Preparing for NAIDOC Week
By Kevin Knapp, Music Teacher
On Monday 20 June my Year 10 Music class and Dylan Mordike’s Year 10 RaVE class combined to learn about NAIDOC Week with special guest, local Wiradjuri man, Uncle Johnny Huckle.
The focus of the learning was to:
- celebrate Indigenous cultures and achievements
- recognise and celebrate Indigenous identities
- develop relationships between Indigenous and non-Indigenous people
- be informed about the Frontier Wars, and in particular, the events at Myall Creek and how events in our history have caused intergenerational trauma.
Highlights of the class included:
- Micah Knight’s artistic response to his trip to the Myall Creek Commemoration: a piece titled 28, an homage to the 28 Indigenous people killed at the Myall Creek massacre.
- Uncle Johnny working with the students, speaking from the heart, sharing his history, and playing songs in response to the day’s lesson.
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NAIDOC stands for National Aborigines and Islanders Day Observance Committee. Its origins can be traced back to the Aboriginal rights movement, when on Australia Day 1938, protestors marched through the streets of Sydney to highlight the status and treatment of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians. Today, NAIDOC week celebrates the history, culture and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. Read the SchoolTV report: Celebrating NAIDOC Week.