Hey History!

How do we teach the Frontier Wars with honesty, care, and confidence?
You'll hear from filmmaker Rachel Perkins, leading academic and advocate Professor Marcia Langton, Culture is Life CEO Belinda Duarte, senior secondary history teacher Bill Lewis, and Professor Melitta Hogarth of Ngarrngga at Melbourne University.
Together they dig into the questions many teachers are sitting with:
What does truth-telling actually look like in practice?
How do we teach histories of colonial violence with care?
How can non-Indigenous teachers approach this work without fear of getting it wrong?

We're sharing a recording generously provided by Culture is Life and Ngarrngga, two organisations working at the intersection of First Nations knowledge, education, and advocacy.
Culture is Life is an Aboriginal-led not-for-profit amplifying the voices of First Nations young people and championing education as a pathway to justice and truth-telling.
Ngarrngga is committed to ensuring all educators have access to Indigenous knowledge systems and the tools to embed them meaningfully in their teaching. Both organisations produce practical, curriculum-aligned resources to support teachers in this work.
Resources
The Australian Wars website
Watch The Australian Wars on SBS on Demand
SBS Learn Understanding the Frontier Wars: clips with discussion questions and other classroom resources
The Australian Wars book by Rachel Perkins, Stephen Gapps, Mina Murray and Henry Reynolds
Ngarrngga: free, high-quality curriculum resources and professional development modules, spanning all subject areas from Foundation to 10. A collaboration between the Faculty of Education, Indigenous Studies Unit and Indigenous Knowledge Institute at the University of Melbourne
Culture is Life: Free resources including The Australian Wars, Welcome to Country, First weapons, Stolen Generations, and The Australian Dream with Adam Goodes.
Watch a video of the original panel https://www.ngarrngga.org/stories-news/teaching-the-australian-wars-panel

Voices
Panellists: Rachel Perkins, Arrernte/Kalkadoon (The Australian Wars filmmaker); Marcia Langton, Yiman/Bidjara (academic and cultural leader); Belinda Duarte, Wotjobaluk/Dja Dja Wurrung (CEO, Culture is Life); Bill Lewis (History Teacher, Haileybury College); and Professor Melitta Hogarth, Kamilaroi (Director, Ngarrngga, The University of Melbourne).
Episode host: Professor Anna Clark
Credits
Hey History Teacher! is supported by the History Teachers Association of NSW.
Executive Producer is Professor Anna Clark.
Producer is Jane Curtis at UTS Impact Studios.
Sound engineering by John Jacobs.
Made on Gadigal Country in Sydney Australia.

Nearly half of Australian teachers say they don't feel confident to teach First Nations history, according to research.
Historian and educator Associate Professor Al Fricker explains why so many teachers feel underprepared — and why it's not a personal failing. He offers some straightforward first steps, including where to find good resources and how to start building real connections with your local First Nations community.
How can you embed First Nations perspectives and knowledge in your curriculum?
And what are some ways to embed them across your whole school?
You'll also hear from teachers around Australia sharing what’s worked in their classrooms and schools: using the AIATSIS languages map, teaching the Frontier Wars through local history, trying the Eight Ways Pedagogy, and building a curriculum map so Aboriginal perspectives aren't left to chance.
Resources and tipsheet
Associate Professor Al Fricker’s recommended resources made by or with First Nations people
Ngarrngga: free, high-quality curriculum resources and professional development modules, spanning all subject areas from Foundation to 10. A collaboration between the Faculty of Education, Indigenous Studies Unit and Indigenous Knowledge Institute at the University of Melbourne.
Australians Together: free curriculum resources, covering key learning areas from Foundation to Year 10. A non-profit organisation developing resources with First Nations Educators.
Matilda Education: progressive, research-based, differentiated print and digital content for your classroom - content that matches the latest Australian curricula.
Indigenous Education in Australia Learning and Teaching for Deadly Futures: an essential, practical resource for pre- and in-service educators on creating contexts for success for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students. Based on the latest research and practice, this book provides an in-depth understanding of the colonised context within which education in Australia is located, with an emphasis on effective strategies for the classroom.

Other resources and links
AIATIS Map of Indigenous Australia
AIATIS free teaching resources and learning sequences including First Fighters
AIATSIS Guide to evaluating and selecting education resources
Yabun Survival Day Sydney
Colonial Frontier Massacre Map: Colonial Frontier Massacres, Australia, 1788 to 1930 and Introduction to the map by the University of Newcastle, Australia
Yeddonba Aboriginal Cultural Site: features an Aboriginal red-ochre painting, which is believed to be of a Tasmanian tiger (thylacine), supporting the belief that the animal once inhabited the mainland. The site is 20 minutes from Beechworth, NSW.
8 Ways framework: a NSW Department of Education initiative

Tipsheet
Free professional development tipsheet for this episode (in Teacher Downloads)

Research
The Monash Australian Teachers Survey 2023 reported teachers’ views of how well their Initial Teacher Education program prepared them to teach the Australian Curriculum’s priority areas (referring to Student Diversity, and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Histories and Culture) were relatively divided, with 54% feeling prepared, and 45% saying they are unprepared.
Burns, E.C., Plummer, L., Vass, G. et al. Which resources support teachers to embed Indigenous perspectives? A convergent mixed methods analysis. Aust. Educ. Res.53, 26 (2026). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13384-025-00944-z
Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody 1991: National Report Volume 5, Recommendations for Educating the Future

Voices
Educators: Associate Professor Al Fricker (Victoria), and from New South Wales: Sarah Kearney, Martin Douglas, Jade Carr, Nik Armstrong, Uncle Terry Lennis and Ruth Bradfield-Ling.
Host: Professor Anna Clark
Credits
Hey History Teacher! is supported by the History Teachers Association of NSW.
Executive Producer is Professor Anna Clark.
Producer is Jane Curtis at UTS Impact Studios.
Sound engineering by John Jacobs.
Made on Gadigal Country in Sydney Australia.

You know history is complex. How do you teach that in the classroom?
We unpack what 'complexity' in history means and how to bring it to life for your students.
As history educator Jonathon Dallimore puts it, “Factual information… is not sufficient. Information doesn’t guarantee that you actually have insight."
Because there’s the past (everything that’s happened) and then there’s history: the way we interpret, debate and make meaning of the past.
You’ll hear from experienced teachers and history educator Jonathon Dallimore, on why history is complex, with examples, and how to teach contestability and historical thinking skills to junior and secondary students.
Students are already debating the world around them. This is about helping them bring those skills into history.
Resources and tipsheet
A Practical Guide for Secondary School Teachers. By Jonathon Dallimore
Teaching history, teaching complexity: Agora, Vol. 53, No. 3, Dec 2018, 36-39 (free download for members of the History Teachers Association of Victoria)
‘Historical time’ helps students truly understand the complexity of the past – and how they fit into it: The Conversation https://doi.org/10.64628/AAO.nfmakjwre
Free professional development tipsheet for this episode (in Teacher Downloads)

Voices
Educators: Natalie Abadier (New South Wales), Sarah Coleman (Queensland) and Jonathon Dallimore, History Teachers Association of New South Wales.
Host: Professor Anna Clark
Credits
Hey History Teacher! is supported by the History Teachers Association of NSW.
Executive Producer is Professor Anna Clark.
Producer is Jane Curtis at UTS Impact Studios.
Sound engineering by John Jacobs.
Made on Gadigal Country in Sydney Australia.

Practical strategies to help you confidently teach history involving trauma and conflict.
You’ll learn how to:
build trust
use different techniques so everyone can ask a question
respond to challenging or confronting student questions
support students with personal connections to the content
use frameworks like Safely In, Safely Out to manage sensitive material, and
how to look after yourself as a teacher when the content feels heavy.

Resources and tipsheet
Safely In Safely Out resources: Yada Vashem pedagogical principles and Safely In Safely Out preparing Holocaust lessons
Teaching Difficult History: A guide for Grade Seven to Twelve Teachers Novia Scotia, Canada
Free professional development tipsheet for this episode (in Teacher Downloads)

Voices
Educators: Ben Lawless (Victoria), Natalie Abadier (New South Wales), Louise Secker (Western Australia), Paul Foley (South Australia), Natalie Fong (Queensland), and Sarah Coleman (Queensland).
Host: Professor Anna Clark
Credits
Hey History Teacher! is supported by the History Teachers Association of NSW.
Executive Producer is Professor Anna Clark.
Producer is Jane Curtis at UTS Impact Studios.
Sound engineering by John Jacobs.
Made on Gadigal Country in Sydney Australia.

Want to try creative history lessons that students won’t forget?
Hear expert teachers bring history alive in the classroom.
From 'Top Secret' source investigations and historical group chats, to escape rooms, courtroom trials, video games, and history festivals.
Ideas that spark curiosity, deepen thinking, and get students genuinely engaged.
If you haven’t listened to Creative History Teaching, start there first. Then dive into this episode for more ambitious, high-impact ideas you can adapt for your own classroom.
Resources and tipsheet
First Fleet Database: University of Wollongong
Convicts research guide National Library of Australia
Epic Escape Rooms ebook by Chad Cary
Chad Cary’s Instagram: Innovative and Engaging Teaching Strategies
Chad Cary’s Facebook group: Innovative and Engaging Teaching Strategies
Teaching the World Peace Game by John Hunter: TED Talk
Ben Lawless’ board game for grade 6+ Earthcraft
Free professional development tipsheet for this episode (in Teacher Downloads)

Voices
Educators: Ben Lawless (Victoria), Chad Cary (New South Wales), David Boon (Tasmania), Paul Foley (South Australia), Natalie Fong (Queensland), and Sarah Coleman (Queensland).
Host: Professor Anna Clark
Credits
Hey History Teacher! is supported by the History Teachers Association of NSW.
Executive Producer is Professor Anna Clark.
Producer is Jane Curtis at UTS Impact Studios.
Sound engineering by John Jacobs.
Made on Gadigal Country in Sydney Australia.