Key Vocabulary for Australian Government

In Australia, this title is held by the English monarch.

This document overrides all other laws and can only be changed by a referendum.

This way of governing gives power to people and their elected representatives.

The history of Australia’s parliamentary system is deeply embedded in our connection to the British monarchy. But why does The King have little say in the day-to-day running of Australia? And what makes our constitutional monarchy different from the absolute monarchies of days gone by?

This engaging interactive activity has been designed to support your students in understanding the key vocabulary related to Australia’s parliamentary system. It contains 9 question slides covering a range of terminology related to the features of Australia’s system of government.

The following terms are included in the resource: 

Head of State, Governor-General, Parliament, Australian Constitution, Federation of States, Absolute Monarchy, Constitutional Monarchy, Democracy, Federation.

How to Play This ‘Mystery Picture’ Game

Follow these simple instructions to play this interactive activity!

1. Read the statement at the top of the slide.
2. Choose one of the responses inside the table. If the response is incorrect, a ‘Try Again’ slide will appear and students will be redirected so they can choose a different response. If the response is correct, a ‘You Got It’ slide will appear and students can progress to the next question.
3. The next slide will appear with the previous answer box removed to reveal a portion of the mystery picture. A new statement is presented at the top of the slide. 
4. This process repeats until all answers are completed and the mystery picture is fully revealed!

Tips for Extension and Scaffolding

Catering for a diverse range of learners in your classroom? We hear you! Check out these great ideas to maximise the impact of this activity for learners of all abilities:

• Challenge High-Flying Students – Why not set a timer to challenge your more-capable students? Students could compete against each other or against previous times to see how quickly they can recall the roles and their definitions.
• Support Less-Confident Students – Allow less-confident students to access a glossary of terms (such as that available on the Parliamentary Education Office website) so they can look up unfamiliar terms while completing the activity. 

Download This Paperless Activity in Your Preferred Format

This interactive activity downloads as either a Microsoft PowerPoint file or a Google Slides file. Use the dropdown menu next to the Download button to select your preferred format.

In order to activate the interactive features, be sure to use this presentation in Slideshow mode.

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This resource was created by Amy Adam, a Teach Starter collaborator.

Click below for more fantastic resources to help save you time on planning your Australian Government lessons!