Learning Activities
Jigsaw Research
The Jigsaw Strategy is a cooperative teaching and learning strategy where, just as in a jigsaw puzzle, each piece — each student's part — is essential for the completion and full understanding of the final product. This strategy enables large tasks to be broken into smaller more manageable chunks, by allocating each group with small component of the task to complete, which are then combined for a holistic understanding of the content.
For this task, you will need to allocate a different set of traditional Aboriginal symbols to each group, which they must research to learn and understand its meaning in context. Students can then record their findings, as well as the appropriate links as reference, on their ProBoard forums.
To share the classes findings, you can log onto ProBoard as the administer, and display all students’ findings on the interactive whiteboard/projector.
Explain to students that often in Aboriginal art, symbols can represent different concepts depending on their context. For example, three circles, drawn as lines, can represent ants, fruit, flowers or eggs depending on the art region. This is a valuable point of discussion and exploration. Did any of your students have the same symbols and find different meanings for them?
Personal Symbols
Have students brainstorm ideas for a unique symbol to represent their
individual identities. Their symbol might represent:
- Something that makes them happy or is a favorite item
- Hobbies and other images that match their personality
- An image that represents their values
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Remind students that this image or artefact must remind other people of "who you are" each time they see it.
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Have students sketch their ideas, refining as they go.
Once a final symbol design is developed, students can then begin colouring, considering how their colour choices will add to the richness of their symbolic qualities
Encourage students' to share their personal symbols with the group or, for more fun, invite other participants to look at each symbol and try to guess who they represent.
Ngaka, Ngaka!
This activity is an opportunity for your students' to demonstrate their
developing understandings of traditional Aboriginal Symbols and the
meanings which they hold (the data representation).
Student will be creating their very own unique version of Tic Tac Toe
(also called ‘Ngaka, Ngaka’ which means ‘look, look’).
Firstly, students must choose two symbols to record, writing their
corresponding meanings, based on contemporary research.
Once this has been marked and approved, students can commence to
paint their chosen symbols on 6 rocks (3 each), which will become the
game counters.
Students will use cardboard as the game board, and can use a range of
traditional patterns and colours found in traditional Indigenous artworks to embellish their games.
Students can play in pairs.
Symbolic Short Stories
Unleash your students’ creativity as they write their own, unique stories using a range of beautifully crafted, hand drawn images and symbols to create a handmade book.
- First you will need to guide your students in writing a short story, either fictional or based on an adventure they have experienced and would like to share.
TIP! It would be ideal to revsist some language conventions here, getting students to consider what makes and interesting sentence and how stories can be written well, to create visual images for the reader.
- Students should draft their story, and once checked by teacher can being to replace key words, specifically nouns and adjectives with symbols which they believe/feel best symbolises the events in the story. (Depending on your classes overall independence, it might be a good idea for students to share and justify their symbolic choices with you before continuing).
Note- Remind students how stylised lines and curves, waves and repeated patterns can represent animals, trees, the land, campsites, stars, travel, hunting and many more complex relationships and stories about the Aboriginal people and their land.
- Students can now rewrite and publish their story, with complimenting images and captivating images. Students can create handmade paper booklets to present their stories.
Click here to read more about how to craft paper booklets.
- Encourage students to share their stories with their peers, and if time permits, invite some students to share with the whole class (volunteers only).
