Voyages and First Peoples

Overview

Students investigate why European powers explored the world and how exploration led to British colonisation of Australia. They examine brief profiles of Willem Janszoon, James Cook and Matthew Flinders, while recognising that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples have cared for and known Country for tens of thousands of years. The lesson uses careful language: Europeans explored from their own perspective; Australia was not “discovered”.

Learning intentions

• WALT explain some reasons European countries explored the world.
• WALT identify key facts about selected European explorers and their voyages.
• WALT describe how exploration contributed to British colonisation.
• WALT recognise that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples had established communities, cultures and connections to Country before European arrival.

Success criteria

• I can name at least two reasons Europeans explored.
• I can place selected explorers and voyages in the correct order.
• I can explain one way exploration helped lead to colonisation.
• I can use respectful historical language, including “First Peoples” and “European arrival”.

Curriculum links

• Aboriginal Peoples’ experiences and perspectives of colonisation.
• Significant individuals, ideas and events that shaped the past.
• Historical concepts and skills, including chronology, cause and effect, perspectives and using sources safely.
• Informative writing: planning and creating a short explanation for a target audience.

Lesson structure (45 minutes)

1. 0–5 min · Hook and respectful framing. Display the opening question in the voyages and perspectives slide deck: “Can a place be discovered if people already live there?” Show a map of Australia and explain that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples are the First Peoples, with continuing connections to Country; students silently write one thought, then share with a partner.

2. 5–12 min · Why explore? Use the voyages and perspectives slide deck to introduce four age-appropriate motives: finding trade routes and valuable goods, increasing national power, spreading Christianity, and curiosity or scientific knowledge. Students sort these ideas orally into “wealth”, “power”, “beliefs” and “knowledge”, then discuss why one voyage may have had more than one reason.

3. 12–22 min · Explorer profiles. Present the profiles in the voyages and perspectives slide deck:

• Willem Janszoon: Dutch navigator whose ship Duyfken reached the western Cape York Peninsula in 1606.
• James Cook: British captain who charted the east coast in 1770 after travelling through the Pacific; he named the area New South Wales for Britain.
• Matthew Flinders: British navigator who circumnavigated and mapped much of the Australian coastline between 1801 and 1803 and supported the name “Australia”.

Clarify that other Aboriginal names and knowledge of Country existed long before these voyages. Students record one date, place and purpose for each explorer on the explorer profiles and colonisation worksheet.

4. 22–32 min · Chronology and cause-and-effect. In pairs, students use the worksheet to place the explorers and events in order: Aboriginal Peoples’ continuing occupation and cultures; Janszoon’s voyage; Cook’s mapping of the east coast; the First Fleet’s arrival in 1788; Flinders’ mapping. Teacher checks the sequence, then models the chain: “Exploration produced maps and information; this helped Britain plan and support colonisation.” Students add one cause-and-effect arrow and discuss why mapping was useful to colonisers.

5. 32–40 min · Perspectives writing. Revisit the voyages and perspectives slide deck and ask: “How might a British sailor and an Aboriginal person living on the east coast describe the same arrival differently?” Students complete the worksheet prompt: “European exploration contributed to colonisation because…” using two facts. They must include one respectful statement about Aboriginal Peoples’ prior ownership, occupation or connection to Country. Students may share responses, without role-playing or speaking as Aboriginal people.

6. 40–45 min · Plenary and assessment. Students complete the final three questions on the explorer profiles and colonisation worksheet and hand it in. Invite several students to answer: “What is the difference between exploration and colonisation?” Correct the misconception that Australia was empty or undiscovered, and preview that the next lesson will examine Aboriginal experiences and responses to colonisation.

Resources

• the voyages and perspectives slide deck
• the explorer profiles and colonisation worksheet
• Projector or interactive whiteboard
• World map and map of Australia
• Displayed WALT and success criteria
• Pencils and coloured pencils
• Classroom timeline or board space

Assessment

• Listen for accurate explanations during the motives discussion and check whether students distinguish exploration from colonisation.
• Review pair timelines for correct chronology and the cause-and-effect link between mapping, information and colonisation.
• Collect the worksheet to assess factual accuracy, respectful language, use of evidence and the quality of the written explanation.

Differentiation

• Support students with a word bank: explorer, voyage, trade, power, map, Country, arrival, colonisation and perspective. Provide partially completed dates and sentence starters such as “One reason Europeans explored was…” and “This helped colonisation because…”.
• Read profile text aloud, use large-print maps and visuals, and allow students to give an oral response before writing. Pair students strategically and chunk the worksheet into one section at a time.
• EAL/D learners may label diagrams, rehearse answers with a partner and use a bilingual dictionary or translated key words where available.
• Advanced learners compare two explorers’ motives and explain how maps can reflect the priorities and perspective of the person who made them. They can add a further explorer, such as Abel Tasman, and locate the voyage on the map.

Extension

• Research a local Aboriginal place name or historical site, using teacher-approved sources, and write two sentences explaining why the place should not be described only through a European explorer’s name.
• Create a short “two perspectives” caption for a map: one caption from a European voyage account and one caption explaining the continuing significance of Country for First Peoples.