During National Reconciliation Week (NRW), Australians are encouraged to deepen their understanding of our shared past, recognise the rich cultures and accomplishments of First Nations peoples, and reflect on the meaningful actions we can take towards reconciliation. This year, it was celebrated from the 27th of May until the 3rd of June across Australia. NRW is widely acknowledged across the early childhood sector, with services working to ensure that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander perspectives are respected and deeply embedded. We spoke with Philippa (Educational Leader), Rebecca and Judy (Early Childhood Teachers), and our Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Karen Weston, about the meaning of Reconciliation Week and to paint a picture of how we celebrated the week at The Harbour.
Embedding First Nations perspectives in everyday practice
At The Harbour, educators feel strongly that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander perspectives bring a deeper layer to children’s learning. “Learning around First Nations histories, culture and language is something that is deeply embedded in the everyday of what we do,” says Philippa.
Children and educators at The Harbour learn from the Wurundjeri seasons, and observe, acknowledge and care for the land as the seasons shift and change. This learning on First Nations perspectives is both intentionally structured and incidentally embedded, with a daily Acknowledgement of County, spaces set up with genuine artefacts, and the colours of the flags woven into many learning environments.
”Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples are the longest surviving Indigenous culture in the world and the custodians of this land. Their knowledge systems, traditions, ceremonies, lore and culture have survived for over 60,000 years. Relationships and continual connections to Country and community are at the heart of who they are and the contributions of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people – past and present – should be acknowledged and valued in children’s learning.” (EYLF p16)
A collective celebration of learning and respect
At The Harbour, we acknowledged Reconciliation Week with a whole-service group time, where children, educators, and other staff from the Gowrie team Acknowledged Country. They embed teaching and learning around a all year round, so this acknowledging and celebrating cultures is understood by the children, and it isn’t tokenistic. “This celebration felt just like that; a celebration. It wasn’t a one-off event, it was an accumulation of all the learning, respect and knowledge we have around First Nations history and culture, and we came together to share and celebrate it.”
On Tuesday the 27th of May, all children, educators and some other Gowrie staff came together in the garden to do a whole-service Acknowledgement of Country, which was done in accompanying Auslan. At the beginning of the year, each room works together to create an Aboriginal flag which they display in their rooms, and use each day in their Acknowledgement of Country. For the service-wide group time, each room brought their flag, and contributed by sharing a book by an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander author which would support the learning in their program for the week. They also sung some songs in Woi Wurrung and Boonwurrung languages.
On the last day of Reconciliation Week, the service came together once more to reflect on their learnings over the week. Each program bought their book back to share with the team, reflecting on how the book guided and facilitated further learning. After this, the service will engage in a simultaneous story time, where an educator from each room will read their book in the garden, with all children selecting a book to listen to.
Shared experiences to build deeper understanding
Judy reflects on the event, saying “we created a shared moment which was engaging for all learners and deeply respectful of First Nations history, culture and teachings. This acknowledgement enabled all children to participate meaningfully and supported the development of cultural responsiveness across the entire service.”
Gowrie Victoria CEO Karen Weston attended this celebration, reflecting that “it was truly special to see children from every room to come together to celebrate Reconciliation Week. It was wonderful to hear the children singing songs that honour Country and culture, accompanied by meaningful hand movements about meeting places, the crow and Bunjil the eagle, and the beauty of sunrises and sunsets. Recognising Reconciliation Week, and this year’s theme, ‘Now More Than Ever’, is important to me personally, and to our team. It reflects our shared commitment to acknowledging the past and working together to build a respectful and inclusive future.”
Related links:
Read more: NAIDOC Week at Gowrie
Read more: Why getting children involved in reconciliation is important
Reflective questions:
- How does your service meaningfully acknowledge Reconciliation Week?
- In what ways are Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander perspectives embedded throughout your program?
- How do you ensure that learning and practices around First Nations culture and language are not tokenistic?
- What cultural resources or songs do you use in your daily routines?
- How can books by First Nations authors support your program?
