Reconciliation Week 2017

National Reconciliation Week is celebrated across Australia each year between 27th of May and the 3rd of June. The dates represent two significant milestones in the reconciliation journey.

27th of May – Marks the anniversary of the 1967 referendum which gave the Commonwealth the power to make laws for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and recognise them in the national census.

3rd June – Is the anniversary of when The High Court of Australia delivered the Mabo decision in 1992 which legally recognised that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples have a special relationship to the land.

Below are three BTN stories. The first video explains the significance of Reconciliation Week and the other videos explain who Mabo actually was and what he did for Indigenous people.

Reconciliation Week is a time for all Australians to learn about our shared histories, cultures and achievements.

As a class we looked at Aboriginal paintings and the symbols that are used in their art. 

We then looked at the Indigenous Round in AFL. As we have lots of footy fans in the room there was a lot of conversations about different guernseys and what they represent. We looked at a few closely and read about what the artist’s reasons for using the symbols and their connection to the football club or area of where they are based. Check out a few that wee looked at closely..


After this we designed a Grange School Uniform using the Aboriginal dot painting technique, symbols  and the colours of orange, white, black and yellow which are most commonly seen in Indigenous Australian Art. We were careful to choose symbols that represented Grange and the area, for example, water, sand, oval etc. Some of us also drew the Kaurna Shield because the Kaurna people are the Aboriginal group that were based in Adelaide all those years ago. 

What do you think Reconciliation means?

Why do you think it is important to recognise everyone no matter their culture or background?

What did you learn about Aboriginal cultures, art and their symbols?

10 thoughts on “Reconciliation Week 2017

  1. Hi Mrs Baldwin,
    I think that reconciliation means that we remember the people who lived here before the British. I think it was important because it was there land not the white people. that they were very different to other countries.

  2. Dear Mrs Bladwin,

    I think reconciliation means remembering the people who lived on this land before us and thanking them for sharing it and finding it for everybody.

    We may be different on the outside but we are all the same on the inside and they are just like us.

    That every symbol has a meaning behind it or a story because they wouldn’t just put random symbols where ever they wanted they always meant something.
    Regards Chloe.

  3. dear mrs baldwin
    I think reconciliation week means to recognise people of different cultures

    i think its important to recognise everyone because its not right to tease people because of where their from and what they believe in.

    what i learnt about aboriginal cultures and symbols is that the aboriginal people could only use the colours in their surroundings From Kyra.😎

    1. Dear Kyra,

      I believe the same as you we should recognise people for how they really are and we shouldn’t gudge a person for how they look like there’s a saying that goes like don’t gudge a book by there cover.

      Also all the symbols that we learnt were really cool some of them I had seen before and some I hadn’t seen before.

      Regards Chloe.

  4. Dear miss Baldwin
    I really enjoyed the we made T shirts and it was so fun. I loved the dot panting with all the dark cullers and that all look so good out side of the class room with the black yellow and red
    From Amelia

  5. Dear Miss Baldwin ,
    i think reconciliation shows the Kauna and Aboriginal people and the white people coming together as one.
    It is important to recognise everyone’s culture and background regardless of race or colour and understand and respect everyone.
    At all special events and ceremonies it is now tradition to welcome the Kauna people before the start of any event or game. 3 weeks ago there was the Indigenous round for AFL clubs and there were traditional dances performed at every game. Even the players wore Indigenous guernseys with symbols representing their communities like waterholes and ovals.

  6. Dear Mrs Baldwin,
    I think reconciliation means recognising all of the kaurna people that were here before us because they own this land and country.

    I think its important to recognise everyone different because its our diversity and identity and if everyone was the same life wouldn’t be fun.

    I learnt that the aboriginal culture and art symbols are like language to the aboriginal people and it would be hard to be an aboriginal person without them. By Josh😎

  7. Dear mrs Baldwin what i think Reconciliation day means is not teasing peoples cultures because that is racist and i think it is a day where people died and we will still remember in our beautiful hearts.I think it is cool if you could learn about peoples cultures so you could know something about them that you don’t know.Well first of all they had no money to buy paint.So they got clay water dirt rocks to make paint.They had no paper so the drew on walls in caves.Their symbols represent about real stuff they use.For an example they have a boomerang to kill animals so that is a symbol they have done and showed people.I would love to visit Uluru to see there dot painting and meet some Aboriginal people.

  8. dear mrs.b

    i think reconciliation means to respect tribes

    because it’s the opposite of excluding people which is a form of bullying

    i learnt that ones that do with people have u/n shapes

    from jono

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