HASS · Year 1

Active learning ideas

Origins of Family Migration

Active learning works for this topic because Year 1 students connect emotionally and spatially to stories they bring from home. By drawing, moving, and talking about their families’ pasts, children make abstract concepts like ‘push’ and ‘pull’ concrete through personal narratives. Movement-based activities also help young learners process complex ideas like belonging and change through kinesthetic engagement.

• ACARA Content Descriptions
• AC9HASS1K01
• AC9HASS1K05

• 25–40 min
• Pairs → Whole Class
• 4 activities

Activity 01

• Stations Rotation
• 25 min · Whole Class

Sharing Circle: Family Origins

Form a circle for students to pass a talking stick and share one fact about where their family came from or why they moved. Model respectful listening first. Follow with a class chart of shared stories.

Why might a family choose to move to a new place to live?

Facilitation Tip

Before Sharing Circle, invite students to bring one small object that represents their family’s origins to anchor their story in tangible memory.

What to look for

Ask students to draw a picture of their family's country of origin on one side of a paper and a reason for moving on the other. They can verbally explain their drawing to the teacher or a peer.

• Remember
• Understand
• Apply
• Analyze
• Self-Management
• Relationship Skills

Activity 02

• Stations Rotation
• 40 min · Pairs

Migration Mapping: Draw Journeys

Provide maps of Australia and the world. Students draw or sticker their family's path to current home, labeling reasons. Pairs compare maps and note similarities. Display on a class mural.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples have lived in Australia for over 60,000 years. What does it mean to have always belonged to a place?

Facilitation Tip

During Migration Mapping, provide colored pencils and a world map large enough for each child to trace their family’s route without crowding.

What to look for

Facilitate a class circle where students share one thing they learned about why families move. Prompt with: 'What is one thing that might make a family want to leave their home?' and 'What is one thing that might make them excited about a new place?'

• Remember
• Understand
• Apply
• Analyze
• Self-Management
• Relationship Skills

Activity 03

• Role Play
• 30 min · Small Groups

Role Play: New Home Adventure

In small groups, students pack bags with toy items for a move, act out travel challenges and arrivals. Rotate roles. Debrief feelings of excitement and worry.

How might it feel to move to a new country? What might be exciting and what might be hard?

Facilitation Tip

Before Role Play, model emotional expressions for mixed feelings like excitement and sadness to help students name their own complex emotions.

What to look for

Provide students with a simple worksheet. Ask them to write or draw the name of the place their family came from and one word describing how they might feel if they had to move to a new country.

• Apply
• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Social Awareness
• Self-Awareness

Activity 04

• Stations Rotation
• 35 min · Small Groups

Artefact Show-and-Tell: Family Treasures

Students bring or draw a family item linked to origins. Present to small groups, explaining its story. Groups vote on most interesting to share class-wide.

Why might a family choose to move to a new place to live?

Facilitation Tip

For Artefact Show-and-Tell, give each child a three-minute timer so all voices are heard without rushing or dominating.

What to look for

Ask students to draw a picture of their family's country of origin on one side of a paper and a reason for moving on the other. They can verbally explain their drawing to the teacher or a peer.

• Remember
• Understand
• Apply
• Analyze
• Self-Management
• Relationship Skills

A few notes on teaching this unit

Teachers approach this topic by centering student voice and using comparative storytelling to build empathy. Avoid framing migration as a simple sequence of events; instead, focus on feelings and relationships that shape journeys. Research shows young children learn migration concepts best when they connect them to their own lives and see themselves as part of a larger, diverse Australian story. Use Indigenous perspectives not as isolated units but as a continuous backdrop to all discussions.

Successful learning looks like students confidently identifying one reason their family moved and one way they stayed connected to their origins. They should also recognize that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples have always belonged to Country, contrasting this with migration stories. Participation in discussions should show empathy and curiosity about diverse family experiences.

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Watch Out for These Misconceptions

• During Sharing Circle, watch for students who assume all families recently migrated to Australia.

  Use the circle to name and honor Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the First Australians. Invite a guest speaker or share a picture book such as ‘Welcome to Country’ by Aunty Joy Murphy to ground the discussion in continuous belonging.

• During Role Play, watch for students who portray only positive emotions about moving.

  Direct students to use the role-play cards with mixed feeling words like ‘nervous’ or ‘happy’ to explore the full range of emotions involved in relocation.

• During Migration Mapping, watch for students who draw only straight lines or equal distances between places.

  Prompt students to discuss how far and how long their family’s journey took, using scale and direction cues on the map to emphasize varied experiences.

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Methods used in this brief

• Stations Rotation
• Role Play