04 Aug 2023
NAIDOC Week is celebrated across Australia in the first week of July each year to recognise the history, culture and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. At Hilltop Road Public School, we took advantage of the opportunity to learn about First Nations cultures and histories and participate in celebrations of the oldest, continuous living cultures on earth, by organising our own Naidoc Week celbrations from Wednesday of Week 1 to Wednesday of Week 2.
Throughout our NAIDOC week, we immersed ourselves in Indigenous culture by learning Dharug words, playing indigenous games and sharing Indigenous stories. On Tuesday of week 2, we enjoyed an array of activities to further immerse our students in Indigenous culture. Students moved around the school to enjoy lessons on bush tucker, rock art, sand art and the Dharug language. We also enjoyed our own exhibiiton of Indigenous tools and artefacts in the school library.
Our week of celebrations culminated in the unveiling of our two new flagpoles, and the raising of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander flags together with the Australian flag. We had a traditional smoking ceremony hosted by Uncle Shane and a performance from our Indigenous dance group before the flags were raised.
Thank you to Mrs Lavery, Mrs Romer, Ms Debby, our Culture Club students and families and everyone in our community who supported our NAIDOC Week celebrations.