Researching Significant People

Lesson Overview

This is the third lesson in the unit "Australia’s Journey to Federation". Students will investigate key figures who played significant roles in Australia's path to federation. They will develop skills in using historical sources and evidence to gain a deeper understanding of these individuals and their contributions. This lesson builds on students' developing historical inquiry skills appropriate to Year 5 in New South Wales.

---

Learning Objectives

By the end of this 60-minute lesson, students will be able to:

• Identify key figures involved in Australia's journey to federation.
• Use a variety of historical sources (primary and secondary) to research these figures.
• Explain the roles and significance of these individuals in the federation process.
• Develop critical thinking by evaluating sources for usefulness and reliability.

---

Curriculum Links (NSW Syllabus for the Australian Curriculum - History, Year 5)

Content Descriptions:

• The significance of people, including political and social leaders, and their role in the federation process.
• The use of primary and secondary sources to identify and sequence information about the past.
• Develop questions and locate, collect, and organise information from a range of sources.

Skills:

• Pose and refine questions about the past.
• Locate and collect relevant information and data from a range of primary and secondary sources.
• Use historical terms and concepts to sequence events and identify cause and effect.
• Evaluate sources to determine origin, purpose, and perspectives.

Achievement Standard:

• Students explain the roles of significant people and ideas that led to Australian Federation.
• Students develop questions and locate, collect, and organise information and data.
• Students evaluate sources for origin, purpose, and perspectives and use evidence to draw conclusions.

---

Lesson Structure (60 minutes)

1. Introduction (10 minutes)

• Briefly recap what federation is and why it's important in Australian history.
• Introduce the lesson focus: researching significant people in the federation movement (e.g., Sir Henry Parkes, Edmund Barton, Annie Parkhouse, Catherine Helen Spence).
• Show images and short biographies of two or three key figures as examples.
• Explain the importance of reliable historical sources—primary and secondary—and how they help us learn about the past.

2. Inquiry Question Development (5 minutes)

• Have students work as a class to develop one or two research questions around these people, such as:
• Who were they?
• What did they do to help Australia become a federation?
• Why are they remembered today?
• Write the questions on the board.

3. Source Exploration and Research Activity (25 minutes)

• Set up research stations with physical or digital copies of historical sources (e.g., letters, photographs, newspaper articles, speeches, timelines).
• Divide the class into small groups of 4-5 students.
• Each group selects one significant figure to research using the sources provided.
• Provide structured worksheets guiding students to:
• Identify facts about their person.
• Note key contributions.
• Determine the type of source and discuss its reliability and perspective.
• Encourage group discussion to synthesise this information.

4. Group Presentations and Class Discussion (15 minutes)

• Each group shares key findings about their significant person.
• Facilitate a class discussion to compare and contrast the roles of these people.
• Highlight how different sources give us different insights.
• Ask students to reflect on how these individuals contributed to federation and the importance of evidence in history.

5. Conclusion and Reflection (5 minutes)

• Summarise the main points learned.
• Prompt students to write a short reflection: "Why is it important to use historical sources to learn about people in history?"
• Collect reflections to informally assess understanding.

---

Resources Required

• Images and brief biographies of federation figures.
• Copies or printouts of historical sources (letters, newspaper clippings, speeches).
• Research worksheets tailored to guide inquiry.
• Whiteboard or smartboard for note-taking and questions.

---

Assessment

• Formative assessment from group presentations and discussions evaluating students' understanding of the individuals' significance.
• Evaluation of completed research worksheets for accuracy and depth of information collected.
• Review students' written reflections for understanding of the value of historical sources.

---

Differentiation Strategies

• Provide simplified texts or guided notes for students requiring additional support.
• Extend learning by asking more able students to evaluate the biases or perspectives in the sources.
• Support group work by assigning roles (researcher, recorder, presenter) to help engagement.

---

Teacher Notes

• Encourage critical thinking by asking students to consider why some people were more influential than others.
• Connect this lesson to future lessons where students will explore events and ideas that led to federation.
• Incorporate discussions about Australia's diverse historical perspectives, including Indigenous voices if time allows or in subsequent lessons.

---

This lesson plan aligns tightly with the NSW History curriculum for Year 5, focusing on research skills, historical inquiry, and understanding significant people in Australia's federation journey. It balances active student engagement with scaffolded inquiry activities fitting the developmental stage of Year 5 learners.