Ancient Australia
The Out of Africa theory suggests that the ancestors of Australia’s Aboriginal people may have originally moved from Southeast Asia (modern day Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei, East Timor, Indonesia & the Philippines) to the landmass of Sahul (modern day New Guinea & Australia) about 50,000 years ago.
This migration must have involved a number of sea crossings and represents a remarkable feat of human endeavor.
Migrating to Australia: 50 000 BCE?
Human Arrival
We don’t know when humans first arrived in Australia.
But some archaeological findings suggest that early humans started to arrive on the Australian continent between 40,000 to 80,000 years ago, making the culture of Australia’s Aboriginal people one of the oldest in the world.
These archaeological sites can be found right around the country, some of which include rock art in caves, and fossils from where Aboriginal people lived and shared their meals.
Activity 1. Mapping the journey of the first Australians
In this task you will be making a map of the experience of what the first people would have seen and done as they migrated and populated the landmass of Sahul.
Australia's first people are thought to have arrived (approximately 60 000 years ago) when Australia was a much bigger place. Sea levels were much lower so Papua New Guinea and Tasmania were connected to Australia, forming the mega-continent of Sahul.
The first people were able to walk from Papua New Guinea and gradually spread out across the continent.
Things to include in your map:
○ What were the landmarks they would have passed?
○ Which animals and megafauna would they have encountered?
○ What did the Australian landscape look like 60 000 years ago
2. The Australian Megafauna
The megafauna extinction
Before humans arrived, Pleistocene Australia was home to many large species of megafauna,
From about 46000 years ago onwards, Australian megafauna species started to go extinct due to climate change and/or the added stress of hunting when humans arrived.
The following map suggests that human migration out of Africa may have contributed to the extinction of large mammals (including Australian megafauna) due to overhunting.
Fun Fact: Rise of the marsupials
The extinction of the large megafauna significantly altered Australia's ecosystems, leaving modern marsupials as typically smaller descendants of once-giant species.
Megafauna included the
Diprotodon (Giant wombat-like creatures),
Procoptodon Goliah (Giant short-faced kangaroos)
Thylacoleo (Marsupial lions),
Dromornis Planei (“Demon Ducks of Doom”)
Megalania (Giant goannas)
Activity 2. Australian Megafauna Research
To Do: Research Australian megafauna species
Choose a species that interests you. (See list below)
Create an 'animal fact file' PowerPoint presentation on your chosen species and include the following information:
Name and pictures
Who discovered this species / how was it discovered?
Physical Features
Habitat
Diet
Modern-day counterpart?
Why do you think your species went extinct?
3. Uncovering the past: Mungo Man
Who were Mungo Man and Mungo Woman?
About 42,000 years ago, Mungo Man lived around the shores of Lake Mungo with his family. The discovery of his cremated skeleton is a very significant archeological discovery and reveals a lot about Ancient Australians.
Activity 3.Primary Sources from Lake Mungo
Part 1. Examining the evidence
To what extent do these archeological remains provide strong evidence of Ancient Australians living in the Lake Mungo region?
You have been asked to examine the archaeological remains of the Mungo’s.
You can access the information at the link: Cold case detective - digital-classroom.nma.gov.au
Use the information to answer the questions on the page.
Part 2. Interviewing the Archaeologists
Archaeologists used their skills to enable Mungo Man’s remains to be discovered, investigated and then protected.
If you had the opportunity to interview one of these archaeologists, consider what you would ask in order to find out more about what they learned while uncovering the Mungo remains.
List between 7 to 10 questions.
For each question give the detailed response you would expect an archaeologist to give.
A good historian would do background research before speaking to the archaeologists using the links below.
Who was Mungo Man - visitmungo
4. A day in the life: Ancient Australia
Aboriginal nations.
Before European people arrived in Australia in 1788, there were an estimated 315 000 to ver 1000000 Aboriginals living across Australia.
Historians have found evidence for more than 250 Aboriginal nations, each with their own language, names, and ‘country’ (tribal lands).
Living on the Land
Most Aboriginal communities lived nomadic lifestyles, meaning that they moved from location to location in search of seasonal food, water and shelter.
Aboriginal communities survived their day-to-day lives by hunting and gathering. The men would hunt large animals for food, and women and children would collect fruit, plants and berries.
Each Aboriginal group had a distinct social network, with its own social rules. Each person had a defined role in those networks, and held responsibilities and privileges in relation to every other person. Newcomers were fitted or classified into these networks - there were no strangers.
Activity 4: A day in the life visual guide
For this task you will create an historical folio that uses text and images to explain what daily life was like for Aboriginal people in the 1700’s (prior to colonisation)
Include slides with the following information:
Include a map that shows the 250+ Aboriginal nations
What roles did men hold in their communities?
What roles did women hold in their communities?
What did they hunt to eat?
What did they forage to eat?
What did they live in (e.g what kinds of dwellings did they build?)
What agricultural practices did they use?
Describe their spiritual belief systems
Use examples to describe their cultural arts and crafts
Use examples to describe their weapons
4. Postcards from Ancient Australia
Activity 5. Historical Postcards – a message from Ancient Australia
Steps:
Imagine that you have travelled back in time to Ancient Australia.
While there, you decide to write a postcard to someone in the present, to teach them about what life was like for Aboriginal people before the arrival of Europeans.
Write a message on one side of your postcard, explaining what life was like for Aboriginal people during the mid-1700’s.
Think about the differences between pre-colonial Australia during the mid-1700’s and modern-day Australia in 2023.
Write 3-5 short topic paragraphs about what life was like for Aboriginal people
Gather information for your postcard by conducting ‘field research’ about what life was like for Aboriginal people.
Create a relevant / symbolic picture or design relating to the message you have written on the front of your postcard.
Helpful resources to get you started:
Traditional Aboriginal society - www.britannica.com
Aboriginal lifestyle before colonisation - five year history
5. Dreamtime stories in Ancient Australia
Imagine stories that aren't just entertainment, but are actually living maps, histories, and science lessons. Dreamtime stories are the Aboriginal way of understanding how everything in our world came to be and how it all connects together.
These stories explain how giant ancestral spirits shaped the land - creating mountains, rivers, and deserts. Some of these spirits took the form of animals like the Rainbow Serpent, who carved out rivers and gorges as it slithered across the land, or the giant kangaroo who bounded across Australia leaving behind valleys where it jumped.
When Aboriginal people tell these stories, they're sharing important knowledge about:
Where to find water and food
How to take care of the land
Which plants can heal you
How different animals behave
Activity 6: Telling Dreamtime stories
Steps:
Research Aboriginal Dreamtime stories (See below). Choose one that interests you
Re-tell the story as a children’s story.
Include an explanation of why the story is significant to Aboriginal people.
(e.g. why is it important to them & what does it represent)
Dreamtime Stories - dreamtime story list
More dreamtime stories - welcometocountry.org
Task - The first Australians
Research Deep Time History - The first Australians.
Open the Padlet and complete the activities.
Submit your response to Canvas on a word document.
Task instructions:
Open the Padlet: Deep time History - The first Australians
Sign in with your school email
Click ‘Remake the Padlet’ (Menu on the right panel)
Complete the Starter Questions
You have two choices for each of the following. Choose 1 of each to complete.
Conducting research
Identifying perspectives
Creative activity
PEEL paragraph
