ABORIGINAL DREAMTIME - lindakreft.com

1 VOICESPEACE PRIDE ACTIVISTS SOCIAL ACTIONABORIGINAL DREAMTIMEThe land owns us; we don t own the land owns us; we don t own the are part of the the time we are children we learn thesongs and stories about the thousands of years, these songs andstories have been part of the people s oraltradition and beliefs. ABORIGINAL DreamtimeAnimal DreamingPainting by Paul MorinGrade LevelGrade 3 Curriculum AreaArt English/Language Arts ScienceOverviewAccording to ABORIGINAL belief, all life as it is known today can be tracked to theDreamtime or the era of Creation. During this time, their Great Spirit Ancestorsundertook many amazing journeys that criss-crossed the vast country ofAustralia in a maze of tracks.

2 They performed feats along the way, whichestablished the natural formations of the Australian landscape as it is seen events of this distant time have been passed down in the oral tradition offolklore and are still enacted in ceremonies that include dance in mime form tothe accompaniment of clap sticks. The animals of Australia seem to be at thecenter of all ABORIGINAL art. They are the subjects of the DREAMTIME myths andlegends. The Aborigines have painted on walls of rock for at least a is early evidence from the 18th century that ABORIGINAL families werecreating paintings for use in rituals and oral traditions.

3 Their painting techniquehas become more complicated today and is still practiced in Arnhem , the paints are earth tones and made from clay and rocks. Brusheswere created from chewed twigs, plant stems and hair. The subject matter variesfrom everyday activities of DREAMTIME , in which stories describe creation beingsin their animal and human form. The x-ray style is derived from cave inside may not be medically correct, but they paint it the way they imagine itto PRIDE ACTIVISTS SOCIAL ACTIONABORIGINAL DREAMTIMEO bjectivesTo read or listen to an ABORIGINAL creation myth of the write an original creation story.

4 Read it aloud dramatically, sing it, and publishit explore art techniques of ABORIGINAL artists of introduce the many strange, fascinating animals such as the kangaroos,koalas, pygmy mice, flying possums, pouched wolf, the bandicoot, and thewombat that are images in ABORIGINAL art and Country Contemporary Australian ABORIGINAL Art Jennifer Isaacs 2000 VOICESPEACE PRIDE ACTIVISTS SOCIAL ACTIONABORIGINAL DREAMTIMEKey WordsAborigineDefinition-a member of the cultural group of people who were the originalinhabitants of Aborigines have painted on walls of rock for at least act using only movements and The events of this distant time have been passed down in theoral tradition of folklore and are still enacted in ceremonies that includedance in mime form to the accompaniment of clap traditionDefinition-through the spoken word or is

5 Early evidence from the 18th century that Aboriginalfamilies were creating paintings for use in rituals and oral ancient story dealing with gods and are the subjects of the DREAMTIME myths and the time of the origin or the to ABORIGINAL belief, all life as it is known today can betracked to the DREAMTIME or the era of PRIDE ACTIVISTS SOCIAL ACTIONABORIGINAL DREAMTIMEA ctivitiesActivityIn Australia before Europeans arrived, there were no fences or barriersmarking land ownership. So when Europeans came to Australia theyconcluded that no one owned the people divided the land up into traditional lands usinggeographic boundaries such as rivers, lakes, mountains and so elders passed down their knowledge about boundaries to the youngerpeople and children, through songs, dance, art and are stories invented by a people to explain why things are the waythey perceive they are.

6 The stories themselves are not expected to betrue in every detail, but they contain truth that helps to support the viewsand values of the people who retell them. People have told myths sincelanguage was created, keeping them alive and vital through the centuriesby word of mouth. Myths are important in every example, there are commonly retold myths found today in the UnitedStates that all involve apples: The apple that William Tell never shot off his son s head with a crossbow to demonstrate what risks people may have to take when fighting tyranny. The apple that never hit Sir Isaac Newton in the head giving him the insight to develop the concept of gravityFor thousands of years, songs and stories have been part of theAboriginal oral tradition and belief.

7 Compare origin and creation storiesfrom various Pheasant and Kingfisher, a story recorded and translated byanthropologist Catherine animals of Australia seem to be at the center of all ABORIGINAL storiesand art. They are the subjects of the DREAMTIME legends. They aredepicted in bark paintings, rock carvings, and take center stage in thecorroborees or festivals. The Aborigines are talented mimics and like toperform dances in which they imitate animals. Find pictures of thefascinating animals such as the kangaroo, koala, pygmy mice, flyingpossum, pouched wolf, the bandicoot, and the wombat and attach them tothe story/dance/song/artwork in which they are the Internet site, Stories of the Dreaming, there are DREAMTIME storiesthat you can read or listen to by the original author.

8 You can also readoriginal creation stories written by students from Australia, England, andother countries inspired by the ABORIGINAL creation reading and listening to DREAMTIME stories, write and publish online acreation story of your own. Enter the story on the Kids Stories website: Country Contemporary Australian ABORIGINAL Art Jennifer Isaacs 2000 ResourcesAn Australian Experience. Jack W. Kukuk. Washington, DC: John F. KennedyCenter for the Performing Dreaming: An ABORIGINAL DREAMTIME Story. Paul Morin. New York, NewYork: Harcourt Brace and Company. Tjukurrpa: ABORIGINAL Art of the Western Desert.

9 JoAnne BirnieDanzker. New York, New York: Prestel. and Kingfisher. Catherine Berndt. Greenvale, New York: MondoPublishing. Country: Contemporary Australian ABORIGINAL Art. Jennifer Isaacs. SanFrancisco, California: Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco. Walls. Margy Burns Knight. Gardiner, Maine: Tilbury House,Publishers. 1996. Book and PRIDE ACTIVISTS SOCIAL ACTIONABORIGINAL DREAMTIMEI nternet LinksTeachersDreaming Online: Kids Museum Online: Stories of the and Time Detectives Literacy Place Grade 3 Unit 5 Scholastic Invitation to Literacy Level 1 Theme 3 The World Outside My Door Houghton Mifflin CompanyStandards and Expectations MPS Standards Level 3 English Language Arts and discuss literary and nonliterary texts in order to understand humanexperiences.

10 Wisconsin s Model Academic Standards for Visual ArtsStudents will reflect upon the nature of art and meaning in art and culture. Wisconsin s Model Academic Standards for Science that many cultures have made and continue to make contributions toscience, technology, and PRIDE ACTIVISTS SOCIAL ACTIONABORIGINAL DREAMTIMEA ssessmentStudents will write and illustrate a creation myth, which will be published online toshare with students in will develop appropriate rubrics.