each Dadirri student and their connection with Trinity.

As a staff at the ELC, we aim to model empathy and appreciation of Indigenous culture by sharing thoughts, ideas and stories with our Jarjums (a word which means ‘children’). Being reflective is imperative in how we teach others to learn or re-learn and can help us to enrich our knowledge and understanding. Children are experts in fairness and sharing history and stories with them enhances all children’s sense of place within our community.

One way we have shared our appreciation of Indigenous culture is by exploring Aboriginal symbols in the children’s play. We have read Aboriginal Dreamtime stories together, created yoga sequences with the children and used Aboriginal words and symbols in our artwork. Mr Johnson and Mr Newcastle explained that symbols show how people are feeling, and emotions are conveyed through the stories. In the absence of written languages, Aboriginal people used paintings to transfer knowledge. We learned that symbols were painted in caves, and on rocks and trees. For our stage of development, symbols and painting fit well with how our children convey their own meaning and make sense of the world. Over the term we have spent time experimenting with using symbols to create meaning and to make our own stories.

‘Dadirri’ is an Aboriginal word meaning a deep inner listening and quiet, still awareness. At the ELC, we embrace the ‘Dadirri’ embedded in Trinity’s values and beliefs, as we endeavour to walk with the Indigenous community. Our journey is an evolving one and we will continue to reflect through classroom learnings and by working with Indigenous staff members to increase our knowledge about and understanding of our First Australians. Relating and responding holistically to People, Land, Culture, Language, Spirit and the relationships between these is a way for us to develop relationally responsive practice in the way we guide our children.

This is a journey, a time to think of our First Nations people. It is important that we acknowledge the past, understand the present and embrace the future. In order for our children to learn the stories of our Indigenous culture, our first step is to make a commitment to learn as much as we can about the history and embed knowledge, meaning and understanding for our young learners.

Yvon and Zac use clapping sticks whilst singing an Indigenous song

Naomi Wright

Director of the ELC