Australia

{FINE ARTS}

Aboriginal Art of Australia by Carol Finley
Aboriginal Artists in South Australia by Adele Ping
Aboriginal Artists of the Nineteenth Century by Andrew Sayers
Australia, Hawaii and the Pacific by Deborah Underwood
A Book of Pacific Lullabies by Tessa Duder
How to Draw Australia's Sights and Symbols by Melody S. Mis
Sidney Opera House by Sheelagh Matthews

* Use acrylic paints to decorate your own wooden boomerangs in the style of Aboriginal art.
* Wrap and tape a long strip of brown kraft paper around your kitchen table.  Lay an art sheet or blanket underneath to catch drips as your kids paint Aboriginal cave paintings on the inside with poster paints.

{FOLK AND FAIRY TALES}

Animal Dreaming by Paul Morin
Bangu the Flying Fox by Jillian Taylor
The Biggest Frog in Australia by Susan L. Roth
Bittangabee Tribe by Beryl Cruse
Dreamtime by Oodgeroo Noonuccal
Legend of the Seven Sisters by May O'Brien
Rainbow Bird by Eric Maddern
Stories from the Billabong by James Vance Marshall
Sun Mother Wakes the World by Diane Wolkstein
Whale's Canoe by Joanna Troughton
Why the Koala Has a Stumpy Tail by Martha Hamilton

* Since most of the Australian folk tales involve animals and plant life of Australia, you could easily tie this part of your unit into the life science part below.
* Try reading one of the stories to your children without showing them the pictures.  Then, have them narrate the tale by illustrating it on their own.
* If you are studying folk tales of different countries, make a "Creation Story" poster or notebook.  After reading a particular country's creation story, have your children re-write the story in their own words and / or draw a picture of the story and label the top with the name of the country.  After you have accumulated a good many different creation stories, compare them with each other and with your own family's belief about creation.  This could tie nicely into the life science portion, as well.

{HISTORY, GEOGRAPHY and CULTURES}

Any good book about Australia that includes good pictures.
Are We There Yet? by Alison Lester
D Is for Down Under by Devin Scillian
Look What Came from Australia by Kevin Davis
Maralinga by Christobel Mattingly
My Place by Nadia Wheatly
The Switherby Pilgrims by Eleanor Spence
Uluru by Caroline Arnold
Uluru by Jennifer Hurtig
Wake Up, World! by Beatrice Hollyer
You Wouldn't Want to Be an 18th-Century British Convict! by Meredith Costain

* Make a very simple timeline of Australian history.
* Draw or print a large, blank map of Australia.  Fill it in, using words and pictures, with events, landmarks, and famous places of Australia.
* Study some Australian lingo and spend a day using it when you talk to eachother.
* Make some Australian fare for dinner.

{LIFE SCIENCE}

An Australian ABC of Animals by Bronwyn Bancroft
W Is for Wombat by Browyn Bancroft
Destination: Australia by Jonathan Grupper
Diary of a Wombat by Jackie French
Diary of a BABY Wombat by Jackie French
Edward the Emu by Sheena Knowles
The Koala Book by Ann Sharp
Koala Country by Deborah Dennard
Koala Lou by Mem Fox
Possum Magic by Mem Fox
One Woolly Wombat by Rod Trinca
Over in Australia by Marianne Burkes
Wombat Goes Walkabout by Michael Morpurga

*  As you read your books, be sure to use the internet to look up images and videos of the Australian animals (and plant life) that you are learning about.  You and your kids can enjoy searching and discovering together.

*{CHRISTMAS AROUND THE WORLD}*

Christmas in Kangaroo Land by Alda M. Hannon
Snowy's Christmas by Sally Murphy
Wombat Divine by Mem Fox

* Make some Christmas ornaments using the Aboriginal style of painting.
* Don your shorts and t-shirts and eat some Australian food for dinner while you play Christmas music in the background.