Lesson Plan
Lesson 3: Sustainability – Ask the Experts
60 minutes | Suitable for Grade: 4A 60 minute lesson in which students will investigate Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples’ views about sustainability.
This lesson plan includes the following resources:
Preparation
Warning: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples should be aware that some of the content in this lesson may contain images or names of people who have since passed away.Lesson Plan
This lesson contains a link to an external video. Please watch the video prior to presenting this lesson to ensure that the content is appropriate for your students.
Tuning In
- Revise the content of the unit so far. Ask the students:
- What are some of the problems associated with natural resource use in the 21st century?
- Do you think we are currently using natural resources in a responsible manner?
- How do our actions need to change in the future?
- Write the word ‘sustainability’ on the board. Encourage the students to share their ideas about what this concept might mean. Do not be concerned if the students have few ideas to contribute at this stage.
- Watch the What is Sustainability? video on YouTube. After watching, use the information presented in the video to create a simple definition of sustainability as a class.
Teacher Instruction
- Display slide 4 (the title slide) of the Caring for Country and Place in Sustainable Ways PowerPoint. Using the visual clues on the slide, guide the students towards identifying Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as experts in sustainable living.
- Display and discuss slides 6-9. Ensure that the students understand that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples:
- have a deep connection to their Country/Place
- take only what they need to survive from the land and water
- adapt to the environment in which they live.
Guided/Independent Learning
- Watch the Keeping Aboriginal Culture Alive video on the ABC Education website. After watching, ask the students:
- What were some of the foods the students ate while they were ‘on Country’?
- How were trees and native plants used?
- Why is it important for this knowledge to be passed on to future generations?
- Display and discuss the class activity on slide 10. Ask the students to imagine what their local area might have looked like prior to European arrival. Using the questions on the slide as a prompt, create a list of natural resources that might have been useful to an Indigenous hunter-gatherer. Encourage the students to suggest how each of these natural resources might have been used e.g. fish for food, animal skins for clothes, plants for tools.
Wrapping Up
- To revise the concept of sustainability, read through the dot points about sustainable living on slide 5.
Differentiation
Extending Students
- Allow more capable students to work collaboratively, in a small group, to complete the class activity.
Supporting Students
- Allow less confident students to participate in the guided activity at a level at which they feel comfortable.
Assessment Strategies
Suggested Assessment Strategies
- used strategic whole class or individual questioning
- observed student participation during learning activities
- recorded student progress on a checklist
- annotated student work samples
- collected and reviewed student work samples
- facilitated whole class or peer feedback sessions
- encouraged student self-reflection
- administered formal assessment tasks.
NSW Curriculum alignment
- GE2-3
Examines differing perceptions about the management of places and environments
Australian Curriculum alignment
- ACHASSK090
The use and management of natural resources and waste, and the different views on how to do this sustainably
- ACHASSK089
The custodial responsibility Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples have for Country/Place, and how this influences views about sustainability
- ACHASSI077
Examine information to identify different points of view and distinguish facts from opinions
- ACHASSI074
Locate and collect information and data from different sources, including observations
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