CURRICULUM LINKS for RIGHT AND WRONG

All of these plays encourage Thinking Processes which are part of interdisciplinary learning and there’s considerable crossover into Information and Communications Technology in the ways in which the plays can be adapted into other mediums.

Many schools are studying Antarctica as a unit because of the polar setting (2007 is International Polar Year: Arctic and Antarctic). This play stresses eco-challenges so it can be used across curricula. It is specifically relevant to:

Maths: navigation, time zones, counting penguin/wildlife colonies, recording temperatures, recording animal sightings, estimating & projections of food requirements for wildlife. Satellite tracking of wildlife, especially marine: ele-seal & penguins.

Environment: Icebergs, wildlife. Marine life, oceans, global warming, temperature and availability of water. Physical and psychological effects on people of living & working in an isolated base and having 24 hour darkness. Communication by celestial navigation, satellite and GPS. Appropriate safety clothing for extreme conditions.

Science: biology, astro-physics, meteorology, polar medicine. Using GPS for exploration, expeditions and weather. Satellite tracking of wildlife and icebergs. Search & Rescue & Fire training. Why is fire a threat in Antarctica (no water)

English: Linguistics and where words originate. Antarctic Dictionary which has origins of words such as ‘quad’, ‘white-out’ and ‘manhole’ and many words for ice.

Humanities & S.O.S.E. Peer group pressures and restrictive impact of weather via 24 hour light or darkness. Celebrations and survival skills like a sense of humour. Technical skills required to work in a polar climate. Who are ‘tradies’ and ‘boffins’ and what do they do? Which trades are required in Antarctica? What is a ‘dieso’ etc? Scientific jobs in Antarctica. What does a Comm God do?

Civics & Citizenship: Law of the Sea. Who is responsible for Antarctica? Which nations are involved in Antarctica with bases and other rights and which languages are spoken? French, Chinese, Norwegian & Australian colloquialisms.

‘Antarctic Writer on Ice’ Isbn 1 86335090X (Common Ground Publishers www.booksonwriting.com.)an e-book with colour photos as well as a conventionally printed book, on audio (www.louisbrailleaudio.com) and in Braille.

‘Antarctica’s Frozen Chosen’ (Lothian), ISBN 0 7344 0519 7 YA (Young Adult) an eco thriller especially appealing to ‘young blokes’. Nominated for Davitt crime writers award 2004. Selected for Premier’s Reading Challenge .State Library of Victoria Top 150 titles. Serialised on Radio RPH Children’s Hour 2004-5m Audio version available from www.louisbrailleaudio.com email: lba.sales@nils.org.au Order from www.panmacmillan.com

‘Antarctic Dad’ (Lothian) ISBN 0-780734408501 illus Kevin Burgemeestre with free downloadable classroom playscript and model ice ship from www.hazeledwards.com. Audio

Auslan Videos/DVD & photographic stories have included’ ‘My Gran’s Gone to Antarctica’ and ‘The Lachieberg’ (Auslan signed videos for College for the Deaf which WON the 2005 Educational Excellence in Innovation Award) Contact [kaystevens@optusnet.com.au)

Often satirical songs, rhymes and jokes are used to show how people think when they can’t be open about it. They make some political, social or economic statement that disagrees with present practices. The characters in this play display various attitudes to change.

The issue of bankruptcy can be linked to maths but also to personal responsibility about money and the wider issues of national economies.

Maths: What can you earn per hour at a part-time or casual job? What if you spend more than you earn? Balancing a budget. Assets and liabilities. Credit cards. Taking out a loan? How interest rates work. Mobile phone bills. Mortgages. Bankruptcy. What happens if a person is declared bankrupt? What if a country’s economy goes bankrupt? World Bank? Foreign Aid? Should wealthier countries help third world countries? How? Why?

Environment: Are there some jobs than will no longer be around in ten years? Which ones and why? Sunset industries: printing. Students can be asked to contrast life in contemporary cities and office buildings versus those pre-technological forests where our characters supposedly lived.

Technology: The effects of technology on work practices. A survey of how students react to a change in a school procedure: publication of exam results online.

Design & The Arts:: Making a commercial for different mediums e.g. radio, TV, within time and budget limits. Other forms of advertising. Graffiti? Online? Web chats? Text? Include song lyrics. Cartoons. Animation.

Science: What power sources suddenly changed? If electricity or oil were no longer available? What changes would have to be made? Wind, nuclear or solar power? How have recent scientific or electronic inventions changed the workplace:. e-mail, text, web chats, digital photos, downloading music, ergonomic chairs, air-conditioning systems where infection can spread fast within a big building? Quarantine regulations?

English: Linguistics and researching where rhymes and fairy tales originate. Examine the use of satire to make a political and sociological statement. Cartoons. Manga comics. Argue for change in the workplace. Argue against any change in the workplace.

LOTE: Comparative study of fairytales in different languages and cultures: Cinderella.

S.O.S.E. Peer group pressures and their restrictive impact. Celebrations and workplace survival skills like a sense of humour or willingness to change.

Survey local changes by students, staff, council or government which have impacted upon students: transport regulations, ID cards.

Health& Physical Education: Event- manage a ‘Healthy Change’ food fashion parade choreographed with appropriate exercises or dances and rehearse with an MC. (Master or Mistress of ceremonies) Before and After.

Maths & Technology: Design the perfect waiting room. It could be a doctors’ or dentists’ waiting room or one for a job interview or transport such as a bus. Consider lighting, furniture, types of walls (one way/ see through?), roof, exits and entrances, entertainment or distractions and any notices/instructions on the wall or elsewhere. A model could be constructed in any medium (screen, scale model or any other form of technology) Trial your model with someone who has been in such a waiting room recently. Evaluation. What changes might you now make?

Environment: Students can be asked to contrast life in contemporary cities versus medieval times when everyone believed in an afterlife as a reward or a punishment for their life on earth.

Science: How have recent scientific inventions changed religious belief? Some introduction to the work of physicists who suggest the existence of a ‘divine creator’.

English: In Greek drama, choruses were often used to voice questions or worries by the general public. How is this done today? Talkback radio? SMS? If a student has strong beliefs on an issue, where can they share those ideas?

Personal learning: For those who claim no religion, what is the difference between agnostic and atheist? How would you describe your own religious beliefs? Census. Check the religious distribution within Australia. In what ways has it changed in the past decade?

S.O.S.E. Comparative religions. Major beliefs? Major practices? Taboos? Extremists and moderates? What’s the difference between a sect and a religion? Where religious beliefs have originated. Examine the use of religion. Can a State have a religion? What happened when politics and religion conflict? Peer group pressures to behave in certain ways. Rebellion against family religion or culture. What form does this take?

Civics and Citizenship: Baggage: Survey class to find out the three personal items they could not do without. Survey: How often have students volunteered in the community doing something for strangers in the past year?

PLAY 4. COPYRIGHT OR WRONG?

The issue of intellectual property, who owns it and how it can be copied, overlaps into the interdisciplinary learning areas listed above

Music: History of various music genres. When does a tune or song move into public domain? Old enough? Well known enough? Or when copyright lapses? Ease of copying? New technology for copying music , movies etc.

Technology: The effects of technology on songs and recordings. If you have the technology to copy, should you? In what ways could creators be paid for their work?

Maths: Interview techniques. Survey how many students have made illegal copies? To what extend can you trust their answers? How do you evaluate a questionnaire on a controversial or illegal issue? Costing tickets for gigs. What percentage goes to the performers? Management? Backers?

Environment: Students can be asked to consider the artificial environments of recording studios and concert venues. Impact of level of noise on hearing.

Science: How have recent scientific inventions changed what we listen to? Ipod? Downloads? How many copies can be made without devaluing the original? Technically? Morally? What is a pirated copy? What is a licence?

English: Linguistics and how songs are created. Examine the use of song to make a political and sociological statement. How does intellectual property work? Research new words , acronyms or abbreviations which relate to new media: podcasting, I.P.

S.O.S.E. Discuss what intellectual property is all about. Who owns your short story? Family photographs? If something is published on the Internet, do you have to pay to use it? How do you evaluate whether information on the internet is accurate?

PLAY 5. INSECTA

Maths & Design: Investigate what proportion of all life is insect. Construct graphs/diagrams/charts/ computer games to illustrate this.

Environment: Make a model city from any period or for any population. Students can be asked to contrast life in contemporary cities and office buildings versus those pristine environments where our characters live.

Technology: The effects of technology on our fauna and flora. Phone towers. Waste Dumps. Radioactive waste.

Science: Endangered species. Adopt a species for study. Who decides if they’re worth saving? International Wildlife Fund. Has science shown us how to protect rare species?Are any humans also endangered? Genetic inheritances. Infections. Pandemics. Which insects might spread infection?

Civics: Voting. Elections. Effectiveness of methods of counting preferences. First past the post. Preferential. Responsibility for others. Swinging voters. Electioneering. What standing as a candidate involves.

English: What do professional lobbyists do? How lobby groups argue. Argue for all three lobby groups. Argue against them. Discuss the role of the chair.

Thinking Processes: within Interdisciplinary learning are especially relevant to this play since the insect characters enable students to discuss from a different perspective.