Week 25: Parasites, Scavengers, and Trappers; Introduction to Australia and Aboriginal Culture; Ulur

This week, City Kids learned about the unique ways that some parasites, scavengers, and trappers find food.

For World Cultures/Geography this week, the kids had an introduction to Australia. We focused on Aboriginal culture, including Dreamtime, the didgeridoo, and Mer Kai!

These books are Aboriginal children's stories brought from Australia. They illustrate the beautiful and complex world of Dreamtime.

Didgeridoo from Australia! The kids also practiced circular breathing, which is important when learning to play this beautiful instrument. Unfortunately, practicing circular breathing led to a lot of inadvertent spitting. :)

For those of you who like to learn how to play the didgeridoo, or just hear what it is supposed to sound like:

The kids made their own Dreamtime books. They also learned about various symbols used in Aboriginal artwork.

Presentation time for our Dreamtime books!

For our mindfulness project this week, our kids listened to a story about Uluru, a "rock" that is sacred in Aboriginal culture. One of our parents told a story about going to Uluru, expecting to climb it, only to find that the Aboriginals ask that people not climb the rock, which she did not. The kids unanimously decided that people shoud not climb the rock. The kids then made their own Ulurus, and they carved their own Dreamtime anscestors into them.

The kids used hackey sack balls to play Mer Kai, a traditional game played by Aboriginal children.

For our field trip this week, we went to an Australian restaurant for lunch to sample some traditional Aussie food. We were so busy eating, we forgot to take pics. So we leave you with this: