Dreamtime stories – Central Arnhem Land

This task will use the “Dust Echoes” website – a collection of Dreamtime stories produced by the Australian media company, ABC. The website also offers study guides for each of the stories, aimed at lower secondary pupils in Australia. The stories are collected from Central Arnhem Land, in northern Australia.

dustechoes

http://splash.abc.net.au/home#!/digibook/2570774/dust-echoes

  • Choose the stories you would like to work with from the chapter list.
  • Have a look at the glossary if there is terminology that you are unfamiliar with.

 

Task:

Choose at least two of the stories to work with. For each of the stories:

  1. What is the story about? Give a short summary of the story in your own words.
  2. What is the message of the story?
  3. How does the story relate to the natural world? What elements of nature are included in the story?
  4. What can you learn from the story about human relations? Does the story show how different people relate to each other or how people should behave?
  5. Why do you think nature is so important in these stories?
  6. What can you learn from the stories about how Aboriginal people in Central Arnhem Land relate to nature?

 

Further work:

After working with the website and tasks above, compare these stories with two from  other cultures: a tale from the Inuit people of  Northern Canada and  a tale from Ancient Greece. Look here for links and tasks.

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