Penal Colony Beginnings

Overview

In this lesson, students examine why the British established a penal colony at Sydney Cove in 1788 and analyse the different experiences and perspectives of convicts and First Nations Australians. Students connect these events to changes in Australian society’s ideas, beliefs and values.

Learning intentions

Students will:

• Investigate causes and effects of early European contact and extension of settlement through the establishment of the penal colony.
• Describe the experiences of convicts arriving in 1788 and how they were able (and not able) to begin new lives.
• Analyse how colonisation affected First Nations Australians, including frontier conflict, disruption and disease.
• Use evidence from historical sources to explain how perspectives differ and why this matters today.

Success criteria

Students can:

• Explain at least three reasons Britain established a penal colony in 1788.
• Compare convict experiences with Indigenous experiences using specific evidence from the lesson sources.
• Identify impacts of colonisation on First Nations Australians (e.g. removal from land, violence, disease, cultural disruption).
• Write a short historical explanation that uses appropriate terms such as “invasion”, “colonisation” and “settlement”, and justifies word choice.

Curriculum links

• AC9HH9K03 — causes and effects of European contact and extension of settlement, including impact on First Nations Peoples.
• AC9HH9K06 — different experiences and perspectives of colonisers, settlers and First Nations Australians and how these shaped changes to Australian ideas, beliefs and values.
• AC9HH9K02 — key social and political changes and their significance in development of Australian society (early colony context).
• Historical skills focus: interpreting sources, comparing perspectives, and using evidence to support claims.

Lesson structure (60 minutes)

1. 0–5 min · Hook (Think). Teacher displays two short quotations—one from a convict memoir/letter excerpt describing arrival and one from a contemporary historical summary describing Indigenous disruption—and students quick-write: “What might each person be worried about or hoping for?” Students share one idea with a partner, then one response is captured on the board.

2. 5–15 min · Direct teach (Cause → Effect). Teacher mini-lesson explains: British imperial expansion, overcrowded prisons in Britain, desire for control and economic growth, and the strategic choice of Sydney Cove. Teacher also introduces the idea that “settlement” did not occur in a blank space, and that terms are contested. Students complete a guided notes grid: “Cause in Britain” / “Decision made” / “Effect on colony at Sydney Cove”.

3. 15–28 min · Source investigation (Convicts). Teacher provides a small set of source cards (3 convict perspectives: a shipboard condition description, early work assignment, and a later reflection on opportunities/limitations). Students work in groups of four to sort cards into: “Hardship”, “Control/discipline”, “Chance of a new life”. Students then select one card and write two evidence statements: “This suggests…” and “This means…”.

4. 28–40 min · Source investigation (First Nations Australians). Teacher provides a second set of source cards summarising impacts around 1788–1790s: dispossession/land disruption, frontier tensions, disease, and changes to daily life. Students complete a “Impact ladder” with three rungs: short-term (conflict/disruption), medium-term (loss of access, movement), longer-term (societal change). Students add one “Perspective question” for each rung (e.g. “How might this look from the viewpoint of First Nations people?”).

5. 40–52 min · Perspective continuum (Agree/Disagree). Teacher posts four statements on the continuum line (Strongly agree → Strongly disagree), such as:

• “Convicts were mostly given fair opportunities to start again.”
• “The colony changed Indigenous life dramatically and quickly.”
• “Words we use (invasion/colonisation/settlement) shape what we understand.”
• “Different sources tell different truths because people experienced different realities.” Students place themselves, then prepare a 20-second justification using evidence from the source cards.

6. 52–59 min · Consolidation writing (Historical explanation). Teacher models a short paragraph structure: Claim → Evidence → Explain impact → Conclude with contested terminology. Students draft a 8–10 sentence response: “How did the establishment of the penal colony in 1788 create different experiences for convicts and First Nations Australians, and what changes did it set in motion for Australian society?”

7. 59–60 min · Exit ticket. Students answer one question: “Which term would you use—‘invasion’, ‘colonisation’ or ‘settlement’—to describe what happened in 1788, and why? Include one piece of evidence.”

Resources

• Source card pack: convict excerpts and impact summaries for First Nations Australians (teacher-prepared)
• Cause-and-effect notes grid (print or digital)
• Impact ladder worksheet
• Perspective continuum statement cards
• Draft paragraph template and writing paper
• Continuum line taped on floor or chair arrangement
• Highlighters/markers (one colour per category on source sorting)

Assessment

• Formative: teacher circulates during source sorting, listening for correct identification of hardship/control/opportunity and accurate impact categories.
• Formative: students’ continuum justifications assessed using a checklist (uses evidence, acknowledges perspective differences, uses appropriate terminology).
• Summative for this lesson: short historical explanation in the consolidation writing, focusing on claim-evidence alignment and correct explanation of differing experiences and impacts.

Differentiation

• Support: provide sentence starters for source analysis (“This suggests… because…” “From this perspective, the impact is…” “One reason the accounts differ is…”).
• Support: pre-highlight key phrases on source cards to reduce reading load; allow audio read-aloud for one card per group.
• Extension: students may compare how “settlement” vs “colonisation” changes the meaning of their paragraph, then add one sentence anticipating a counterargument.
• EAL/SEN: offer a vocabulary bank for discipline/control, opportunity/new life, dispossession, disruption, disease, frontier conflict; allow oral rehearsal of justifications before writing.