HPE Unit Plan:
Overarching Question: How can we use Health and Physical Activity to teach the importance of health and
movement in diverse Indigenous communities?
Year level/Class: Year5/6
Number of lessons: 5
Topic
(Focus area from AC: HPE)
Student Outcomes
The importance of movement in diverse Indigenous communities
HPE Principles:
Strength based approach – How can students be supported to develop
knowledge, understanding and skills to make healthy, safe and active choices
that will enhance their own and others’ health and wellbeing? / How can this
be done by looking at students and their communities’ particular strengths and
resources that can be nurtured to improve their own and other’s health,
wellbeing, movement competence and participation in physical activity?
A strength-based approach will be used throughout this unit as students will
have opportunities to participate in a wide variety of Traditional Indigenous
Games from the Yulunga Games resource. These games provide opportunities
for movement to enhance health and wellbeing.
Physical
 Develop skills of throwing a range of objects:
- Over arm throw: by standing side on to the target, bring arm
back, elbow up bent at a 90-degree angle, step towards target,
throw and follow through.
- Underarm throw: by holding the ball in fingertips, face front
on to target, swing arm straight back, step towards target with
opposite leg to arm, swing arm forwards, release and follow
through.
 Develop skills of bowling a ball by facing target, hold ball in
fingertips, swing arm straight back, step towards target with
opposite leg to arm, bend knees (lunge position), swing arm
forwards, release and follow through.
 Develop skills of hitting a ball using a bat by gripping the bat
with 2 hands directly on top of one another, watching the ball
on to the bat, flick wrists and hit.
Cognitive
 Know and understand how to control ball speed when by using
more force to hit / throw it further and less force to hit / throw
it shorter distances in games.
Social
 Communicate effectively with teammates by cooperating and
calling names when working together in a range of team
situations.
Behavioural
 Understand fair play (following set rules of Indigenous games
discussed each lesson).
 Showing respect of diverse Indigenous cultures through using
correct terminology / terms when describing and discussing
(elements of) Indigenous games and acknowledging the
history of the game.
Strand(s)

ACARA
The importance of movement in
diverse Indigenous communities
Health and PE
Sub-strands
Movement and Physical Activity
Curriculum content descriptors
Moving our body
Practise specialised movement skills and apply them in a variety
of movement sequences and situations (ACPMP061).
Elaborations
- applying stability and locomotor skills to dodge and feint in
different movement situations
- applying kicking, striking and throwing skills to propel an
object and keep it in motion
- performing activities that involve a transition from one skill to
another, such as from dribbling to shooting or from leaping to
balancing
- designing a sequence of passes between teammates to
maintain possession or move a piece of equipment from one
point to another
Understanding movement
Participate in physical activities designed to enhance fitness,
and discuss the impact regular participation can have
on health and wellbeing (ACPMP064).
Elaborations
- examining the benefits of physical activity to social health and
mental wellbeing
- participating in a range of physical activities and exploring
their health, skill and fitness benefits
- examining and describing health-related and skill-related
components of fitness
Participate in physical activities from their own and others’
cultures, and examine how involvement
creates community connections and intercultural
understanding (ACPMP066).
Elaborations
- researching and participating in different cultural games or
physical activities that children in other countries play
Learning through movement
Participate positively in groups and teams by encouraging others and
negotiating roles and responsibilities (ACPMP067).
Elaborations
- using reflective listening when working in small groups on
movement tasks or challenges
Achievement Standard
By the end of Year 6 students:
- access and interpret health information and apply decision-
making and problem-solving skills to enhance their own and
others’ health, safety and wellbeing.
 - They perform specialised movement skills and sequences and
propose and combine movement concepts and strategies to
achieve movement outcomes and solve movement challenges.
- They apply the elements of movement when composing and
performing movement sequences.

General capabilities
Personal and Social Capability
Self-management
 Develop self-discipline and set goals
 Become confident, resilient and adaptable
Self-awareness
 Develop reflective practice
 Understand relationships
Social management
 Work collaboratively
 Communicate effectively
 Make decisions
 Negotiate and resolve conflict

Literacy
Composing texts through speaking, writing and creating
 Compose texts
 Use language to interact with others
Word Knowledge
 Understand learning area vocabulary

Intercultural Understanding
Recognising culture and developing respect
 Explore and compare cultural knowledge, beliefs and practices
 Investigate culture and cultural identity

Critical and Creative Thinking

Generating ideas, possibilities and actions
 Seek solutions and put ideas into action
 Consider alternatives
 Imagine possibilities and connect ideas
Reflecting on thinking and processes
 Transfer knowledge into new contexts
Analysing, synthesising and evaluating reasoning and procedures
 Apply logic and reasoning
Inquiring – identifying, exploring and organising information and
ideas
 Identify and clarify information and ideas

Ethical Understanding
Understanding ethical concepts and issues
 Recognise ethical concepts

Cross curricular perspectives

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Histories and Cultures –
- Yulunga Games Resource (a range of activities / games
incorporated into the unit plan to demonstrate different ways
of moving in different situations).

Student Diversity
 Catering for a diverse range of learning styles.

 Catering for a range of prior knowledge / experiences in

 relation to different fundamental movement patterns

 Each student is entitled to knowledge, understanding and skills

that provide a foundation for successful and lifelong learning
and participation in the Australian community.

Engage
Activity / Topic Analysis This Year 5/6 Physical Education Unit was developed from using a
wide range of games / activities from the Yulunga Traditional Games
Scope of topic resource. This is a valuable resource as not only does it provide a
Student prior learning range of physical activities for students to learn and participate in, but
it also allows students many opportunities. They learn about diverse
Indigenous cultures, how these games were traditionally played,
equipment used, language and learn about the importance of
movement in a fun, engaging way.

The unit introduces Traditional Indigenous games that incorporate

students developing their communication and collaborative working
skills, they use a range of fundamental and specialised movement
skills to develop their throwing and catching, kicking and hitting
abilities in a variety of game situations. Students develop their
understanding of fair play by following the set rules of the Indigenous
games which will be discussed each lesson as well as showing respect
of diverse Indigenous cultures through using correct terminology /
terms when describing and discussing elements of Indigenous games
and acknowledging the history of each game.

To create interest and stimulate students’ curiosity in the topic students

will participate in these fun games and activities from Indigenous
cultures. They will also reflect on teacher questions to determine prior
knowledge of these Indigenous game, for example by asking;
 Have students ever heard of these games before?
 Do students know of any Indigenous games?
 Have they played any Indigenous games before?
 Have students had opportunities to participate in Indigenous
games before?
 Have students participated in any Indigenous games in their
own communities?
Furthermore, students will work collaboratively in groups and get
straight into games by reducing instructional talk time and setting up
time and increasing active learning time. Maximum Individual
Participation (MIP) will also be put in place so all students are
participating.

Group discussion time and working collaboratively in pairs / small

groups will help provide opportunities for students to express what
they know about the knowledge, concept or skill being developed and
assist them to make connections between what they know and the new
ideas. In Lesson 1 students discuss their prior knowledge through a
dynamic movement activity where they move between different
coloured cones which represent their current knowledge /
understandings. They move around in different ways and discuss ideas
with the others at their cone. This gives the teacher opportunities to
observe student understanding.

Explore
Hands-on tasks such as participating in a range of Indigenous games
from the Yulunga games resource will support students to generate and
investigate questions. They answer reflective questions in pairs / small
groups before, during and after participating in games, activities and
movement sequences. These learning tasks will enable students to
gather and process new information that challenges their existing
knowledge and understandings by making possible connections
between games they have played in the past and to the Indigenous
games they play in class. They can also make connections to their own
cultures as they consider the similarities and differences within these
games. Furthermore, they can discuss if certain aspects of games and
movement aspects that are part of other games they have played
without knowing the background / that it is a Traditional Indigenous
game.

Explain
Students will communicate what they know and understand and also
demonstrate the new skills they have learned through discussions in
pairs, small groups or as a whole class. Strategies such as collaborative
learning, reflective questions and learning through moving will assist
students to connect and organise new and existing knowledge. This
will be done by participating in conversations / discussions and
showing their understanding and learnings of the movements in game
situations. They will also discuss history and rules of Indigenous
games.

Scope of Topic:

Lesson 1:
Indigenous Game - Kai
Background introduction of the game:
 In this traditional game from the Torres Strait a number of players
stood in a circle and sang the 'kai wed' (ball song) as they hit a ball
and tried to keep it up in the air with the palm of one hand at a time.
This Indigenous game was played using the thick, oval, deep red
fruit of the kai tree which is quite light when dry.

Activity 1:
Students stand in a circle and pass the ball around in any direction.
They can pass it across the circle, ensuring they communicate with the
recipient before releasing the ball. They attempt to work through the
whole team so everyone has a go.

Activity 2:
Give each player a number (1-6) and work through the numbers in a
set order standing stationary in a circle.
 E.g. 1 can only pass to 2 – 3 -4 – 5 – 6 – 5 etc.
Activity 3:
Student move around designated court space (netball third) continuing
to pass the ball around to the correct number.

Activity 4:
Introduce a class challenge – incorporate a time limit for students to
try and be able to pass the ball around successfully to everyone.
Getting into a good position to receive the ball e.g. scanning the court
and determining where the number prior is standing.

Lesson 2:
Indigenous Game – Gorri
Background introduction of the game:
 Bowling-ball or disc game played by Aboriginal boys and men
around Australia. They rolled rounded bark and other boys
would throw their spear at it for target practice.
Activity 1:
 Students work in pairs to take it in turns rolling the ball to each
other.
 This allows them to practice the motions of rolling the ball.
 Students start off standing 12 steps away from each other:
after a couple of rolls, students experiment and practice rolling
from different distances e.g. taking a few more steps back or
forwards.

Activity 2:
 Students work in pairs to practice rolling their ball at a
stationary object.

Activity 3:
Rules
- 2 foam balls are placed in the middle of the court
- When the teacher says “GO”, the students throw tennis balls at
the foam balls
- The aim of the game: work in groups to move the foam balls
past the oppositions line.
- When a foam ball crosses a line, the opposition team receives
a point.

Variations to Activity 3:
- Instead of the foam balls starting stationary, begin by rolling
them slowly across the playing area for students to start by
hitting a moving target.
Variations to main activity:
- Using different sized balls
- Size of playing field / area

Lesson 3:
Indigenous Game - Munhanganing
Background
The game of Munhanganing was played
by children of the Arnhem Land area
in northern Australia.
Children played this, and other running games, in
the flickering lights from firebrands of the grownups,
sitting about a camp site.

Description / Outline of the game:

- A running-and-chasing team game in which players attempt to
touch players on the opposing team.

Activity 1:
- Class splits into 2 teams; Team 1 – wurrurlurl and Team 2 –
munhanganing.
- Objective – Team 2 is to chase and catch all members of Team
1
- When they are caught, they move to the tree where they wait
until they are freed by other members of their team.
- Team members need to figure out effective strategies to work
together
- After an amount of time, the teams swap roles.

Activity 2:
- Variation 1 – playing the same game
 - Teams take turns in running and chasing
- This time each team can be timed to see which team can catch
the other team the fastest (students devise strategies for the
most effective way to move around and catch the opposition,
how can they all work together to catch they as fast as
possible?).
Activity 3:
- Variation 2 – playing the same game
- Students play until the teacher calls ‘swap’ where each teams’
roles change.
- This also means that all caught players become ‘free’ when
swap is called.
Activity 4:
- In small groups, students have time to come up with their own
variations to the game and how they can move around

Lesson 4:
Indigenous Game – Weet Weet + Woomera
Background
The throwing of the play-stick, commonly called the
weet weet (‘wit-wit’) was a popular activity among
Aboriginal people in some parts of Australia, and
various contests were held.
The weet weet was often referred to as the
‘kangaroo rat’, because when thrown correctly its
flight resembled the leaping action of this small
marsupial. A weet weet was like a giant tadpole.
The tail was a flexible stick and in some types when
it was thrown it was swung backward and forward
and bent almost double.
After being thrown onto (or through) a small mound
or pile of bushes, a weet weet could:
 leap along in a succession of bounds
 travel along the ground
 spin in a ‘bouncing’ action as it turned end over end
- Working together – community connections
- This is a throwing competition for distance and accuracy,
using a club or pin to represent a throwing stick or weet weet.

Activity 1:
- To begin with students, use bean bags to throw
- The player who throws it the longest distance or who it or was
closest to the target is the winner.
- There are multiple targets for students to aim for initially at
varying distances.
Activity 2:
- Introduce targets
- Students throw either bean bags, Juggling clubs or a tennis ball
in a stocking as far as they can or as close to the target as
possible to be determined the winner.

Activity 3:
Woomera
Background – p.195.
A woomera or throwing stick was used by Aboriginal boys and men in
all parts of Australia to propel spears with great force, often over
considerable distances. On Dunk Island in Queensland a favourite
target for spear-throwing contests was the white ant nests hanging
 from the gum trees.
- Students have a go at playing Woomera which is a different
Indigenous game with a similar objective to wana wana.

Lesson 5:
Indigenous Game – Wana Wana
Background
This is a version of a game played by the young Noongar girls in the
southwest of Western Australia. A girl used her wana (digging stick)
to stop the other girls hitting a short stick placed on the ground.

Players practice their throwing, catching and hitting skills.

Activity 1:
- Students work in pairs to practice throwing, hitting and
catching the ball
- Partner A underarm throws (lobs) the ball to the batter
- The batter hits it not too hard
- Partner A (the thrower) aims to catch the ball and throw it
again.
- Students swap roles after a few turns each.

Activity 2:
- Students work / play in groups of approximately 4 - 8 players.
- Players stand in a circle
- One player holding the bat stand in the centre of the circle
- Other players spread out evenly in the circle
- Each player in the circle takes turns to underarm throw (lob)
the ball to the batter who hits it not too hard to the person on
the thrower’s left.
- If the ball is not caught the player retrieves the ball and the
throwing, hitting and catching continues around the circle of
players.
- Each student has a turn at being the batter.

Student prior learning:

In Year 3 / 4 students:
- Use decision-making and problem-solving skills
to select and demonstrate strategies that help them stay safe,
healthy and active.

- They refine fundamental movement
skills and apply movement concepts and strategies in a variety
of physical activities and to solve movement challenges.

- They create and perform movement sequences
using fundamental movement skills and the elements of
movement.

Specific skills, What MUST you teach this particular group of students?
Knowledge,
 Benefits of participating in physical activity to promote
Understandings to be positive health and wellbeing through movement
developed through the topic
 Specialised movement skills (stability; balancing + locomotor
skills; running, jumping, skipping, etc.)

 Physical activity that relates to Indigenous culture (Indigenous

games)
  History + community connections to Yulunga Games played

 Exposing them to games and movement forms from diverse

Indigenous cultures

What SHOULD you teach this particular group of students?

 Designing a movement sequence incorporating Indigenous

perspectives / elements from games.

 Collaborative nature of Indigenous communities and use of

effective communication with teammates (e.g. in game
situations / in physical activity).

 Exposing them to types of exercise and movement activities

that they can engage / participate in at home and at school.

What COULD you teach this particular group of students?

 How to develop and implement reflective strategies using
both personal and alternative views.

Implications for Teaching Some possible implications for teaching this Year 5/6 Indigenous
games unit includes:

 Ensuring that MIP is achieved by minimising

instructional talk time, therefore, giving students more
active learning time to develop their understandings and
abilities.

 Providing students with key visual and verbal cues when

demonstrating. For example, providing for different types
of learners such as:

- Visual learners – visually demonstrating an activity so

students can clearly see demonstrations of the task and
what is required of them.
- Verbal learners – the teacher verbally says / explains
instructions for students to hear.
- Kinaesthetic learners – students get straight into the
activity and have a go for themselves at the same time as
the teacher is talking / demonstrating.
A combination of all of these teaching and learning strategies
would be beneficial to cater for multiple learning styles at the
same time.

 The teacher needs to be providing ongoing positive,

constructive and relevant feedback to help students focus
on particular aspects of their learning to improve.

 The teacher projecting their voice so it is loud and clear

to ensure all students can hear instructions which can
help with positive engagement throughout lessons.
  Having positive body language throughout lessons.

 Making modifications and progressions to activities to

simplify and provide a further challenge to students to
keep them engaged.

Assessment A variety of assessments will be used throughout the unit plan in order
to assess student progress and learning from the beginning to the end.
They will look at students’ understandings about the importance and
different ways of moving in games from diverse Indigenous
communities.

Formative Assessment

Formative assessment will be used throughout lessons within the unit

with the teacher making ongoing observations of students’ learning
through their participation in lessons and activities. The teacher will
observe and record in a checklist how students can demonstrate their
knowledge of movement skills learnt through participating in a range
of different Indigenous games. Students use fundamental and
specialised movement skills such as running, dodging, throwing,
catching, rolling and hitting a ball / object in game-based situations.
These can be connected to the outcomes; ‘Develop skills of throwing a
range of objects by standing side on to the target, bring arm back,
elbow up bent at a 90-degree angle, step towards target, throw and
follow through’, ‘underarm throw – hold ball in fingertips, face front
on to target, swing arm straight back, step towards with opposite foot
to hand, release and follow through’ and ‘know and understand how to
control ball speed by using more force to hit / throw it further and less
force to hit / throw it shorter distances in games’.
Furthermore, verbal conversations and discussions will be used with
students through participating in small group, pair or whole class
discussions when answering reflective questions before, during and
after games. These reflective questions get students to reflect on how
they can move around most effectively and ways to effectively
communicate with teammates and work together. They are also used
so students reflect on the history of each of these Indigenous
Traditional games and how they were important in communities.

Summative Assessment

A summative assessment will be used to assess students’ learning at

the end of the unit / in the final lesson.

The summative assessment involves students working in pairs / small

groups to teach another two groups / pairs an Indigenous game or
movement form of their own choice from the categories used
throughout the unit of running, dodging, throwing, catching, rolling
and hitting a ball / object. Students will select a game, locate and share
information about where it was traditionally played, with what
equipment, who played this game and skills, or knowledge developed.
 Students address the learning outcome; Showing respect of diverse
Indigenous cultures through using correct terminology / terms when
describing and discussing elements of Indigenous games and
acknowledging the history of the game. They also demonstrate their
understanding of fair play by following set rules of Indigenous games
being taught / played. Students discuss and demonstrate the
fundamental movement skills / movement forms used e.g. When
throwing shorter distances use less force in your throw and when
aiming further away you need to apply more force to the ball / object.

The teacher will also be assessing the students’ abilities to work

collaboratively and cooperate with one another by observing how they
communicate with one another and if their ideas flow.

This assessment task caters for students as it allows them some

freedom to choose a game that may have more significance / meaning
to them. Therefore, this can have a positive impact on their
engagement.

Moments for evidence There will be two moments / assessment points that will allow the
teacher to collect data and ascertain student’s attainment of 1 or more-
collection – x2 for Lesson unit outcomes during the first lesson.
Plan 1 Moments for evidence collection – x2
Moment 1:
In Lesson 1 the teacher will make observations and record findings in
the form of a checklist. This checklist will be used at the conclusion of
the unit to determine students’ progress. In particular, the teacher will
focus on the students’ ability to ‘communicate effectively with
teammates by cooperating and calling names when working together in
a team situation’ (social outcome)as well as how much force they
apply to the ball to hit it different distances which relates to the
outcome; ‘Know and understand how to control ball speed when using
more force to hit it further and less force to hit it shorter distances in
games’.

Moment 2:
The teacher will use the technique of asking reflective questions
throughout the lesson to gain a deeper understanding of students’
thoughts. The teacher will ask questions before, during and after
games to discuss e.g.
- How students can move around most effectively?
- How students can communicate more effectively?
- Different modes of communication? E.g. verbal and non-
verbal.
- The importance of movement?
- How they can improve to be more effective?

Resources Resources needed for this unit plan are used to help positively
enhance student learning through playing a variety of Traditional
Indigenous Games.
These resources include:
 Yulunga games resource
 The Australian Curriculum
 YouTube video – Lesson 1 Plan
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=__64FXz8urQ
Equipment:
 Bibs
 Cricket bats
 Bean bags
 Tennis balls
 Stockings
 Cones
 Juggling sticks
 Hula hoops
 Volleyballs
 Foam balls

Links to other Learning Literacy

- Throughout these PE lessons, students are also using their
Areas literacy skills when they are using verbal language to
communicate with their classmates. This verbal
communication is used when discussing game strategies,
determining who to pass e.g. the ball to, instructions,
answering / discussing reflective questions.
- This PE Indigenous games unit could also link to the literacy
learning area through students undertaking tasks revolving
around writing up an Indigenous games booklet which they
can refer back to whenever they would like. This booklet can
include; history of Indigenous games, what they involve, rules
for how to play, equipment, etc.

HASS
- This PE unit has links to the HASS learning area as students
are looking at where these traditional Indigenous games are
played around Australia (Geography – location of different
Indigenous cultures and groups).
- They are also looking at the history of Indigenous cultures /
groups.
- Furthermore, students could undertake a learning task where
they conduct further research using a range of resources to
show on a map the location of these different places and
include a short paragraph about the traditional Indigenous
game that is from there. They also can research the history of
the location and discuss why this game might’ve been played
and how big a part of the community it was / is.

The Arts
- This PE unit can make links to the Arts music area as some of
the Indigenous games involve traditional Indigenous songs.
Students can learn and sing these songs when playing the
games.
- Furthermore, music lessons can incorporate Indigenous songs
as students conduct research and learn about a range of
traditional songs and practice and perform these as part of a
task.

Numeracy
- This unit uses numeracy as students are counting for example,
how many catches each team gets. They then work out which
team has the most catches to decide who the winner is.
Students also count and add up how many points they score in
games.
- Furthermore, numeracy lessons can be used to further explore
these situations and incorporate problem solving using game-
based scenarios. An example of this can include students
solving the difference between scores, working out how many
more points they need to score to take the lead, etc.