Language & Culture Program

Kii, Deadly TPS community, biladu-njan wat/how are you all? And in the words of my Yawuru language...Ngaji gurrjin/Hello everyone!

On the 26th May, we had a special assembly to commemorate National Sorry Day. Aunty Di Kerr, a highly respected elder of the Wurundjeri Council, talked with the students and Welcomed us all to Country. Some students from the 3/4 grades, as well as a few staff members, all spoke from the heart about what the day means to them, and reflected on the theme for this year: Sorry - More Than A Word. We were uplifted by the wonderful performance of the Grade 3/4 students, singing ‘Our Song’ (Written and composed by Yorta Yorta Soprano Deborah Cheetham, and Jessica Hitchcock) At the end of our special commemoration, everyone got to plant a ‘hand or Sorry word’ which they had earlier prepared in class. Ngoon-godjin/thank you to all involved.

At the time of writing, it is National Reconciliation Week. As well as being a celebration, Reconciliation Week marks some really important dates in Australia's history. 

It starts on the 27th of May, which is the anniversary of the 1967 Referendum, when 90 percent of Aussies voted to change the constitution to make sure Indigenous people were counted in the census, an official count of Australia’s population, and to allow the federal government to make laws for Indigenous people.

 It ends on the 3rd of June, also known as Mabo Day. It marks the day, Meriam man, Eddie Mabo successfully convinced the High Court of Australia that Indigenous people had rights to land that their ancestors had lived on for 1000's of years.   

This year’s theme, ‘More than a word. Reconciliation takes action’, urges Australians to take braver actions. One such recommended action is to learn about our shared history: ‘A key challenge in the reconciliation movement has been overturning the cult of disremembering and the great Australian silence when it comes to our true history.’ (https://nrw.reconciliation.org.au/actions-for-reconciliation/)

At TPS, students learn much through our ‘Language & Culture’ and class programs, but we encourage students to do more - by speaking up and discussing what they learn with family and friends.

There is a video from the ‘First Australians’ SBS TV series (First Australians chronicles the birth of contemporary Australia as told from the perspective of its first people), which Wurundjeri Council have posted on their website, and is worth watching. This third episode from the series, provides an insight into the history of the changes faced by Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung people and their fight for survival, led by two prominent Wurundjeri leaders - Simon Wonga and William Barak: https://www.wurundjeri.com.au/our-story/ancestors-past/

For all episodes of ‘First Australians’: https://www.sbs.com.au/ondemand/program/first-australians

All classes are continuing to work on developing their understanding and knowledge of the Woiwurrung sound system and the spelling system used to record the language, as well as building up their Woiwurrung vocabulary and commonly used classroom phrases.

Click to Download Audio Files

• Foundation students speaking Woiwurrung greetings
• Year 3/4 students singing Woiwurrung body parts song