2025 Wandana Aboriginal Cultural Immersion Program for Camp Australia

This is a purpose built Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultural immersion Program that covers all significant dates and events throughout the year. Providing respectful and culturally appropriate, learning experiences to both Camp Australia students and Educators in 2025 & beyond.

Guided by Aboriginal Elders & community leaders for over 35 years, and working along the “My Time, Our Place; Framework for School age Care in Australia V2.0” including the vision, principles, practices and outcomes.

Camp Australia, with over 30 years experience, have a “Mission Statement” for guiding children’s growth through experiences they love. With a promise to provide the most engaging programs tailored for each child with dedication to prioritising their wellbeing. Wandana Aboriginal Education, also with over 30 years experience, truly believes our program and resources aligns and supports the Camp Australia Mission Statement, values and outcomes they strive for each day.

We can support Camp Australia through our video programs, artefacts, Centre visits ,support materials & resources all linked to the Australian curriculum. As well as our working relationships with our Aboriginal Elders.

The Camp Australia Values of Courage, Gratitude, Respect, Joy & Belonging would be supported and enhanced by embracing & sharing the precious elements of our Wandana Program with your Camp Australia communities across Australia.

Wandana Camp Australia
Wandana Ladies

Welcome to 2025 and welcome to Country

Camp Australia 2025 Resources Kit

School Curriculum
Artifacts

The 2025 Curriculum (Sample)

Sample 2025 Course Videos

Camp Australia Video Programs

Sample: Kangaroo & Goanna Dance

Classroom Activity:

Practice animal dance moves for the kangaroo and goanna lizard. Use flash cards provided with the animal names (download).

 

Teachers Notes:

Music and dance are important to Aboriginal culture and used as everyday life and to mark special occasions. Songlines tell stories of the Creation and Dreaming as Aboriginal people made their journeys across the land. Dances often imitated animals or birds.

Goannas

  1. Goannas can grow up to two and a half metres in length, and they’re great runners and swimmers.
  2. They belong to the ancient lineage that evolved during the Cretaceous period, 90 million years ago.
  3. Like most lizards, goannas lay eggs.
  4. Goannas are also know as monitor lizards and can live up to 40 years in the wild.
  5. They can be found everywhere in Australia except Tasmania.

 

Kangaroos

  1. Kangaroos are culturally and spiritually significant to Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander people.
  2. The kangaroo can be seen in ancient rock paintings that date back thousands of years.
  3. The name kangaroo comes from the ‘gangurru’, which was given to the eastern grey kangaroos by the Guuga Yimithirr people of Queenslands tropical north.
  4. Baby kangaroos are called Joeys and when they’re born weigh less than 2 grams. That’s about the size of a jelly bean. After they’re born, they climb up into their mothers pouch and stay there for another six months before emerging to meet the world.
  5. Because of their long feet and large tail they cant move backwards.
  6. There are 60 species of Kangaroo
  7. Female kangaroos can pause their pregnancies. This may happen when food is scarce or there is another joey still in her pouch. This allows the pregnancy to continue when conditions are right.
  8. Kangaroos are the only large animal that move by hopping and can clear up to 8m in a single hop. That’s about 10 steps for an adult human.
  9. Kangaroos are social creatures and live in groups called a mob, troop or court. They have plenty of ways to communicate with each other, including nose touching, stomping their hind legs and growling. Mother kangaroos will even make clicking or clucking sounds to call their young back to them.
  10. If there’s danger about, baby joeys will dive head first into its mothers pouch.

Sample: Emu Caller

Classroom Activity:

Make a sound from a recycled material. Make a birds nest using recycled materials including twigs, straw, etc.

 

Teachers Notes:

The emu caller is a small 30cm section from a Yidaki (Didgeridoo) or hollow branch which would be used for hunting. The sound created by hitting with an open hand would create the emu sound used to entice the animals into open space. This would provide the opportunity to collect one or two eggs.

 

  1. Emus are fast runners, high jumpers and strong swimmers. They can run up to 48 kph and jump up to 2m high. Emus are the second biggest bird in the world behind the African ostrich but don’t actually fly at all.
  2. Emus are the only birds with calf muscles.
  3. Male emus build the nest and once the female lays the eggs, the male emu will incubate the eggs and raise the chicks. The male emu will incubate (sit on eggs) for appox 56 days during which he does not eat or drink. During this time the father emu may loose up to 1/3 of his body weight. The father emu stays with his chicks for up to two years.
  4. Emus store lots of fat when food is plentiful, providing for leaner times. And follow storm clouds, sometimes trekking for hundreds of kilometres to get water.
    5. Emus have two sets of eye lids. One for blinking and the other for keeping the dust out.

Sample: Didgeridoo

Classroom Activity:

Classroom Activity: Watch Wandana Sean Ryan video below (1.05min) and practice own dance moves. Look at didgeridoo on your Wandana artefacts chart provided. Boys colour in didgeridoo and girls colour in clap sticks.

 

Teachers Notes:

The traditional Aboriginal name for the didgeridoo is called Yidaki and its the worlds oldest wind instrument. It’s believed to have originated over 1,000 years ago.

The Yidaki is a naturally hollowed out eucalyptus branch or log by termites. The Yidaki originated from the Yolngu Aboriginal people of north east Arnhem Land from the top of the Northern Territory.

Traditionally it is played along with Ceremonial dancing and singing as well as for solo or recreational purposes.
It’s played by blowing with vibrating lips to create a drone sound while using a special technique called circular breathing to be able to play continuously.

Camp Australia Video Programs
Camp Australia Video Programs
Camp Australia Video Programs
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