First Nations Geography of Australia | Coastal Country | HASS-Year 8

First Nations Geography of Australia | Coastal Country | HASS

Explore Australia’s coastal landscapes, saltwater peoples, and sea Country with this ready-to-use Geography lesson for Grades 6–8.

Students investigate Australia’s diverse coastline, including beaches, rocky headlands, mangroves, estuaries, reefs, and marine environments. They explore publicly shared examples of Traditional Owner ecological knowledge and make connections between landforms, tides, currents, seasonal patterns, marine resources, sustainable practices, and sea Country.
Students apply their research by creating a collaborative Coastal Country Map that connects physical geography with the cultural significance and ecological knowledge associated with coastal and marine environments.

What’s Included
- Teacher Directions for 1–2 class periods
- Student overview + mini research questions
- Coastal Country Map group activity
- Authoritative research resources
- 3 student research, analysis & planning pages
- Color + black-and-white student pages

Students Will
- Investigate diverse coastal landscapes and landforms
- Explore connections between coastal environments and marine ecosystems
- Research publicly shared examples of Traditional Owner ecological knowledge
- Examine tides, currents, seasons, and marine resources
- Explore sustainable fishing and harvesting practices
- Understand the concept of sea Country
- Connect cultural knowledge and responsibility to coastal and marine environments
- Use evidence from authoritative sources
- Create and present a collaborative geographic map
- Consider Australia’s coastline as culturally significant Country, not simply a recreational or scenic landscape Year8-06-Coastal-Country-Map

Perfect For
- Grades 6–8
- Australian Geography & HASS
- First Nations Geography
- Landscapes & Landforms
- Coastal Geography & Sea Country
- Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Histories and Cultures
- Environmental Geography
- Geography inquiry & research
- Collaborative learning
- No-prep or low-prep lessons

Australian Curriculum / ACARA Disclaimer
This is an independently created educational resource designed to support classroom instruction and has been developed with reference to relevant Australian Curriculum: Humanities and Social Sciences (HASS) / Geography content and the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Histories and Cultures cross-curriculum priority.
This resource is not affiliated with, endorsed by, approved by, or officially connected to the Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA), the Australian Curriculum, AIATSIS, CSIRO, Geoscience Australia, the National Museum of Australia, the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority, or any state or territory education authority. References to curriculum terminology, organizations, frameworks, or content are provided for educational, research, and alignment purposes only.