Questions for discussion

North Korea Sanctions1. Before you watch the BTN story, record what you already know about North Korea.2. Hold a class discussion about the BTN North Korea Sanctions story. What points were

raised in the discussion?3. Who has North Korea threatened with nuclear war?4. What are sanctions?5. What impact can trade sanctions have on a country?6. The United States already has sanctions in place against North Korea. What does that

mean?7. What does the United States want other countries to do?8. What impact could the sanctions have on trade around the world?9. What are the advantages and disadvantages of sanctions?10. What do you understand more clearly after watching the BTN story?

Write a message about the story and post it in the comments section on the story page.

Cassini Spacecraft1. Explain the Cassini Spacecraft story to another student.2. Which planet has Cassini been exploring?3. What has the spacecraft discovered?4. In which year did Cassini’s journey begin?5. Onboard Cassini was the Huygens _______________.6. What is the name of Saturn’s biggest moon?7. What did Huygens discover on Titan?8. Describe some of the pictures taken by Cassini.9. Why is Cassini’s journey coming to an end?10. What questions do you have about the BTN story?

Do the quiz on the BTN website

Syrian Refugee Family1. Discuss the Syrian Refugee Family story with another student. Record the main points of

your discussion.2. When did the war begin in Syria?3. According to the Global Peace Index, Syria is the world’s most ________________

country.4. How many Syrian kids have been settled in Australia in the past year?5. How do Sara and her family feel living in Australia?6. The school has a special curriculum for refugees. True or false?

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Episode 2612th September 2017

7. What does Youssef miss about his home country?8. What does he hope Syria will be like in the future? 9. How did the BTN story make you feel?10. What do you think would be one of the most difficult things about moving to another

country?

Check out the Syrian Refugees resource on the Teachers page

Sleek Geeks 20171. What was the main point of the story?2. What questions were investigated in the Eureka Science Awards?3. Explain what Caitlyn and Amelia’s video was about.4. What did their research find?5. How did they feel about winning the competition?6. What did the winners of the secondary school student category investigate?7. What did they find out about dung beetles?8. What advice do they give other kids about entering the competition?9. What area of science would you like to find out more about?10. What did you like about the story?

Write a message about the story and post it in the comments section on the story page.

History of the Alphabet1. What did the BTN story explain?2. When and where did the Phoenicians live?3. What did their alphabet look like?4. The Phoenician alphabet included both consonants and vowels. True or false?5. What did the Greeks add to the alphabet?6. Who spread the alphabet around Europe and England?7. Which letters did the English include?8. Different languages used different _______________.9. Not all languages use the alphabet. Some use…10. Name three things you learnt about the alphabet watching the BTN story?

Check out the History of the Alphabet resource on the Teachers page

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Teacher Resource

Syrian Refugees

1. Discuss the Syrian Refugee Family story with another student. Record the main points of your discussion.

2. When did the war begin in Syria?3. According to the Global Peace Index, Syria is the world’s most

________________ country.4. How many Syrian kids have been settled in Australia in the past

year?5. How do Sara and her family feel living in Australia?6. The school has a special curriculum for refugees. True or false?7. What does Youssef miss about his home country?8. What does he hope Syria will be like in the future? 9. How did the BTN story make you feel?10. What do you think would be one of the most difficult things about

moving to another country?

Before any analysis or discussion about refugees: Think about the students with refugee experience at your school and

the sensitivities you will need. Establish with your students some key definitions and stereotypes.

After watching the BTN Syrian Refugees story, respond to the following questions:

- What did you SEE in this video?- What do you THINK about what you saw in this video?- What does this video make your WONDER?- What did you LEARN from this story?- How did this story make you FEEL?

Students will develop an understanding of what a refugee is and write a class definition. Respond to the following as a class recording responses on a large sheet of paper.

o Who is a refugee? (Explain to students the ways in which a refugee and an asylum seeker differ from a migrant).

o Where do refugees come from and why?

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Episode 2612th September 2017

Students will develop a deeper understanding of why people become refugees, the challenges they face and the importance of belonging and feeling welcome in a new home.

Civics and Citizenship – Year 6The obligations citizens may consider they have beyond their own national borders as active and informed global citizens

Civics and Citizenship – Year 5 & 6Identify over-generalised statements in relation to civics and citizenship topics and issues 

HASS – Year 5 & 6Develop appropriate questions to guide an inquiry about people, events, developments, places, systems and challenges

Ask students to watch the following BTN stories that relate to Syrian refugees and then answer the following questions.

BTN Kids in Syria

1. Describe the city of Aleppo in Syria.2. How long has the war been going on in Syria?3. What happened to Abbas?4. Because of the fighting, many Syrian people have

now fled the country as____________________.5. Retell Hamsa’s story.6. Where does he live now?7. How many Syrians does the United Nations say

need help with things like food, water and education?

8. How many people have left Syria as refugees?

BTN Syria Kid

1. What city does Ibrahim live in?2. What has been happening in Syria recently?3. How many brothers and sisters does Ibrahim have?4. How does Ibrahim and his family survive without

electricity?5. In your own words describe the situation that Ibrahim

is in.6. What is Ibrahim’s dream?7. How is Ibrahim’s education different to yours in

Australia? Compare and contrast. 8. How does playing soccer help Ibrahim deal with

living in a warzone?

BTN Refugee Intake

1. Which country are Wali and his family from?2. About how many refugees are there around the

world who need help?3. Which organisation created a special refugee treaty

in 1951?4. What was the aim of the treaty?5. Australia is not a signatory to the treaty. True or

false?6. How do the countries support the UN’s refugee

program?7. How many refugees will Australia take in this year?8. The Government says it will take in an extra ______________ Syrian refugees.9. How have people responded to the Government’s decision?

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Asylum Seekers and RefugeesPeople don’t plan to become asylum seekers or refugees. Usually circumstances beyond their control force them to flee. Discuss reasons why people might leave their homeland. Ask them to think of three reasons and write them on post-it notes. Collate student responses and discuss.

Ask students to imagine they had to flee their home in a hurry, leaving their family and belongings to move to another country. Think about where they would go, how they would travel and what resources they would need. Students can present their ideas as a story or create a picture that describes the experience.

Watch the video that tells the story of Vietnamese refugee Cuc Lam and answer the following questions: Why did Cuc leave Vietnam? Retell the story of Cuc’s journey. What did Cuc bring in her suitcase? Why did she sell her wedding ring? What does Cuc’s red suitcase symbolise?

To take the activity further, students can find out which countries asylum seekers, refugees and migrants come from that make their way to Australia. On a world map, students:

Label and shade these countries Label two countries that border each country Choose one country and mark the route people would take to get from there to Australia Which countries would they pass through on their journey to Australia?

As a class, talk about your feelings of home and belonging to a community. Think about the diversity in backgrounds, experiences, interests and age of people in your school community. Broaden your discussion and talk about your local community and Australia as a whole.

Explain to students that developing positive relationships can help build a sense of belonging and inclusion. Provide a range of opportunities for students to share their personal stories to create an atmosphere of cultural respect and acknowledgement of diversity. 

o What do you like about being part of your school community?o What makes you feel safe in your school community?o How do you welcome new students to your school community?o What are some of your school’s values?o Describe some of your school’s traditions. Why are they

important?o What are the advantages of belonging to a culturally diverse

community?

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BTN - Kids in Syriahttp://www.abc.net.au/btn/story/s4526306.htm

BTN - Syria Kidhttp://www.abc.net.au/btn/story/s3720534.htm

BTN – Refugee Intakehttp://www.abc.net.au/btn/story/s4309018.htm

©ABC 2017

Teacher Resource

Alphabet History

1. What did the BTN story explain?2. When and where did the Phoenicians live?3. What did their alphabet look like?4. The Phoenician alphabet included both consonants and vowels. True

or false?5. What did the Greeks add to the alphabet?6. Who spread the alphabet around Europe and England?7. Which letters did the English include?8. Different languages used different _______________.9. Not all languages use the alphabet. Some use…10. Name three things you learnt about the alphabet watching the BTN

story?

Class Discussion Discuss the BTN Alphabet History story as a class, using the following questions to guide the discussion. Record the main points on a mind map with ‘alphabet’ at the centre.

Think of an interesting fact you learnt watching this story. What did this video make you wonder? What information was

surprising? Think of one question you have about the Alphabet History story, and

find out if other students have the same question. How will you find an answer to your question?

Do you know about other alphabets? Share what you know with the class.

TimelineStudents will investigate the history of the alphabet, including the following key developments:

Egyptian hieroglyphs Phoenician alphabet Greek alphabet Latin alphabet

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Episode 2612th September 2017

Students will explore the history of the alphabet and sequence key developments on a timeline. Students will examine Egyptian hieroglyphs found on historical artefacts and then create their own hieroglyph.

History – Year 7Roles of key groups in ancient Egyptian society (such as the nobility, bureaucracy, women, slaves), including the influence of law and religion (ACDSEH032)

The evidence for the emergence and establishment of ancient societies (including art, iconography, writing tools and pottery) (ACOKFH002)

Sequence historical events, developments and periods (ACHHS205)

Students will present their information on a timeline. Students will then respond to one or more of the following questions:

Find 1-3 interesting facts about each significant event in the history of the alphabet. Make comparisons between the different alphabets over time. How are they similar or different?

What materials or technologies were/are used to send messages? Imagine what it was like carving a message using Egyptian hieroglyphs into stone. Think of some of

the challenges and advantages.

Latin meaning of hieroglyphAs a class, discuss the origin of the word ‘Hieroglyph’. Did you know that the word hieroglyph comes from the Greek hiero ‘holy’ and glypho ‘writing’? In the ancient Egyptian language, hieroglyphs were called medu netjer, ‘the gods’ words’ as it was believed that writing was an invention of the gods.

Deciphering hieroglyphsVisit an Egyptian exhibit at your local museum, or use the internet to find a photograph of an ancient Egyptian artefact (Example – Australian Museum). You will most likely discover that hieroglyphs can be seen on many ancient Egyptian artefacts. Choose one ancient Egyptian artefact with hieroglyphs and use this document to help decipher the messages you discover.

Egyptian hieroglyphs, Australian Museum Australian Museum, Ancient Egyptian funerary cone

Using hieroglyphsStudents will use Egyptian hieroglyphs to write their name and then display their artworks around the classroom. Alternatively, students can use Egyptian hieroglyphs to write a secret message, which can then be deciphered by a classmate.

Can you think of modern symbols that we use today as a way to communicate? Today emojis are used in a similar way to hieroglyphs, communicating thoughts and ideas through images. Design your own set of emojis and include meanings for each emoji. Emoji characters can include facial expressions, hand gestures, objects, places and animals. Design a message, which can be displayed in your classroom.

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What did you like about this activity? What were some of the challenges communicating using only emojis? How are Egyptian hieroglyphs from 3,000 BC and emojis used today similar or different?

IlluminationsAn illumination is a decoration (initials, borders or illustration) that enhances the pages of a manuscript page. An illuminated letter was usually the first letter of a page or paragraph. It was always enlarged and in colour, and illustrations like animals, plants or mythological creatures were sometimes included.

The Egyptians were the first culture known to use illuminated manuscripts, and as written languages developed other countries also used the art form.

In this activity, students will investigate what an illumination is, explore the history of illuminated manuscripts, examine an illumination they find online and then create their own illumination. Use the following as a guide for this activity.

What is an illumination? When were they made? Who made them and how were they made? Find examples of illuminated texts. Choose one to examine in detail. Can you identify the initial?

What other images can you see? What colours are used? Design and create your own illumination using the initial of your first name. Use colours that you like

and images/symbols that represent who you are.

Ancient History Encyclopedia – Alphabethttp://www.ancient.eu/alphabet/

History – Who created the first alphabet?http://www.history.com/news/ask-history/who-created-the-first-alphabet

ABC Splash – H Warshttp://splash.abc.net.au/home#!/media/2331399/h-wars

Australian Museum – Egyptian Hieroglyphshttps://australianmuseum.net.au/uploads/documents/7770/egyptian heiroglyphs.pdf

©ABC 2017

BTN: Episode 26 Transcript 12/09/17

Hi, I'm Amelia. Welcome to this week’s BTN!

Coming up today:

We find out about Cassini's final space adventures!

Meet the winners of this year's Sleek Geek Science Prize.

And from A to Z - we learn more about the alphabet!

Hurricane IrmaReporter: Jack Evans

INTRO: But first, to one of the biggest stories of the week - Hurricane Irma. It's one of the most powerful storms that's ever formed in the Atlantic Ocean, and it's caused devastation in the Caribbean and in the United States. Let's take a look at what's been happening.

It's the monster storm that's turned streets into rivers and reduced whole towns to rubble.

In the past week, Hurricane Irma's has caused massive amounts of damage as it's swept across parts of the Caribbean and the US.

Hurricanes are massive Tropical Storms that form over the North Atlantic Ocean and North-eastern Pacific.

They form when ocean water warms up to more than 26.5 degrees. When it's that hot, water starts to evaporate and that warm, humid air begins to rise into the sky. As it moves up through the atmosphere it releases heat and water making thunderclouds. This process can kick-start a chain reaction, evaporating more water and making bigger clouds.

SETH BORENSTEIN, SCIENCE WRITER: This is prime hurricane season the water is not just warm which is what you need for fuel for a hurricane but it's extra warm it's about a degree and a half warmer than it normally is.

Irma was one of the most powerful Atlantic hurricanes ever.

At its strongest Irma's winds got up to 300 kays an hour and it was ranked as a Category 5 storm the highest ranking there is.

It was also huge stretching around 200 kays about the size of Tasmania. This video from the International Space Station gives you an idea of just how massive it was.

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Irma caused massive damage on islands like Cuba, Anguilla and Barbuda and on some like St Martin nearly every building was destroyed and across the Caribbean dozens of people were killed.

Meanwhile in Florida, America's third biggest state, tens of thousands of people were evacuated as Irma moved closer to the United States mainland.

US OFFICIAL: This is a deadly storm and the states have never seen anything like it.

The storm hit Miami on Sunday night before moving north along Florida's coast leaving streets under water and millions of homes without power.

It'll be a while before people here know the full extent of the damage and even longer before life gets back to normal for communities affected by Hurricane Irma.

North Korea SanctionsReporter: Ruby Cornish

INTRO: North Korea's been in the news again after it tested another powerful nuclear weapon. World leaders have been talking about how to keep the peace and one option they've been looking at is to bring in tough new sanctions against North Korea. So, what exactly does that mean? Let's find out.

STUDENT 1: Hey, you just pushed him.

STUDENT 2: Yeah, maybe I did.

STUDENT 1: That's not very nice! I think you should say sorry.

STUDENT 2: Hmm I don't think I want to. So, no!

STUDENT 1: Well I don't want to play anymore!

STUDENT 6: Game over!

Uh oh, that escalated quickly! Arguments are never fun, but unfortunately, they're pretty common. In the playground, they can be kind of petty. But on a much bigger scale at an international level, clashes between counties can be very serious, and hard to resolve. Two countries that disagree about a lot at the moment are the United States and North Korea. North Korea has been developing nuclear weapons, which is against international law. It's tested them, and even threatened to use them against other countries, including the US. Countries around the world have been trying to find a way to stop that happening. But unlike a basketball game, it's not as simple as calling "game over." So, what can they do?

Something they've used in the past is sanctions. A sanction is a rule made by one country to take power away from another. In the playground, it could look something like this.

STUDENT 2 to STUDENT 6: I'm not inviting her to my birthday party anymore.

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But in international politics, sanctions often involve trade. Being able to buy and sell stuff internationally is really important for most countries, including North Korea. Taking that away can hurt their economies.

The US already has really strict sanctions in place against North Korea, which means nothing made there is allowed into America and nothing made in America can be sent to North Korea.

A bunch of countries also have trade restrictions with North Korea. But after North Korea's latest round of nuclear tests, America says the sanctions need to be stronger. It wants countries to not only stop trading with North Korea, but to stop doing business with any other country that does.

NIKKI HALEY, UN SECURITY COUNCIL: The time has come to exhaust all of our diplomatic means before it's too late. We must now adopt the strongest possible measures.

But that could have a pretty big impact on trade around the world and some reckon it wouldn't work anyway, and that no sanctions will stop North Korea from building nuclear weapons.

Some say the trouble with sanctions is that they punish ordinary as well as government, by increasing poverty and cutting off supplies of things like fuel and even food.

But many say it's better than ignoring it or resorting to violence.

As you can see, arguments between countries can get pretty complicated, and they can be really hard to resolve! Thankfully, in the playground, keeping the peace is much easier.

STUDENT 2: Hey Will, I know I shouldn't have pushed you and I'm sorry.

STUDENT 3: That's alright. Thanks for apologising.

STUDENT 5: Who wants to play basketball?

ALL STUDENTS: YEAH!

Cassini SpacecraftReporter: Matthew Holbrook

INTRO: In just a couple of days NASA's Cassini Spacecraft will nose-dive straight into Saturn! It'll be a dramatic end to an incredible journey of discovery which has taught us all sorts of new things about the sixth planet from the sun. Let's have a look now at some of the awesome things Cassini's done. When it comes to adventurers, Cassini is pretty hard to top. Over the past decade, the 2.5 tonne hunk of sciencey goodness has found new moons on Saturn, huge underground oceans spewing fountains of water into space.

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And even a world that could just maybe support alien life. That's way more impressive than these adventurers famous for: having a really big whip, becoming invisible all the time, or fiddling around with a screwdriver. Plus, Cassini is actually real.

Cassini's journey started on October 15, 1997. Its mission, to find out more about Saturn, and its moons. But it had to get there first. That meant a seven-year journey through the solar system. In 2004, Cassini arrived. But it wasn't entirely alone. On board, the Huygens probe. It had a mission of its own. To land on Saturn's biggest moon, Titan.

Huygens became the first probe to land on an object in the outer solar system. It helped scientists discover that Titan has a lot of Earth like features, like rain, rivers and seas, except made out of stuff like methane, rather than water. To this day, no other probe has landed so far from earth. Nice one, Huygens.

But that was just the start. Cassini started orbiting Saturn, doing flybys of Titan and other moons, and observing Saturn's rings. Along the way, Cassini helped discover all sorts of amazing things, like these giant hurricanes churning on the surface of the big gassy planet.

It also gave us the first close-up pictures of Saturn's rings, and some of its 62 moons (including 7 Cassini discovered). And it discovered chemicals spewing out of the moon Enceladus that could be a clue there's life lurking down there somewhere.

But 13 years after arriving, Cassini's almost entirely out of fuel. After a series of 22 orbits between the planet and its rings, Cassini will self-destruct in Saturn's atmosphere.

EARL MAIZE, CASSINI PROGRAM MANAGER: The spectacular ending the grand finale, going out with a blaze of glory is a phenomenal conclusion to a chapter in human kind's exploration of the planets.

Scientists wanted to make sure Cassini wouldn't damage any of Saturn's moons if it crash-landed somewhere, just in case there's something interesting that Cassini could contaminate, like aliens. Or something slightly less exciting, probably. In the past twenty years, Cassini's travelled 7.9 billion kays, taken more than 450 thousand images, and helped us understand way more about Saturn than scientists ever thought was possible.

So, this is a final celebration, of one of the universe's greatest adventurers. Not you, Bilbo.

Ask A Reporter

Have you got a question about the Cassini? Ask me live on Friday during Ask a Reporter!

Head to our website for all the details.

Quiz

Let's have a bit of a space quiz

©ABC 2017

Which planet is the biggest in the solar system?

Is it:

Saturn

Jupiter

Uranus

Answer: It's Jupiter, the fifth planet from the Sun!

Syrian Refugee FamilyReporter: Ruby Cornish

INTRO: Now, imagine if you had to move to the other side of the world, learn a new language, go to a new school and get used to a whole lot of new experiences. That's what it's been like for thousands of Syrian kids who've come to Australia recently as refugees. Let's find out how some of them are settling in!

When it comes to sandwiches and toast, this is definitely an Aussie favourite. But for kids like Sara, who've never tasted this salty black spread before, vegemite can be weird.

SARA: Disgusting.

This Australia-themed lesson is just one of a bunch of new experiences for Sara and her classmates. They've recently started school here after a long journey from their home country on the other side of the world in Syria. It's a story shared by lots of other Syrian people. Since a war began there in 2011, millions of Syrians have left in search of a safer life. According to the Global Peace Index, Syria is the world's most violent country!

YOUSSEF: Our village, some houses got broken, fall down from the bombs, bullets.

In the past year, almost four and a half thousand Syrian kids have been settled here in Australia. Now Sara and her family are getting used to life Down Under.

SARA: I went to the Opera House, and I went to Manly by ferry and I really like it. I felt free because like, I can go to school and play with my friends and not staying at home all the time.

And there's lots to learn. This school has a special curriculum for refugees... which relies on donations to keep going.

KIDS: One lollipop, one piece of cherry pie, one sausage.

It's been a big change for these guys.

YOUSSEF: The school is bigger here in Australia.

Youssef is the school captain, and arrived three years ago.

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YOUSSEF: The teachers were nice to me. They were funny. They tried to not let me get sad. We learnt maths, we're learning science, we learnt health, in this school we can learn Arabic. But Youssef does miss some things about his home country.

YOUSSEF: In Syria, we could go wherever we want by ourselves but here you have to go with your parents or with an old person.

He hopes he can visit Syria again one day, once peace returns.

YOUSSEF: I hope Syria will become better and there won't be any more wars in the whole world. We don't want wars.In the meantime, these new arrivals have big dreams to chase!

SARA: I would like to be a doctor. A dentist, yes.

YOUSSEF: Probably a priest or a doctor or an engineer.

Sleek Geeks 2017

Reporter: Jack Evans

Have you ever wondered how penguins stay warm? Or how dung beetles can help the environment? Well you're about to meet some schoolkids who made it their mission to find out! They're the winners of this year's Sleek Geeks Eureka Science Awards. Let's have a look.

They're some of the questions that have plagued mankind for years. Like how does a cat always land on its feet? How does a chameleon change colour? And how do you avoid those pesky mosquitos? These Sleek Geeks made it their mission to find the answers. These guys are among the finalists for the sleek geeks Eureka Science prize. It's awarded alongside Australian Museum's Eureka Science Awards, which honour some of the top scientists in the country. Sleek Geeks asks kids from all over Australia to submit videos investigating an area of science and now the winners have been announced.

CAITLYN AND AMELIA: Hi BTN, I'm Caitlyn and I'm Amelia and we're the winners of the Sleek Geeks Science Eureka Prize for the primary school.

Amelia and Caitlyn video was all about penguins and how they stay warm in those freezing Antarctic conditions.

AMELIA: we decided to research penguins because Caitlyn and I have a really big passion for animals and there is so much to explore about the penguins

They did some research and conducted a heap of experiments to find their answer.

CAILTYN/AMELIA: Penguins have many adaptations to stay warm, feathers and down, blubber, counter heat exchange, size, but our favourite is HUDDLING!!

They were pretty stoked when they found out they'd won.

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AMELIA: We were quite nervous at first.

CAITLYN: And excited.

AMELIA: Because seeing all the different scientists getting all these really cool awards we were like whoa we're gonna get up there and we're gonna do a speech. But in the end, it felt really good and exciting and it just felt nice.

CAITLYN: It was just a great experience going there and meeting Dr Karl and Adam Spencer the heads of sleek geeks. Meanwhile the prize for Secondary school students was taken out by Eliza, Claire, Georgia and Anna. CLAIRE: We were absolutely excited and honoured that we'd won. It was such a great experience.

These guys investigated the role dung beetles play in helping the eco system.

ANNA: So eco farming is such an important area, it's just something we really wanted to look into.

They say farmers could really benefit from having more of these little poo carrying beetles on their land because they can actually improve the quality of soil. The winners say it was a fun way to learn more about the world around us and they'd encourage others to get involved next year.

AMELIA: My advice would be if you do it you have to come up with a good topic that everybody doesn't really think about because then they think. Ok that's cool I never really thought about that and you have to commit to it or it's not going to work.

ANNA: I would certainly encourage anyone with an interest in this thing, not just STEM, but also video making and science communication. It's such an amazing field to have an interest in. I would certainly encourage you to contribute to this competition. It's such a great challenge and it's fantastic do with a bunch of your friends.

Happiness Survey

Has your class completed the BTN Happiness Survey yet?

All it takes is 6 minutes to share your thoughts on what life is like for a kid today and in return, you'll be a part of international research into the lives of children.

We've already had thousands and thousands of kids get involved but we want heaps more! So please jump onto our website and share your feelings today.

Sport

The AFL finals kicked off this weekend and everyone's talking about Saturday's ripper match between West Coast and Port Adelaide.

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The Eagles led for most of the game but the Power came back in the last quarter.

With the scores level at full time, the game went into extra time. In a nail biting finish, Luke Shuey from the Eagles was given a free in the dying seconds and kicked a goal after the siren to win the match.

While in other games, ¶Sydney thrashed Essendon by 65-points and Richmond's won its first AFL final in 16 years when they beat Geelong by 51.

There was another extra time thriller in the NRL. Cronulla led the whole match but a try by Jason Taumalolo levelled the scores. And an extra time field goal gave the Cowboys the win and knocked out the defending premiers.

Meanwhile the Penrith Panthers knocked the Manly Sea Eagles out of the finals with a 22 to 10 win and the Roosters and the Storm are both through to the prelims.

American Sloane Stephens has taken out top spot at the US Open, her first Grand Slam title.

Back in July she was ranked 957th in the world after spending 11 months out injured.

But the 24-year old has made a huge comeback and beat her friend Madison Keys in straight sets to win the title.

SLOANE: I think it was just a little bit like, wow! I was just fortunate enough to hold it together.

And a kid in the US might have a future as a professional caddie!

At a golf comp in Boston US champ Phil Mickelson asked a young spectator for a bit of advice. And it seems like Riley knew what he was talking about.

History of the Alphabet

Reporter: Jack Evans

Hi BTN, my name’s Lara and my question is: Why was the alphabet spelt A to Z and why are there 26 letters in the alphabet?

BRONSON: A T P K W L B S M E

JACK: What is this? What are you doing?

©ABC 2017

BRONSON: I'm practicing me alphabet sir.

JACK: What foolery! You can't just go from A to T to P.

BRONSON: Sorry sir.JACK: There is an order to these things Bronson.

BRONSON: And what's that sir?

JACK: Well you must always start with A, then B. Followed of course by C, then D. Now E you see E always comes before F.

JACK: And finally, you have Z. 26 letters always in the same order.

BRONSON: But why sir?

JACK: You know what Bronson, I have no idea.

VO: To find out I've come to see Ghil'ad. Something tells me he's a man of letters.

JACK: Hello Ghil'ad.

GHIL'AD: Hello Jack.

JACK: Now Tell me, the alphabet where does it all begin?

GHIL'AD: A

JACK: Ah I see, well that's that then.

GHIL'AD: Well there is a little bit more than that.

JACK: I'm listening.

GHIL'AD: The English alphabet that we use abcdefghijklmnop, this is in fact an evolution. A development of the Phoenician Proto-Canaanite alphabet.

JACK: Hmmm I believe Ghil'ad is referring to these chaps, the Phoenicians. They lived here in the Mediterranean around 3500 years ago. Their alphabet looked a bit like this, it's a fair bit shorter and there are no vowels. But it became pretty popular amongst Mediterranean countries. Ghilad says that it was actually the Greeks who added the vowels, like A U.GHIL'AD: So, when Greek used the alphabet of Phoenician it had to introduce some vowels.

JACK: Yes, yes, I see.

GHIL'AD: And therefore, we have in Greek we have more letters than in Phoenician.

©ABC 2017

JACK: Then Came the Latin speaking roman Empire. They borrowed the alphabet from the Greeks and spread it all around Europe including to England where English speaking folk added a couple more letters, bringing the count to 26.

GHIL'AD: Latin did not have the J it did not have the y and then English of course needed it.

JACK: You see as Ghil'ad explained the different languages used different sounds and that means they needed different letters to represent those sounds. Of course, some languages use completely different symbols like these ones or these ones or these ones. But back to our alphabet.

JACK: But why do we always begin with A.

GHIL'AD: Nobody knows why the A came before B and the B came before C and the C came before D. This has been like that for 3500 years.

JACK: Well that's disappointing.

GHIL'AD: I'm sorry but if it helps I can cite the Greek alphabet for you.

JACK: Go ahead.

GHIL'AD: Alpha, Betta, Gamma, Delta, Epison, zeta, eta, theta, iota

Closer

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Thanks for joining me and we’ll see you next week.

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