Australia Ms Suggs Location Canberra is the capital

Australia *Ms. Suggs*

Location *Canberra is the capital of Australia.

Facts to Know • Aborigines were the original inhabitants or people who lived in Australia. • Australia is sometimes called "the land down under" because it lies in the Southern Hemisphere. • Australia is the smallest continent. • The country of Australia consists of the continent of Australia, with the island state of Tasmania.

Aborigine People

Flag This is the British Flag. Do you see how the creators of the Australia Flag made it similar? • In 1901, the Commonwealth of Australia was formed. Until then, Australia used Britain's flag, the Union Jack. • In the top left hand corner is the Union Jack. This shows that Australia is part of the British Commonwealth. • Below the Union Jack is a large white star with seven points. The points stand for the six states and the territories. Originally this star had six points. • On the right side are the stars of the Southern Cross. The southern Cross was used due to the fact that it can always be seen in the Australian sky at night.

Language 1. 1. 1. English! Just like us. Australian English has a distinctive accent and vocabulary. Data gathered in 2011 stated that 76. 8% of people spoke only English at home. 1. Other languages spoken at home included Mandarin 1. 6%, Italian 1. 4%, Arabic 1. 3%, Cantonese 1. 2% and Greek 1. 2%. Click here to listen to Australian “lingo. ” http: //www. uv. es/anglotic/accents_of_english/03/examples_of_australian_english. html

Christmas Celebrations • In Australia, Christmas is celebrated during the Summer. Their summer months are from December to February because of their location to the equator. • They have trees, family feasts, and Santa, just like us! • Since they speak English like we do in the United States, they say Merry Christmas the exact same way.

Aboriginal Art • Made by the Indigenous peoples of Australia • Painting on leaves • Wood carvings • Rock carvings • Sculpture • Sand Painting • Dot Painting

Dot Paintings • Use various, traditional Aboriginal colors like yellow (the sun), brown (the soil), red (desert sand) and white (the clouds and the sky). • Dot paintings can be painted anywhere, but in aboriginal times they were painted on rocks and caves. • Pictures consisted of nature images like animal or lakes. • Also painted stories and legends on caves and rocks to stand for their religions.

Create Your Own Dot Painting! • Choose 1 of the masks to decorate. • Use a Q-tip to “dot” your mask. • Use the colors yellow, brown, red, white, and blue to create your own dot painting.