My+place+video+-+Episode+23,+1788+Waruwi






 * [|My Place - Episode 23: 1788 Waruwi]**

Resource evaluation by Anna Picone

‘The Encounter’ is a clip from the //My Place// series that is based on the children’s picture book of the same name by Nadia Wheatley and Donna Rawlins. The series is based on the telling the history of Australia through a child’s eyes, starting in 2008 and taking us back to 1788 and Before Time. For the purpose of the unit of study, ‘The Encounter’ clip was selected as it conveys the story of an Aboriginal girl, Waruwi, in 1788 who encounters a cow for the first time and is unsure of what to make of it. She then sees some marines and a drummer boy and return home to her Nana to tell her about the ‘ghost people’ and the cow.
 * Description of the resource**

This video clip is a useful resource for the HSIE unit of work based on the Stage 2 outcome CCS2.1 //Describes events and actions related to the British Colonisation of Australia and assess changes and consequences// (Board of Studies, 2001). The resource provides students with an insight into what life might have been like in 1788. This is done from the perspective of a young Aboriginal girl, Waruwi, and a drummer boy, Dan. In doing so, students are provided with two different viewpoints and perspectives which can be used as an introduction to the topic of British Colonisation. Additionally, students are able to relate to the children telling there stories making learning relevant and engaging and addressing the Professional Teaching Standard 2.1.4 //Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of students’ skills, interests and prior achievements and their impact on learning.//
 * Relevance to the KLA outcome**

This resource can be used to explicitly teach aspects of visual grammar as students can look at how meaning is made. Visual techniques to explore with the resource could include the types of shots used (short, medium, long), angles used, offer and demand, closes ups, varying modalities, the setting of the Australian bush, and the symbols used (Callow, 2006, p.14). These visual techniques could be explored by assessing how meaning is made and how the audience feels emotion and empathy for the characters. The idea of contrast could also be explored. This could be done by studying the differences in how the culture, principles of ownership and authority are portrayed in the clip. Also, students could study each character’s connection with the land and how this is emphasized, for example, through the use of music, the different shots used, the costumes and props, etc. This would be an engaging resource to introduce students to the topic of British Colonisation and also useful for students to refer back to when students are developing their multimodal texts to establish how meaning can be created.
 * Aspects of literacy to be explored**

Board of Studies (2001). //Human Society and it's Environment K-6 Syllabus:// Sydney: Author.
 * References**

Callow, J. (2006) //Images, politics and multiliteracies : using a visual metalanguage//. [online]. Australian Journal of Language and Literacy; v.29 n.1 p.7-23

Department of Education and Training (2003). //Quality Teaching in NSW Public Schools.//