During NAIDOC week, the children at Surry Hills engaged in a number of experiences to support their knowledge of Australia Indigenous history, culture and language. The week started with an excursion to NAIDOC in the City, which was held in Hyde Park. Whilst there the children created artworks based on meeting place and the Aboriginal Flag, we saw Australian Indigenous performers, and had a go at weaving.

Later in the week, we had a centre based celebration, where we invited Aunty Azalea to join us, and she shared a story about the ocean animals, and how we all play a role in keeping it clean and respecting the environment.

During Aunty Azalea’s visit, the children shared with her our Acknowledgment of country, which is something we do each morning to start our day to say thank you to the Gadigal people for letting us share their land.

We also cooked damper and potatoes over a campfire, and sat together in a yarning circle as we shared stories about Australia.

With this years theme of Our Language Matter, we have been looking at children’s books in Indigenous language, but have also been exploring the different ways in which our children can use communication. This led us to explore different ways of expressing ourselves through artwork, using Indigenous artists for inspiration.

Celebrating NAIDOC, and recognising Indigenous Australians is an important part of our SDN Surry Hills culture. Recognising the First Australian’s is something that is ongoing for us, and we want Australian Indigenous families, and all families, to always feel welcome here. While we always try to embed Australian Indigenous culture throughout our program, through storytelling, the use of resources, and the excursions and incursions we participate in, we see NAIDOC Week as a wonderful opportunity for all Australians to come together and celebrate the history and culture of Indigenous Australians, and we love we bringing our Indigenous and non Indigenous families together to celebrate!

Claire Fahy