10 Books To Celebrate And Learn About Elders
This year’s NAIDOC theme is For Our Elders. Across every generation, our Elders have played, and continue to play, an important role and hold a prominent place in our communities and families. They are cultural knowledge holders, trailblazers, nurturers, advocates, teachers, survivors, leaders, hard workers and our loved ones.
“The struggles of our Elders help to move us forward today. The equality we continue to fight for is found in their fight. Their tenacity and strength has carried the survival of our people.
It is their influence and through their learnings that we must ensure that when it comes to future decision making for our people, there is nothing about us - without us. “ NAIDOC 2023
Elders are central to First Nations communities as they are the foundation on which kinship and community is built. Our Elders are where our stories and songs come from, they pass down our Dreamings and our ceremony, and provide important teachings for our younger generation. This year’s theme is all about recognising the important role that our old people have played and continue to play in our lives, both individually and as a community and more broadly as First Nations. ‘For Our Elders’ encourages us to look to our Elders not only for inspiration, but for guidance in the issues that we face today.
As always, this years theme is a beautiful one to share in your classroom. To get you started, and to encourage learning about this years theme all year round, we have highlighted ten books to help you explore Elders in your classroom:
Family - Family is a thoughtful contemplation for all to learn the different ways that family makes us whole. This beautifully illustrated children’s picture book shows everyone that ‘family’ can be about heart and home; an endless sky; stories and songs. It ‘learns’ us how to be with each other and with Country. Families come in all shapes and sizes, and this remarkably simple story teaches us all, that family can be many things.
Day Break - Day Break is the story of a family making their way back to Country on January 26. We see the strength they draw from being together, and from sharing stories as they move through a shifting landscape. The story focuses on a young girl, her dad and her nanna, and highlights how the young girl learns from her elders.
I Remember - Set in the Geraldton area of Western Australia, an elderly Aboriginal woman remembers the camping trips of her childhood. As her recollections fade in and out, she is drawn to think about the elusiveness of what she can remember from so long ago.
Grace Beside Me - A warmly rendered story of life in a small town that interweaves the mundane with the profound and the spiritual. Told through the eyes of teenager, Fuzzy Mac, who goes to live with her grandparents, this book features awkward episodes of teen rivalry and romance, which sit alongside the mystery of Nan’s visions and a ghostly encounter. Family is an important theme in this book.
The Wonder of Little Things - A First Nations Elder shares his story of finding kindness in the midst of prejudice, and of the joy of living life to the full.
A Question of Colour - A powerful story from an Elder. A Question of Colour is a deeply moving and powerful testimony to the resilience of a young girl, her identity and her journey to belong.
Ninu Grandmother’s Law - Ninu Grandmothers’ Law is a definitive account of a traditional lifestyle and way of thinking. Accompanied by exceptional archival photographs, it is an evocative, compelling chronicle and cultural philosophy of a time almost forgotten.
Growing Up Wiradjuri - Featuring stories by Aunty Isobel Reid, Uncle Stan Grant Snr, Aunty Lorraine Tye, Aunty Elaine Lomas, Aunty Cheryl Penrith, Uncle James Ingram, Aunty Mary Atkinson, Uncle Norman Little. Growing up Wiradjuri is a collection of personal stories by Wiradjuri Elders. The writers are Uncles and Aunties who came of age in New South Wales in the 1950s and 1960s.
Ceremony - Joyful and full of fun, Ceremony invites you to celebrate the rich traditions of dance, family, community and caring for Country from the world's oldest continuous culture. The book celebrates family, kinship and shows children learning from Elders.
First Nations Who Am I Cards - Yes we know this one is not a book, but it is such a fabulous resource we had to share it in this blog. Using these cards, which depict 21 notable First Nations men and women throughout history, students can deploy inquiry skills to further investigate the lives and achievements of these famous First Nations people.
