Year 8 JacPlus 11.7 Lesson

Year 8 Geography

Appreciating Landscapes

Jacplus 11.7

​Lesson Goals

By the end of this lesson:
1. Students can explain the different ways we treat landscapes and different impacts of this use.
2. Students can describe the different uses of Kakadu National Park, and why it is valued differently.

What are the best landscapes you have experienced?
What was so good about them? Discuss and share.

​

​How to appreciate a landscape?

Poll

Imagine you had a chance to go to ONE landscape in the world for a holiday.

Which one would you rather visit

• Polar: Antarctica, Arctic, etc.

• Desert: Sahara in Africa, Gibson in Australia, etc.

• Rainforest: Bali, Queensland, etc.

• Mountain: Himalayas, Andes, Alps, etc.

Poll

Imagine you had a chance to go to ONE landscape in the world for a holiday.

Which one would you rather visit?

• Built: New York, London or Paris, etc.

• Islands: Hawaii, Tahiti, etc.

• Karst: Caves around the world, etc

• Grasslands: Serengeti in Africa, American Prairie, etc

We will watch a short film about Kakadu. Identify one thing you like the most about what you see.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rD9v0IkqaiQ

​6:20 mins

Kakadu National Park

Word Cloud

What the best thing you saw? Use only one or two words to answer.

Let's take a look at human impact on landscapes, before we travel to Kakadu again.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FO80UhkK5GE

​4:25 mins

How do humans use landscapes?

Multiple Choice

What percentage of the world's population lives in urban settings?

• Around 65%

• Around 55%

• Around 75%

• Around 45%

Multiple Choice

What is one of the most obvious ways humans shape landscapes and landforms?

• Natural Erosion

• Reforestation

• Urban Development

• Farming

Multiple Choice

What percentage of Australia's population lived in urban areas in 2016?

• Almost 100%

• Almost 90%

• Almost 80%

• Almost 70%

Poll

Do you think it is possible to have urban development without damaging the natural landscape we live in?

• Yes

• No

• Sometimes

• I don't know

Australian use of Landscapes

Landscapes are the product of processes that have operated for millions of years.
While all humans have come to realise the importance of the landscape and the role it plays in our lives, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures have always known that it is important to work with nature rather than always seek to change and exploit it.

Multiple Choice

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures have always known that...

• we should work with not exploit nature

• we should exploit nature

• we should enjoy nature

• we should worship nature

Aboriginal Cultural Knowledge

The Aboriginals have spent thousands of years learning about Australia's landscapes:

1. They relied on the plants, animals and the environment for their survival.
2. They didn't exploit it, but nurtured it so they could continue to use it and survive.

Multiple Select

Relying and nurturing the landscape is an example of which key concepts in Geography? Choose all that apply.

• Space

• Place

• Interconnection

• Sustainability

Europeans, on the other hand, arrived in 1788 and occupied areas of Australia. They had a very different view of the landscape, based on ideas they brought with them from Britain.

1. They sought to change the landscape and adapt it to meet their needs.
2. They established permanent settlements.
3. Depended on farming introduced species to provide for their needs.

​

Match

Match the following different views of the land

• Respect for the land

• Force land to adapt to their needs

• Nurture the land

• Change the landscape

• Permanent settlements

Aboriginal

European

Aboriginal

European

European

• Aboriginal

• European

• Aboriginal

• European

• European

​Kakadu National Park, covers an area of approximately 20 000 square kilometres of the Northern Territory.

It stretches 200 kilometres from north to south, and spans 100 kilometres from east to west.

Within the boundaries of the park are vast uranium deposits which are mined.

Kakadu is unique in that it is recognised for both its natural beauty and its cultural value.

​Kakadu National Park

Hotspot

Locate Kakadu National Park

More than 200 000 tourists visit Kakadu National Park annually.

Kakadu is a United Nations World Heritage List site that is recognised for both its cultural and natural importance.

The natural heritage of the area includes diverse native plant and animal species, vast wetlands, steep gorges and waterfalls.

​Value of Kakadu 1

Multiple Choice

How many tourists visit Kakadu National Park annually?

• More than 200,000

• Over 300,000

• About 100,000

• Nearly 50,000

Multiple Select

What type of natural heritage does Kakadu National Park include? Choose all that apply.

• Diverse native plant species

• Waterfalls

• Vast wetlands and steep gorges

• Many animal species

​Culturally, the area features some of the oldest rock art in the world, with Bininj/Mungguy paintings dating back 20 000 years. It is believed that Kakadu has been home to the Bininj and Mungguy peoples for over 65 000 years. Recent discoveries have dated human activity in the area to more than 80,000 years ago.

​

Value of Kakadu 2

Multiple Choice

How old are some of the oldest rock art paintings in the area?

• 65,000 years

• 20,000 years

• 10,000 years

• 80,000 years

Multiple Choice

What is the significance of the Bininj/Mungguy paintings?

• They are the first examples of abstract art

• They depict the arrival of European settlers

• They were created in the last 100 years

• They are considered some of the oldest rock art in the world

Kakadu also has vast deposits of uranium ore, which is a potentially valuable export for Australia.

Opponents of uranium mining are concerned about the possibility that Australia’s uranium could be processed and used to make nuclear weapons.

Others fear the effects of mining on the environment and the potential for a devastating pollution event.

​

​

​Value of Kakadu 3

Multiple Select

Choose all the answers that apply.

Opponents of uranium mining are concerned about the possibility that Australia’s uranium...

• could be used to make nuclear weapons

• could lead to pollution of Kakadu

• is offending the earth spirits of Kakadu

• is not being sold for a high enough price

By the end of this lesson:
1. Students can explain the different ways we treat landscapes and different impacts of this use.
2. Students can explain the different uses of Kakadu National Park, and why it is valued differently.

​
Let's complete this part of our lesson! Get ready to write some thoughts down.

Completing the lesson

Open Ended

Explain two different ways humans can treat landscapes, one positive and one negative.

Open Ended

Explain the impact of using our landscapes only for their material resources and wealth.

​Kakadu handed back to traditional owners: 2022

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tm-WQOJSh3E
2:21 mins

​What has happened to Kakadu now?

Open Ended

If traditional Aboriginal views of land are not about "owning" land but "belonging" to it:

Has anything changed in their view now that they are the owners of Kakadu?

Open Ended

1. If Aboriginal values in Kakadu have changed, why do you think this has happened?

2. Hint:

3. 1. Think about what has threatened Kakadu.

4. 2. Think about the influence of non-Aboriginal culture on their lives.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UAIBzwfG9pY

​
4:46 mins

Recent Archaeological finds in Kakadu 2017