Classroom Incursions

One of the things I am passionate about is supporting schools to make strong connections with their local communities. It brings a whole new dimension to Aboriginal education that all students can benefit from. Larry Brandy is an amazing storyteller who offers great experiences to support learning in schools and early childhood environments. He shares my passion for education, and I love the way he shares his knowledge and brings culture into the classroom. I asked him if he would share a bit about his approach to teaching culture and am delighted to share his blog post today.
 

Hello
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I would like to introduce myself. I am a Wiradjuri man from Condobolin, central New South Wales. I now live in Canberra. I am passionate about sharing my culture with people of all ages and in particular children.

For the last few years I have been a regular performer in early childhood centres, preschools and schools around Canberra, as well as in Wiradjuri Country and Sydney.

I love performing with young children as they are so eager to learn about different cultures in a fun way. In my performance children become kangaroos, emus and hunters as they learn how we hunted and found food in traditional times. I use real artefacts as well as animal masks to involve the children. We always start a performance with an acknowledgement to the Traditional Owners of the Country we are on. At the end of the performance we do a short corroboree together using clap sticks and boomerangs for music. If the children want to I can paint their faces with ochre.

When I am a regular performer I use different themes each time. This could include the seasons, bush foods, where animals live and how Aboriginal children learn about animals and their tracks. I also introduce Wiradjuri language where appropriate. This could include counting to 10 in Wiradjuri, learning some Wiradjuri names for animals. Many names for Australian animals are based on Aboriginal words such as wombat, from wambad, kookaburra from gugubarra, galah from gilaa and so on.

Children are very open to learning and I love seeing them take an interest in Aboriginal culture and how that interest can lead to empathy, understanding as well as an appreciation for Aboriginal people and culture. Supporting teachers to deliver Aboriginal content is a great privilege and it is great to be able to support schools and early childhood centres become more culturally aware.

I am still learning my language so these are a way for me to learn more as well. Language is important because it helps keep our culture alive. I have published two books for children, introducing them to the Wiradjuri language. One is a colouring-in A to Z book and the other is an activity book. I like being able to encourage children’s interest in Aboriginal culture because it is important education for all Australian kids.

Adults and children of all ages benefit from learning about Aboriginal people and history. For groups of young children, I focus on being very interactive, getting children involved so as to ignite a love of learning about my culture.  With older children I can talk more about the artefacts and what they were used for. I enjoy connecting with educators and encouraging them to continue the learning in their programs.
 
To find out more about what I do follow me on Facebook or check out my website. Feel free to message me with any questions you may have or you can email me on larrybrandy@outlook.com.
You can follow my journey at:
https://www.facebook.com/aboriginalstoryteller
https://aboriginalstoryteller.webs.com
Video with children at an early childhood centre https://vimeo.com/202511207
My story on SBS https://www.sbs.com.au/nitv/video/462757443751/Surviving-S2-Ep11-Larry-Brandy
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