Electoral Divisions in Australia

Today we looked at current federal electorates in Australia.

We located our local electorate and had a general discussion about our the features of electorates and our leaders.

The up to date federal electorates and corresponding maps are listed here.

How a law is made in Australia

How a law is made in Australia

Week 6 Focus: Voting

This week we are looking at voting, elections, with a focus on the preferential system of voting used in Australia.

A good, short 1min clip on preferential voting in Australia:


2 rather basic (and sort of funny) videos produced by the Australian Greens for the 2007 election. It is good for students in that it visually explains how preferential voting works.





Of course the Australian Electoral Commission is the first place to look for information on voting in Australia.
An Australian Parliamentary Education Office Factsheet on Elections is here.

How to fill in an Upper House Ballot Paper - (Liberal)



The preferential vote as explained by... Christians! Well explained and easy to understand, supported by diagrams.



Enrol to Vote - Kevin Rudd 07 Ads




A man complains about the size of his Senate ballot paper but explains how to use it to vote.



Finally, A Federal Election 'megamix' of commercials from 1990 - very funny (and a good starting point for election issues.)

National Sorry Day

Today we had a class visit where we discussed the Stolen Generation and the importance of 'Sorry Day' to Australians.


The original 'I have a dream' speech.

Week 5 Focus: Levels of Government in Australia

This week we are focusing on the three levels of government in Australia.

The Parliamentary Education Office (PEO) has an excellent factsheet along with a quiz here. The Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) has a more comprehensive factsheet in easy to read language.

The PEO Assignment Assistant also has a page of links to relevant documents and media.

The Video 'What is Parliament' explains how Federal Parliament works in Australia.

The NT has an excellent printable class activity where students are asked to allocate tasks and responsibilities to the correct area of government.

This teachertube presentation summarises the levels of government in Australia very clearly:


A webquest for students to work through relating to the three levels of Australian government. This an excellent online extension task for students (make sure you read the 'for teachers' tab that will explain to you what exactly is going on) There is also printable worksheets available on the website to support the completion of the webquest.

Becoming an Australian Citizen

The Australian Government - Department of Immigration and Citizenship website has a fun 'Citizenship Ceremony' roleplay on their 'Resources for Schools' webpage.

My class is thinking of using this role play at our next assembly presentation!