Resources for Australian Aborigines

[kalanamak]

...for the part in the SOTW, essentially, Aboriginal life before the Europeans showed up.

 

Books of old photos?

Stories?

Websites?

Thanks

[christine in al]

It may be an abomination of an Aboriginal war dance. Maybe it's insensative, but if we were studying the Aboriginal People of Austrailia, I'd at least investigate it. I think it's cool to see anglos doing this war dance. I am not a First Nations person, so I may be missing a major sensativity issue here, but I see it as honoring the power of the Maori .

 

Anyway, I'd check you tube for the All Blacks and see if you can find a film of the Hoka.

 

not what you were asking , I know, good luck getting your REAL question answered.

 

Christine in AL

[Karen in CO]

There is a series of books about different countries which is generally good. I haven't read the Australia one - It is Australia the People. There is also a book that I got from our library about Uluru (the big rock) that covers the history of the aboriginal people, their culture, myths, and relationship to the land. I'd read something by Mem Fox just because I love the books. I'd balance it with some folk tales like The Kookaburra and Other Stories by Dal Burn because I always add in folk tales.

[AngelBee]

:lurk5:

[IsabelC]

If you go here:

http://www.aussieeducator.org.au/tertiary_history_australian_indigenous.html

there is a bunch of links to all kinds of stuff to get you started. Not all kid friendly, but if you decide what you want to concentrate on (eg, art, music, spiritual beliefs, etc) you can probably find heaps just by using Google.

 

Probably the most important point to grasp is that there were a lot of groups all with different languages and cultures (similarly to First Nation Americans, I guess).

 

Another thing to watch is that many older sources of information are inaccurate, partly due to lack of adequate research at the time and partly due to the whole political history. In a nutshell, Australia was invaded on the grounds that the inhabitants had no settled 'civilazation' and therefore the land was, for legal purposes, uninhabited (terra nullis). For this reason, for example, it was taught for a long time that all the indigenous people were nomadic and used rough bark shelters or caves, whereas we now know that in some areas they had villages where permanent dwellings were constructed.

 

Oh and Christine, you do realize that the All Black, Hoka etc are New Zealand, not Australia? lol

Edited January 4, 2010 by Hotdrink

[mom2denj]

We are using Sonlight and when we studied Australia, we used a book/magazine called Faces. The specific one we used was Faces; Australia Through Time. It is a great book about Aboriginal Life. I believe that you can order this specific volume (VIII Number IX May 1992) off of the wesite. Actually I just checked the website and they do not sell this particular copy, but you can buy it from Sonlight.

[kalanamak]

I think I hit pay dirt. Now to see what is available in the States.

 

http://wonder.riverwillow.com.au/home_education/book_talk/australian_books.htm

 

I suddenly remembered I have a copy of Little Black Princess, gotten when I lived there as a kid.

[traceyrox74]

Here's a few more links to lists of great Australian books (some of which will be about Aborigines).

 

Australian History in Chronological Order

 

Australian Books We Have Enjoyed

 

Australian Picture Books

 

Online Australian Children's Books

 

As for purchasing Australian titles, if you were really keen, you could order it from an Aussie supplier. Just be prepared for a hefty postage bill. It's a fact of life for us here downunder. Postage is part of my homeschool budget...yes seriously. I ordered "All about Spelling" the other day and the postage cost me $45US. Ouch. But expected.

 

If you're crazy keen, here's a reputable link (which you could also use as a good Aussie book list - there's a couple of good Aboriginal stories in this list):

 

Home School Favourites - Australia Titles

 

Hope this helps.

Tracey