The Australian Kangaroo Project - Student Book 1 2

8/17/2019 The Australian Kangaroo Project - Student Book 1 2

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The AustralianKangaroo Project

By Alicia Giles, Nicole Corsetti and Jacqui Sidney


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Form 1 Activities:Activity 1: Word Storm

Students have 5 minutes to write down as many English words as they can using theletters from ‘The Australian Kangaroo Project”.

Activity 2: Australian Animals – Research

1. Split the class into groups of 4. Each group must choose a different Australian animal toresearch and create a poster on.

2. Groups share their work with the class.

Activity 3: Who Am I? Australian Animals, Table Group Competition1. Divide the class into groups of 4-6. Each group needs a piece of paper numbered 1-8.

Each team is working against each other.2. Ask the ‘Who Am I?’ questions (see page 8). Table groups must try and guess which

Australian animal is being described and write it down.3. Groups swap answer sheets and correct each other’s work. The winner is the group with

the most correct answers.

Who Am I? 1. I look like a bear but I am not a bear. I sleep in trees throughout the day and eat Eucalyptus leaves.

Who Am I?2. I am the jumper of the outback, I have thick legs and a long tail. I carry my baby joey in a pouch. Who

Am I?3. I have fur, webbed feet, a tail and a beak. I live in burrows by the riverbank. Who Am I?4. I have sharp claws and prickles all over my body. I have a long tongue to eat ants and insects and I

curl into a prickly ball to avoid enemies. Who Am I?5. I am a giant bird. I have wings but cannot fly. I run very fast and lay green eggs. Who Am I?6. I am a small brown bird, my laugh is very loud. I live in a gum tree and eat snakes. Who Am I?7. I live in rivers and creeks. I have a giant mouth with massive teeth and I am green. Who Am I?8. I am nocturnal and I live in trees. I can glide and I have brown fur. I am quite small. Who Am I?

Extra Activity: In pairs students make their own Who Am I? questions about Malaysian animals toshare with the class.

Activity 4: Acrostic PoemStudents choose an Australian animal and write an acrostic poem using the name of that animal.

Activity 5: Letter UnjumbleWrite the following on the whiteboard - students must rearrange the letters to make the Australiananimals:oograank aaokl ssmpuo austylpp gondi aanongbrrkkooaau handeic looeccrdi mue oobctaidn etekriol

CHALLENGE: Do you know all of these animals?


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Form 2 Activities:

Activity 1: CategoriesFor each of the following categories, list as many relative Australian words as you possibly can.

Foods Wildlife Locations Books/Films LandmarksFamous

Peoplee.g. lamington e.g. possum e.g. Canberra e.g. PossumMagic

e.g. SydneyOpera House

e.g. DeltaGoodrem

Activity 2: Letter UnjumbleWrite the following on the whiteboard- students must rearrange the letters to make the Australian wonmlagntoi oobctaidn bbcrueae mgu eret broaongmenoushtre scsro beleMroun ruuul meeetgiv butocak

CHALLENGE: Find out the meaning of all of these words.

Activity 3: WordsearchComplete the Australian Wordsearch.


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Activity 4: Adjective RaceChoose an Australian animal. You have 3 minutes to write down as many adjectives to describe thatanimal as you can.

Activity 5: Wooly JumperYou must design a jumper/sweatshirt for an Australian kangaroo. It should include at least 3 Australiaicons/symbols in the design. Write a brief paragraph describing your choices.

Form 3 Activities:

Activity 1: WordsearchCreate a wordsearch using 20 Australian words. Swap your wordsearch with a partner andcomplete each other ’s.

Activity 2: Australian LandmarksStudents create a “Who Am I?” question about a chosen landmark and hand this up to the teacher.

Play “Who am I?” using these questions (see Form 2, Activity 1). Activity 3: Where in Australia is… Using this map of Australia, try to label as many states and capital cities as possible.

Activity 4: PoemWrite a short poem about a famous Australian landmark of your choice.

Activity 5: Design your own Australian LandmarkImagine there is a blank space in the middle of a popular tourist destination in Australia. You mustcome up with a design brief for a new Australian landmark, including a written justification of thefeatures you have used.


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Form 4 Activities:Activity 1: The Australian FlagsResearch the meaning behind the Australian flag and the symbols of the Aboriginal and TorresStrait Island flags. Then create a mind map to demonstrate your learning.

Activity 2: CrosswordMake a crossword about Australian culture.

Activity 3: Australian ArtThink about the Australian Outback. You may wish to look up pictures of bush plants, animals andscenery to gain a greater understanding of the bush. Create an artwork that shows your

interpretation of the Australian Outback, including a written reflection on their piece.Activity 4: Waltzing MatildaRead/Listen to the famous Australian song, Waltzing Matilda by Banjo Patterson. Highlight anywords that you do not understand and find out what they mean. Write a short synopsis of the storyin the song.

Once a jol ly sw agman camped by a bi l labong

Under th e shade of a cool ibah tree,

And he sang as he watched and w ai ted t i l l his bi l ly boi led:

"Wh o' l l come a-wal tzing Mati lda, wi th m e?"

Waltzing Mati lda, waltzing Mati lda

You'l l com e a-waltzing Mati lda, with m eAnd he sang as he watched and w ai ted t i l l his bi l ly boi led:

"You ' l l come a-wal tzing Mati lda, wi th me."

Down came a jumbuck to drink at that bi l labong .

Up jump ed the swagman and grabbed him with glee.

And h e sang as he shoved that jumbuck in his tucker bag:

"You ' l l come a-wal tzing Mati lda, wi th me."

Up rode the squatter, mou nted on his tho roughb red.

Down came the troopers, one, two, and three.

"Whose [N 1] is that [N 2] ju mbuck you 'v e got in yo u r tucker bag ?

You' l l com e a-wal tz ing Mati lda, wi th me."

Up jump ed the swagman and sprang into the bi l labong.

" You'l l never take me alive!" said he

And h is ghost m ay be heard as you pass by that bi l labong:

"Wh o' l l come a-wal tzing Mati lda, wi th m e?"

Activity 5: SongwritingCreate your own song about an Australian animal with references to key factual information about

Australia and its wildlife.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waltzing_Matilda#cite_note-23https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waltzing_Matilda#cite_note-23https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waltzing_Matilda#cite_note-24https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waltzing_Matilda#cite_note-24https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waltzing_Matilda#cite_note-24https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waltzing_Matilda#cite_note-24https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waltzing_Matilda#cite_note-23


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Form 5 Activities:Activity 1: The Australian AnthemRead/Listen to the Australian anthem. Highlight any words that you do not understand and find outwhat they mean. What aspect of Australia does our anthem primarily focus on?

Australians all let us rejoice, For we are young and free;

We’ve golden soil and wealth for toil; Our home is girt by sea; Our land abounds in nature’s gifts Of beauty rich and rare;

In history’s page, let every stage Advance Australia Fair.

In joyful strains then let us sing, Advance Australia Fair.

Beneath our radiant Southern Cross We’ll toil with hearts and hands;

To make this Commonwealth of ours Renowned of all the lands;

For those who’ve come across the seas We’ve boundless plains to share;

With courage let us all combine To Advance Australia Fair.

In joyful strains then let us sing, Advance Australia Fair.

Activity 2: Brand new CountryImagine that they have just started a brand new English speaking country. List five key points aboutyour new country and write the national anthem for that country.

Activity 3: Wombat StewRead the book “Wombat Stew” and make a mind map discussing the moral implications of the book.Key questions and ideas to consider:

Is it ever okay to lie?

Who lied in the book? Why did they lie?

How could you relate your life to the Wombat’s situation?

If your friend were in a dangerous situation, would you lie to save them? Does this make it okay to lie?

You can find a YouTube version of the storybook here:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=629X_VTh4kE

Activity 4: About AustraliaCreate a poster about Australia, including facts about the population, food, climate, festivities andIndigenous culture. Share your posters with the class.

Activity 5: Living in AustraliaLook at the image of the Australian outback and the image of the Australian city. Imagine what itwould be like to live in the outback compared to the city. Write a short story that shows the contrastbetween the two Australian lifestyles.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=629X_VTh4kEhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=629X_VTh4kEhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=629X_VTh4kE


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Form 6 Activities:

Activity 1: Wombat StewRead the book “Wombat Stew” and write a reflective piece discussing the moral implications of thestory in regards to honesty and loyalty. What would you do in the situation of the animal friends?Can you relate this story to a real life scenario?

You can find a YouTube version of the storybook here:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=629X_VTh4kE

Activity 2: JingleThe book “Wombat Stew” had a jingle about the stew on each page. Discuss why the author hasincluded this and consider the benefits to children reading the story. Create your own jingle aboutyour favourite food.

Activity 3: Melbourne SportMelbourne is known as the sporting capital of Australia. Write a procedural piece to articulatelydescribe how to play your favourite sport.

Activity 4: Australian Rules Australian Rules football (or Australian Football League) is the most popular sport played inMelbourne. Create a Malaysian football team that can play in the AFL. Consider a logo that isappropriate for the team and design the football jumper. (See below for the current AFL teams).

Activity 5: TimelineCreate a timeline to demonstrate the history of Australia, beginning in the 1800’s.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=629X_VTh4kEhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=629X_VTh4kEhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=629X_VTh4kE

Documents

The Australian Kangaroo Project - Student Book 1 2