Learning about Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander histories and cultures allows students to develop respect for diversity and understanding of cultural difference. It provides all students with a rich and well-rounded knowledge of Australia’s history.
Lakes Entrance Primary is lucky to have had a long standing connection to our Indigenous community. It is our aim to build on this into the future.
As a school we believe that the history and values of the world’s longest surviving culture is something that the whole of Australia can celebrate and be proud of. Learning about our nation is crucial to developing empathetic, informed, strong, young learners who are confident and equipped to contribute to modern society.
From 2019 we have begun learning activities that explore the language, history and culture of Indigenous Australians. The program provides students with learning experiences linked to the national curriculum that promotes deep understanding and engagement with the history of Australia and our nation’s first people.
While the program will focus predominantly on the language and culture of the Gunai Kurnai people, we acknowledge that the background and identity of the Indigenous students of our school, their families, the wider community and our Indigenous staff is rich and varied. Although not all our families identify as Gunai Kurnai our program will focus on the language of the Gunai Kurnai people as the traditional owners of the land on which our school resides.
It is our hope that on every step of this journey we will be informed by students, families, community and elders. Through these partnerships we can be supported in developing a rich and engaging program that provides meaningful, embedded and relevant content across all learning areas, adding value to our school, community and students’ lives. We welcome families and community members to share their knowledge with us, to help guide us in this process and to provide us with feedback and support wherever possible.
