Tag Archives: teaching history

AusVELS Resources for the New Year – Settlement of Victoria

Posted on January 25, 2013 | Leave a comment

New Teaching Kit focused on AusVELS level 5

Home Bound by ST Gill (Gold Museum Collection)

Home Bound by ST Gill (Gold Museum Collection)

The Education team at Sovereign Hill have just completed a new resource for teachers of History at AusVELS level 5. The Settlement of Victoria. It provides some practical advice on teaching the content and skills required by the National Curriculum, as well as online links to resources for teachers and students. The kit also provides links to a Teachers Guide and AusVELS Grid and a Diigo social bookmarking website, dedicated to this topic, so that teachers and students can share their resources.

Just follow this link to find out more.

Are you implementing AusVELS in your school yet? How are you coping with the changes? 

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Australian History in the Australian Curriculum

Posted on July 11, 2012 | 3 comments

Engaging Students in Australian History Studies

Yesterday The Age featured an article about History in the Australian Curriculum.  Specifically they were referring to the decision not to make a specific Australian History subject part of the national curriculum in the Senior Years.  Modern and Ancient History are the two subjects to be offered.

The-Age-10-July-2012-Australian-Curriculum-History

Front page of The Age – 10 July 2012

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Science and History: The Transit of Venus

Posted on June 1, 2012 | 3 comments

The Transit of Venus and it’s Connection to Australian History

Coming up this Wednesday 6th June, the planet Venus will cross in front of the sun.  This phenomenon is known as the Transit of Venus and we are fortunate enough to be able to view it in Australia.  This is a rare opportunity as the Transit only occurs  twice in more than 100 years.  It last occurred in June 2004 and after this week it will not be seen until December 2117!

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Top 10 student questions and misconceptions

Posted on May 23, 2012 | 8 comments

Top 10 questions and misconceptions From Students Visiting Sovereign Hill

This week is Education Week in Victoria.  In the spirit of thinking about learning and learners we have written this post about some of the most common questions and misconceptions students bring to Sovereign Hill.  Each day we work on developing students’ understandings about these concepts.  Some are small, while others are very complex.  It gives you an insight into common student thinking…

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Visit a cemetery and discover the past

Posted on May 8, 2012 | Leave a comment

Image by Sunday’s Child

Stuck for a great local history excursion?  Historic cemeteries offer inquirers a number of insights into life in the past.

The key to a good cemetery excursion is providing the students with an investigative purpose or question.  Visiting a cemetery without a purpose would be akin to browsing a database for leisure reading.  However, with the right questions, a cemetery visit can provide students with opportunities to form their own understanding of key ideas such as demographics, social tensions, wealth and health.

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Books for teaching history – The Seriously Weird History of the Gold Rushes

Posted on March 6, 2012 | 1 comment

Books for teaching history

It’s the Year of Reading and we’re celebrating by sharing our favourite books for teaching (or just enjoying) history!  This post introduces Doug Bradby’s Seriously Weird History series.

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Posted in Books for Teaching History, History Teaching, Victorian Gold Rush

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What caused the Eureka Stockade?

Posted on February 17, 2012 | 5 comments

Students relive historical events and discover what caused the Eureka Stockade

The Eureka Stockade is a key event in Australia’s history and, arguably, the only civil battle on our soil.  It is seen by most as a key step on our path towards democracy and nearly all Victorian students study the cause and effect of the Eureka Stockade in History lessons.  There is a complex chronology of events that  led to the storming of the Stockade, and these can be viewed in the global context of the Chartist movement.  Understanding the context, motives and emotions involved can be difficult.

Here at Sovereign Hill we want to commemorate the event with students by allowing them to engage with this historical story in a meaningful, accessible and memorable way.  Late last year we developed a participatory reenactment experience for the students on the eve of the 157th anniversary.

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Racism and taxes: life for the Chinese on the Goldfields

Posted on January 16, 2012 | 12 comments

Chinese migrants played a very significant role on the Ballarat Goldfields, and elsewhere around Victoria, making up approximately 20% of all males in Ballarat.  They were known for being hard-working and peaceful people, however their experience of the gold rush was marred by racism and discriminatory politics.

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