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For our people, the land was created long ago, in the time of the Dreaming, when the ancestral spirits moved across the country. They made the hills and the rivers, the swamps and the waterholes. That’s why our spirit ancestors are so important. They make the land, and the land belongs to them, and they make us, too […] round this country, everything belongs to Bunjil the Eaglehawk, or Waa the Crow.”
Summarising the main point.
Getting to the heart of things.
COLOUR SYMBOL
IMAGE
Acknowledgement of Country
Acknowledgement of Country
What do you think?
What do you think?
The Djab Wurrung and the Jardwadjali people, who are the traditional owners/custodians of the land, ask people not to climb The Grampians in Victoria.
In 2019, people were banned from climbing Uluru.
Step 1: Consider the questions you answer. Record your initial thoughts.
1. Why might the issue of climbing The Grampians matter to me?
2. Why might this matter to people around me (family, the Djab Wurrung and the Jardwadjali people,
residents of the area, tourism operators and business people, tourists - both local and international)?
3. Why might this matter to the world?
Step 2: Research: whole class and individual. View videos and explore the webpages.
Step 3: Your teacher will then put you into small groups. Go around the group, noting the best response for each question.
Step 4: Come back together as a class and discuss your responses
1. What are some of the supernatural abilities that Waa, the Black Crow, has in this novel?
2. Why can't Waa tell Sadie what to do? What can Waa not see? Why not?
3. What does Sadie initially think of Waa? How does Walter perceive the crows?
4. Why are the crows important to Aunt Lily and the indigenous community?
TOTEMS of Dja Dja Wurrung Country (Near Bendigo Victoria).
TOTEMS of Dja Dja Wurrung Country (Near Bendigo Victoria).
"Waa the Crow is in abundance in Boort, the home of the Yung Balug Clan. Waa is the commanding totem of the Dja Dja Wurrung, a wise but cheeky feathered One, a friend of the Dja Dja Wurrung since the Dreamtime, the shadow of the our Ancestors' traditions and stories both past and future."
A complex system of 'totemism' is part of the Aboriginal lore that binds the people to the land, the individual to the tribe, the person to their own gender roles within the tribe and even to their future partner. Eagles (Bunjil), crows (waa) and bats are totemic animals that may never be killed or eaten by Jaara Jaara people. These animals are clan totems and form the basis of arrangements designed to prevent inbreeding (so a member of the Crow moiety did not marry a Crow).
Totemism also created balance for all animals, simply because a single species could not be eaten by every member of the tribe and each person's hunting regime would vary so as to not over-hunt a single species.
Fire and the Seven Sisters
Fire and the Seven Sisters
Told by LARRY WALSH Taunwurrung
At one time, all Kulin ate their food raw and were always sick during winter. There were seven women who never complained about the cold and beautiful smells that came from their camp. Waa the white Crow watched these women carefully and noticed that the tops of their digging sticks were glowing red.
The women loved honey ants but were afraid of snakes. Waa put some baby snakes inside a hollow log and sealed it up. He told the women that there were honey ants inside and that they should use their digging sticks to break it open. All the snakes shot out and the women started hitting the ground so hard to keep the snakes away that the tops of their digging sticks broke off. Waa took off with them.
The women called out, abusing the Crow and calling him thief. All this noise attracted the attention of Bunjil and the women told Bunjil that Waa had stolen the secret of fire. Bunjil asked his two nephews, Jert Jert and Thara, to chase after Waa and get the sticks back. Waa flew so fast that one of the sticks caught fire and he dropped it at a place called Mooneo in the Dandenongs, the first hill burnt by fire. Thara told Jert Jert to keep going because he was a lot quicker.
Waa then flew so fast that this time all the sticks caught fire, burning Waa and turning him black, and he landed at a place called Narnarthum in the Cathedral Ranges in Taunwurrung Country.
Gum Tree
Gum Tree
Graham Ballard from Casino, NSW,.
We call it the gum tree, as if it were just a thing
Not pulsating, not whispering, not rustling around, not shedding skin,
Not perfuming, not drinking, not perspiring, not growing, not trembling,
Neither swaying, waving or sheltering
Not watching, not listening, not stretching, not changing colour,
Not bleeding, not blooming, not breeding, not singing, not shrieking,
Not crying, not sleeping, not grieving, not breathing, not scratched and
bleeding from a frightened goanna,
Not tolerating raucous mobs of parrots, children
Just there, sticking out of the ground,
As if we weren't so very blessed to have it there.
Other Poems
Other Poems
After reading the poetry, what have you come to understand about the Indigenous Australians' relationship with the land?
Jamboard Presentation
Jamboard Presentation
Consider the information that we have looked at so far about country and the Indigenous understanding.
Present your learning and understanding in a jamboard.
Your teacher will make a group jamboard accessible for you.
Acknowledgement
Acknowledgement
Thanks to:
Padua College
Allen & Unwin Teacher Notes
Litcharts
Naidoc Week 2021
Campfire X
SBS Learning Resources
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