Activity Introduction
Quick summary: Students evaluate the Queensland and NSW floods to explore the different impacts and responses to a hydrological hazard. Students will work together to create a disaster-ready plan for their classrooms and home.
Subjects: Geography.
Year Level: Years 7 & 8.
Topics: Natural hazards, floods, Australia, preparedness.
Teaching Time: 120 minutes (best completed over a number of lessons).
21st-century skills:
Australian Curriculum Mapping
Content descriptions:
Year 7 English:
- Causes, impacts and responses to an atmospheric or hydrological hazard (ACHGK042)
- Strategies used to enhance the liveability of places, especially for young people, including examples from Australia and Europe (ACHGK047).
Year 8 Geography:
- Evaluate sources for their reliability and usefulness and select, collect and record relevant geographical data and information, using ethical protocols, from appropriate primary and secondary sources (ACHGS056).
Syllabus outcomes: GE4-2, GE4-3, GE4-7.
General capabilities: Literacy, Critical and Creative Thinking, Personal and Social Capability.
Cross-curriculum priority: Sustainability.
Relevant parts of the Year 7 achievement standards:
Students understand that the environment has its specific hazards. ‘Place and liveability’ focuses on the concept of place through an investigation of liveability. It develops students’ ability to evaluate the liveability of their own place and to investigate whether it can be improved through planning.
Relevant parts of Year 8 achievement standards:
By the end of Year 8, students explain geographical processes that influence the characteristics of places and explain how places are perceived and valued differently. They explain interconnections within environments and between people and places and explain how they change places and environments. They compare alternative strategies to a geographical challenge, taking into account environmental, economic and social factors.
Time required: 120 minutes (best completed over a number of lessons).
Level of teacher scaffolding: High – facilitate small group work and class discussion, invite a guest speaker and monitor homework.
Resources required:
- Index cards for the “Take note” activity
- Post-it notes for the post-it parade activity
- Poster paper for small groups to prepare a classroom emergency plan
- Student Worksheets – one copy per student
- Your school’s emergency plan (and possibly a guest speaker from within the school).
Cool Australia’s curriculum team continually reviews and refines our resources to be in line with changes to the Australian Curriculum.
