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The Australian Museum Policies and Procedures (protocol) Excursion Logistics Curriculum Links

Science
A field trip to the Australian museum can be easily linked to many different parts of the NSW stage 4 and
stage 5 science syllabus both in relation to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Histories and cultures
cross curriculum priority and more generally. The Australian Museum First Australians galleries contain
approximately 20,000 objects including weapons, tools, artworks and toys. In addition the galleries contain
interactive displays and videos demonstrating the lives, histories and cultures and knowledge of Aboriginal
and Torres Strait Islander people from many places within Australia.

The First Australians Galleries are divided into two exhibits: Bayala Nura: Yarning Country and Garrigarrang:
Sea Country
 

Bayala Nura: Yarning Country examines the

lifestyles history and culture of Aboriginal
and Torres Strait Islander peoples both
before the european arrival and the decades
since. It covers subjects such as early
positive and negative interactions between
europeans and the local Aboriginal
communities, the stolen generations, the
1967 referendum and Land rights cases such
as Mabo. The Gallery contains objects such
as shields, spears, tools, fire sticks, woven
items and a replica canoe. These objects can
be used by students to understand the way
that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander
people used natural materials and scientific
principles in their everyday lives as well as
how they cared for have a continuing link to
the land on which they lived.
Garrigarrang: Sea Country describes the lifestyles of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander
populations around the coast of NSW, Queensland and the Northern Territory. It demonstrates
how their lifestyle and spiritual connection to the land and sea come together to create a practice
of sustainable living which continues to this day. The gallery examines the way in which
communities have interacted with the natural world and natural resources such that nothing is
wasted or discarded. It demonstrates how this practice continues through examining the damage
caused by discarded fishing nets (ghost nets) and their use to create art.

Excursion Resources
The gallery experience can be organised to be either self guided by student
groups using resources provided by the museum or for a small fee the
experience can be lead by an educator provided by the museum (more information).
In addition the museum offers educational programs such as “Australia’s First
Scientists”(more information) and “The Effect of Climate change on Ecosystems”(more
information) for stage 4 and 5 which are directly mapped to the NSW science

syllabus.
 
The following educational kits are provided by the museum for teachers
planning a site visit.

Yarning Country secondary education kit. Sea Country secondary education kit.pdf

Syllabus Links: Stage 4

Physical World
AC: describe the scientific principles used in
some traditional technologies used and
developed by Aboriginal and Torres Strait
Islander peoples

The Museum's First Australians galleries

contain many objects such as spears, bows,
boomerangs, didgeridoo, fire making tools,
shelters, toys and watercraft which can be
analysed to understand the scientific
principles governing their creation and use

Earth and Space

ES1-b: Relate the formation of a range of
land forms to physical and chemical
weathering, erosion and deposition
 ES1-g: Outline how geological history can be
interpreted in a sequence of horizontal
sedimentary layers, in which the oldest are at
the base and the youngest at the top

The Sea country gallery contains a section

on the excavation of Aboriginal
archaeological sites including a cross
section showing how layers have been
deposited over time containing evidence
of human habitation.
ES2-a: Explain that predictable phenomena on
the Earth, including day and night, seasons and
eclipses are caused by the relative positions of
the sun, the Earth and the moon
 
The Sea Country gallery contains interactive
displays demonstrating Aboriginal and Torres
Straight Islander knowledge about climate,
weather and seasons and how they were
measured and predicted by the position of
stars the sun and moon in relation to
landmarks and the horizon

ES3-a: classify a range of the Earth's

resources as renewable or non-renewable
ES3-c: describe uses of a variety of natural
and made resources extracted from the
biosphere, atmosphere, lithosphere and
hydrosphere

Both of the First Australians Galleries

demonstrate how Aboriginal and Torres
Straight Islander communities used and
reused resources in a renewable way and
compares this to modern practices and
materials

ES4-d: research how Aboriginal and Torres Strait

Islander peoples' knowledge is being used in
decisions to care for country and place, eg
terrestrial and aquatic resource management

The Sea Country gallery demonstrates how

Aboriginal and Torres Straight Islander
populations have managed natural resources
for centuries and how these practices are
being adapted in the modern era in relation
to the management of marine environments
in northern Australia

Living World
LW5: predict how human activities can affect
interactions in food chains and food webs,
including examples from Australian land or
marine ecosystems

The Sea Country exhibit examines issues

of sustainable interaction with natural
ecosystems through sustainable fishing
and hunting, the effect of plastic waste on
marine life and the consequences of
abandoned fishing nets on marine
 abandoned fishing nets on marine
environments. 

Chemical World
CW2: investigate how people in different cultures in
the past have applied their knowledge of the
properties of elements and compounds to their use
in everyday life, eg utensils, weapons and tools
AC: research how a knowledge of physical
properties of natural materials is used by
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in
everyday life, eg tools, weapons, utensils, shelter,
housing or bush medicine
 
Both of the First Australians Galleries contain
many items constructed of different materials
with different properties, the exhibits
demonstrate how properties such as hardness,
colour, texture, permeability by water and
combustibility were used to enhance and
sustain the lifestyles of communities.

Syllabus Links: Stage 5

Earth and Space
ES3: evaluate scientific evidence of some current
issues affecting society that are the result of
human activity on global systems, eg the
greenhouse effect, ozone layer depletion, effect of
climate change on sea levels, long-term effects of
waste management and loss of biodiversity

The First Australians Galleries examine the

issue of sustainable lifestyles from the
perspectives of sustainable hunting and fishing,
land and resource use, and waste recycling and
management. The exhibitions compare
traditional practices with modern approaches

Living World
LW2-e: Assess ways that Aboriginal and Torres
Strait Islander peoples' cultural practices and
knowledge of the environment contribute to the
conservation and management of sustainable
ecosystems
LW2-f: Evaluate some examples in ecosystems, of
strategies used to balance conserving, protecting
and maintaining the quality and sustainability of
the environment with human activities and needs
 
The Sea life and Yarning Country
Galleries explore the issues of over fishing and
hunting, historical land clearing, mining and the
damage done to local ecosystems and
environments. the galleries explore the cultural
practices used by local communities to create a
sustainable lifestyle and show how these same
 methods can be adapted. 
Chemical World
CW4-d: analyse how social, ethical and
environmental considerations can influence
decisions about scientific research related to the
development and production of new materials
 
he Sea life Gallery explores the issues of plastic
waste management and pollution of the
oceans. It also looks at how Aboriginal and
Torres Straight Islander knowledge is being
used to protect and repair beaches and local
ecosystems. 

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