HASS · Year 2

Active learning ideas

Clothing and Fashion Through Time

This topic comes alive when students physically interact with historical clothing rather than passively view images. Active learning helps them see how clothing choices reflect culture, technology, and social roles across time. Building and wearing replicas or examining period garments makes abstract concepts concrete and memorable.

• ACARA Content Descriptions
• AC9HASS2K01

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

Activity 01

• Simulation Game
• 40 min · Whole Class

Simulation Game: The Message Relay

Divide the class into two groups: 'Digital' (who can whisper a message instantly) and 'Postal' (who must write the message, put it in an envelope, and walk a lap of the oval before delivering). Compare the speed and accuracy of the messages.

How is the clothing people wore in the past different from what we wear today?

Facilitation Tip

For the Simulation: The Message Relay, provide students with replica writing tools like quills or inkpots to deepen immersion.

What to look for

Provide students with images of two different historical outfits and one modern outfit. Ask them to write one sentence comparing the historical outfits and one sentence comparing a historical outfit to the modern one, noting one specific difference.

• Apply
• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Create
• Social Awareness
• Decision-Making

Activity 02

• Inquiry Circle
• 30 min · Small Groups

Inquiry Circle: Message Sticks

In small groups, students examine images of Aboriginal Message Sticks. They work together to 'decode' what symbols might mean and discuss how these portable records allowed different groups to communicate peacefully.

Why do you think the clothes people wore changed so much over time?

Facilitation Tip

During the Collaborative Investigation: Message Sticks, assign small groups specific indigenous cultural contexts to research before sharing findings.

What to look for

Display images of various clothing items from different time periods. Ask students to hold up a card or point to the item that best represents a specific category, such as 'formal wear from the 1920s' or 'everyday work clothes from the 1800s'.

• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Create
• Self-Management
• Self-Awareness

Activity 03

• Gallery Walk
• 25 min · Pairs

Gallery Walk: Communication Timeline

Place images of communication tools (pigeon, letter, telegram, telephone, smartphone) around the room. Students walk around in pairs, discussing which ones they have seen in real life and which ones look the most difficult to use.

What do you think caused some of the biggest changes in the way people dress?

Facilitation Tip

In the Gallery Walk: Communication Timeline, position students as 'experts' at each station to explain their assigned time period's clothing to peers.

What to look for

Pose the question: 'Imagine you are going to a special event today. What would you wear? Now, imagine someone from 100 years ago going to a similar event. What might they have worn?' Facilitate a class discussion comparing choices and reasons.

• Understand
• Apply
• Analyze
• Create
• Relationship Skills
• Social Awareness

A few notes on teaching this unit

Teachers should emphasize the 'why' behind clothing, not just the 'what.' Avoid reducing history to a simple evolution toward modernity. Instead, highlight how each era solved problems through clothing design. Research shows that students retain more when they connect fashion to daily life, labor, and social expectations.

Students will move from naming clothing items to explaining why those items existed and what they reveal about the time period. Success looks like thoughtful comparisons between past and present fashion choices and an appreciation for the purposes behind different styles.

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Watch Out for These Misconceptions

• During the Gallery Walk: Communication Timeline, watch for students assuming older clothing was less functional or attractive compared to modern styles.

  Use the timeline stations to point out how each garment served a purpose, such as durability for laborers or symbolism for royalty. Ask students to identify the function behind each design choice.

• During the Collaborative Investigation: Message Sticks, watch for students believing Indigenous communication methods were primitive or less meaningful.

  Have groups present how Message Sticks carried complex information through symbols and materials. Ask students to compare the stick's efficiency to writing letters in terms of speed and accessibility.

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Methods used in this brief

• Simulation Game
• Inquiry Circle
• Gallery Walk