Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders' Histories and Culture

The Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA) has outlined Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander histories and cultures as one of the Cross Curricular Priorities (CCP). ACARA aims to teach students an appreciation for the Aboriginal heritage of Australia, including the concepts of Country and Place, People, Identity and Culture. (ACARA, 2011) It states that it wishes to -

"...ensure that all young Australians will be given the opportunity to gain a deeper understanding and appreciation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander histories and cultures, their significance for Australia and the impact these have had, and continue to have, on our world." (ACARA, 2010, p20)

By teaching the principles of Aboriginal culture, such as caring for their country and for each other and learning lessons from the past, it is hoped that students will gain an understanding and respect for Australia's Aboriginal heritage.

Geographical activities could include looking at Aboriginal sacred grounds, and looking also at areas that have been developed against their will. It is important to emphasise the connection that Aborigines have with their land, in so doing, students will learn to identify with the cultural importance of preserving Aboriginal inheritance. Lessons could also look at the land and how that defines its people - comparing the differences between the Torres Strait Islanders and Aboriginals according to what land they are associated with and how long they'd been there. This allows students to become more familiar with the CCPs whilst they learn geographical skills.

References - 
Satour, T. (2012, September 23). Cultural Awareness Training [Video file]. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PZNDL37X_qE


Australian Government. Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority. (2010). The Shape of the Australian Curriculum. Retrieved from http://www.acara.edu.au/verve/_resources/Shape_of_the_Australian_Curriculum.pdf

Australian Government. Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reorting Authority. (2011). Shape of the Australian Curriculum: Geography. Retrieved from http://chc.moodle.com.au/pluginfile.php/22728/mod_resource/content/0/Shape_of_the_Australian_Curriculum_Geography-1.pdf

Sustainability

One of The Cross Curriculum Priorities (CCP) outlined by the Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA) is sustainability.
ACARA outlines the over-all goal behind teaching sustainability -
"...to allow young people to develop an appreciation of the need for more sustainable patterns of living, and to build capacities for thinking, valuing and acting necessary to create a more sustainable future." (ACARA, 2010)
In teaching sustainability to students, ACARA hopes to promote sustainable life style choices. In the geographical context, this could mean looking at the effects of unsustainable decisions in areas such as the mining industry, whaling industry and development of coastal areas and rain forests  These are large scale themes. The topic can be more localised as well - observe the effects of storm water run-off in a local area, which then has larger effects on the environment. In this way, teachers can give a small scale decision which leads to a larger scale of consequences. This will teach the geographical concept of scale.
Sustainability can not only look at the environment, but also at a range of other areas such as its extent to resources and people. An example would be looking at Australia's immigration policy in regards to population and the resources available to an expanding population.
Sustainability can must be considered in regard to the triple base line - economically, socially and environmentally. This outlines the fact that decisions must be made according to how it will affect the three areas. A sustainable decision will not compromise any of those areas in an unbalanced way.

(Ducommun, F. 2013)

Sustainability is a subject that students can be encouraged to be passionate about by encouraging them to get involved in making their school and home more sustainable. 

References - 

Australian Government. Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority. (2010). The Shape of the Australian Curriculum. Retrieved from http://www.acara.edu.au/verve/_resources/Shape_of_the_Australian_Curriculum.pdf

Australian Government. Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reorting Authority. (2011). Shape of the Australian Curriculum: Geography. Retrieved from http://chc.moodle.com.au/pluginfile.php/22728/mod_resource/content/0/Shape_of_the_Australian_Curriculum_Geography-1.pdf

Asia and Australia's Engagement with Asia

This Cross Curriculum Priority (CCP) hopes to achieve a generation that is aware of the influence that Australia's multiculturalism has in all aspects of life -
"...because as they develop a better understanding of the countries and cultures of the Asia region, they will come to appreciate the economic, political and cultural interconnections that Australia has with the region..." (ACARA, 2010)
Australia's relationship with Asia must also be demonstrated in the field of geography. Using maps and charts that are inclusive of Asia can help foster the understanding required by the Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA). Such a chart could be a weather chart which describes the geographical relationship between Asia's climate and Australia's climate. A good example are the El nino and La nina cycles which are dependent air currents surrounding Asia.

This map shows a stage of the El nino, La nina cycle, from which we can draw the fact that Australian weather is influenced by Asian weather.

As Geography is a primarily skills based subject, teachers are given more opportunities to teach content according to the CCPs. Whilst teaching the skills for contour drawing, students can be examining a map of the Himalaya mountains. While learning about weather place, students can be examining an Australian site which has been influenced by Asia.  In this way, students learn the underpinning ideas outlined by ACARA whilst learning the skills and concepts that need to be taught. 

References - 

Australian Government. Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority. (2010). The Shape of the Australian Curriculum. Retrieved from http://www.acara.edu.au/verve/_resources/Shape_of_the_Australian_Curriculum.pdf

Australian Government. Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reorting Authority. (2011). Shape of the Australian Curriculum: Geography. Retrieved from http://chc.moodle.com.au/pluginfile.php/22728/mod_resource/content/0/Shape_of_the_Australian_Curriculum_Geography-1.pdf