Australian Curriculum links

Learning areas

English

Foundation

Create short texts to explore, record and report ideas and events using familiar words and beginning writing knowledge (ACELY1651)

Year 1

Engage in conversations and discussions, using active listening behaviours, showing interest and contributing ideas, information and questions (ACELY1656)

Respond to texts drawn from a range of cultures and experiences (ACELY1655)

Year 2

Rehearse and deliver short presentations on familiar and new topics (ACELY1667)

Science

Foundation

Engage in discussions about observations and use methods such as drawing to represent ideas (ACSIS233)

Objects are made of materials that have observable properties (ACSSU003)

Year 1

Use a range of methods to sort information, including drawings and provided tables (ACSIS027)

Represent and communicate observations and ideas in a variety of ways such as oral and written language, drawing and role play (ACSIS029)

Year 2

Use a range of methods to sort information, including drawings and provided tables (ACSIS040)

Represent and communicate observations and ideas in a variety of ways such as oral and written language, drawing and role play (ACSIS042)

Mathematics

Foundation

Sort, describe and name familiar two-dimensional and three-dimensional objects in the environment (ACMMG009)

Year 1

Recognise and classify familiar two-dimensional shapes and three-dimensional objects using obvious features (ACMMG022)

Year 2

Interpret simple maps of familiar locations and identify the relative positions of key features (ACMMG044)

Describe and draw two-dimensional shapes, with and without digital technologies (ACMMG042)

Geography

Foundation

The representation of the location of places and their features on maps and a globe (ACHGK001)

The reasons why some places are special to people, and how they can be looked after (ACHGK004)

Year 1

The natural, managed and constructed features of places, their location, how they change and how they can be cared for (ACHGK005)

Year 2

Pose geographical questions about familiar and unfamiliar places (ACHGS013)

General capabilities

• Critical and creative thinking
• Information and communication technology (ICT) capability
• Intercultural understanding
• Literacy
• Numeracy

Cross-curriculum priorities

• Asia and Australia’s engagement with Asia
• Sustainability

Activity 1: Our homes

Discuss why it is important to have a home.

Brainstorm and list things you and your family do at home. Role-play some activities for others to guess.

Discuss:

• Where do you do these things? (Identify different rooms.)
• What do you use when you do them? (Discuss furnishings or other items and technology in the home, and also consider goods and services such as food, water and electricity.)
• Which things do we do every day and which do we do just sometimes?
• Which are most important for our health, safety and happiness? Why?
• What might happen if we didn’t have a home?

Draw an outline of a house. Create and label smaller illustrations inside it (or cut and paste images) to show key activities such as cooking, eating, washing and sleeping. 

Use arrows to show goods and services that come into or go out of the house, such as food, water, electricity, gas, telephone, mail, and waste removal.

Extension:

Extend discussion from home to community: What places do we go to from our homes to do and obtain important things, and to enjoy ourselves? Examples might include school, shops, doctors, parks, community centres, friends' places and so on.

Create and labeladditional illustrations around your house drawing to show these.
 

Activity 2: Homes in our neighbourhood

Preparation

• digital camera

Go for a walk in your local area. Take photos and collect data on the different kinds of housing you see. You might consider:

• types of buildings, eg houses, flats and units; single and multi-storey; free-standing or attached to other dwellings
• building materials and how these have been used and changed
• size (estimate how many bedrooms, bathrooms, occupants, the size of the building and the block and how much of the land the building occupies)
• any extra or interesting features (these might be garages, pools or special characteristics of the building design, such as verandas, stilts or chimneys).

Create labels and captions for selected photos to identify and describe key features of the house. Work in pairs or small groups, then display and share work as a class.

Locate additional images online or in books and magazines if you wish to explore a broader variety of Australian homes, eg urban/rural; homes for different climates and conditions.

Discuss similarities and differences among the houses and why these might occur.

• What do all homes have or provide? What do some homes have or provide? Why? (Distinguish between needs and wants.)
• What influences the types of homes people in Australia live in?

Imagine the circumstances or events that might have led to certain houses being built or certain people living in them. Who might have built the house? How do you think it was built? Who lives there and why might they have a home like this?

Tell or write a story about a house in one of your photos, or a house you draw or create using a range of art materials. Use word-processing software for writing stories.   

Activity 3: Homes around the world

Brainstorm: What do you know about housing in other parts of the world? How might some people's homes be different from those where we live?

View and discuss photos of housing and people at or near their homes in other countries. [see below]

Describe what each photo shows and discuss specific questions as appropriate for the different images:

• Where are the homes? (eg country or city, a hot place or a cold place)
• What are the houses built from? Why do you think these materials were used? Who might have built the houses?
• Are they old or new? Big or small?
• What do the pictures tell us about people's lifestyles? (eg daily activities, what kinds of goods, services and technology people might or might not have, etc)

Create a mind map for one of the houses on paper or using your favourite mind-mapping software. Small groups could each focus on a different photo.

Share mind maps as a class. Discuss similarities and differences among the houses and why these might occur.

Think about and list questions you would like to ask someone who lives in one of the homes. Imagine questions they might ask you about where you live. What aspects of our houses might seem surprising or interesting to people from other cultures?

Choose some photos that allow you to focus on the materials and shape or design of different houses (walls, roofs, etc).

Create a model of one house. Plan a series to consider how materials and shapes contribute to the strength of the house.

Use the outcomes to predict how the house would fare in heavy rain, strong wind or an earthquake.

Create a data chart for the house, using headings such as those shown or others you choose.

Discuss what you have learned from this activity and what it makes you think about. 

Activity 4: Helping children feel at home

Talk about what an orphan is and some special needs they might have of a home.

Display this Architecture Lab that provides images and information about the Thai orphanage, Soe Ker Tie House (The Butterfly House).

Discuss the project's aim 'to provide the children with their own private space, a place that they could call home and a space for interaction and play'.

• Do you think these things would help to make the orphanage a good place for children? Why or why not?
• What do the photos tell you about what the orphanage is like and where it is located? Share and discuss any thoughts and questions you have.

Identify and label the following features of the buildings and their surroundings:

• materials – how they are used and combined; where they might have come from and why they might have been chosen; their suitability for different uses such as walls, windows and floors or paths
• shapes you can see
• size and position of the buildings and of items within and around them
• movement and direction as people move from one area to another.

Examine the diagram and map of the building and the overall site. Read and discuss the labels. Match details of the map and plan with particular photos where possible.

Create your own picture, model and/or plan of an interesting home where you would like to live. Use art and craft materials and/or drawing software. Label two two-dimensional and two three-dimensional shapes on the plan/model.

Present your work to the class. Ask and answer questions about one another’s designs and why you chose particular features.
 

Activity 5: We all need a home

Reflect on what you have learned and thought about in previous activities. What have you learned about homes around the world? Why is it important to have a home? What is adequate housing?

Brainstorm and list ways of completing sentences such as: 'We all need a home that provides …' , 'The most important thing about a home is …', and/or 'I would like everyone in the world to have a home that …'

Use a Think, pair, share activity to develop some messages about having a home that you would like everyone to think about.

Create a class 'My place, your place' big book or multimedia text with your key ideas and messages. You could use the digital curriculum resource L11652 Snappy, which can be found on the NDLRN website, or other suitable software, to create an interactive presentation bringing together photos and drawings, sentences, captions, labels and audio.

Present your work to other classes or at a school assembly, after rehearsing within your own class. You might also like to prepare an article for the school newsletter.

Extension

Research the work of organisations that are dedicated to providing adequate housing for all, such as Habitat for Humanity. Use appropriate caution to select material that will not be distressing.

Possible weblinks to explore include:

• the video Building communities – habitat South Africa
• the slideshow 'Habitat houses around the world'.

Both can be accessed at www.habitat.org/stories_multimedia/photo_video.