In modern society Christmas is celebrated in many different ways. For some it's a religious holiday to celebrate the birth of Christ, for others it's a holiday to celebrate with gifts. Whether for religious or cultural reasons, the common thread for all that celebrate Christmas across the globe is the coming together to spend time and celebrate with family and friends.

August 4 is National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children’s Day, a day for all Australians to show their support for and celebrate Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children. The weeks surrounding the day provide classrooms with a great opportunity to explore this year’s theme, “We Play, We Learn, We Belong”, and promote the achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children.

Like most school parents, making sure my child gets a healthy lunch box and a breakfast that is capable of seeing him through a busy morning of learning is a challenge that I face daily. I worry about how much Mr 7 eats and also the quality of the things he is willing to eat.

We have had a busy term with lots of new schools joining us and new content being created by our educators. Look out over the next few weeks for some new Torres Strait lessons, and more lessons that align with the STEM elaborations released at the end of 2018. We are also preparing our NAIDOC lessons for 2019.

This week as families, including my own, get back into the swing of everyday life and remember the routines that come with having school age children, I can’t help but be excited about what the year may hold.

​Every time I hear someone say that racism is not a problem in Australia I am surprised because racism is an everyday factor in the lives of Aboriginal people. Regardless of our age, skin colour and social status we are disadvantaged every day due to attitudes and actions based on our Aboriginality.

NAIDOC Week is fast approaching and Aboriginal communities are buzzing with excitement about the opportunity to come together and celebrate our culture and recognise the work people in our communities are doing to promote, protect and preserve our culture.

Over the last week we have been honouring Black Diggers for their service. I am overwhelmed by the response! Every single person who has served for this country deserves the highest respect and I have seen that this week. The pride the Aboriginal community has for our soldiers is heartwarming. It is great to see Black Diggers getting the recognition they deserve.

One of the visions I have for Wingaru is that we are able support people to consider Aboriginal perspectives in a new way. By making information more accessible and providing complete packages of resources that support a range of learning outcomes, Aboriginal perspectives can easily be included regularly and not just limited to the designated ‘Aboriginal unit’ or ‘Aboriginal week’ that a lot of schools have delivered in the past.

Our Closing the Gap activity is a free resource for primary school teachers to promote discussions on the issues surrounding National Closing the Gap Day. By facilitating a role playing activity students will gain a greater understanding of the importance of the commitments made by the Australian Government, whilst brainstorming their own solutions.