Introduction
The Night We Made the Flag, A Eureka Story, is a picture book that imagines what might have happened on the night the Eureka flag was sewn by women on the Ballarat goldfields. The story is told from the point-of-view of Mary, a young girl who helps sew the flag. The rich pictures and text provide information about life on the goldfields. There is detailed information about the Eureka Stockade at the end of the book. This book is an excellent resource to describe and explain the significance of people, groups, places and events to the development of Australia.
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What do you know?
What do you know about The Eureka Stockade?
Where was Ballarat? What was going on in Ballarat at the time? An excellent introduction to the Eureka Stockade is the video from Behind the News. Click on the button below: |
THINK ABOUT.....Why was the Eureka Stockade significant in the development of Australia? |
Read the story
After Reading
Discuss:
- Mary's Mum is a strong character in the book. What examples are there from the text to support this?
- Mary has to give up her best petticoat to help make the flag. How did she feel about this at first? How did her feelings change?
- Share a time when you gave something up to help someone else?
- As a class, discuss how the groups listed below would have viewed the Eureka Stockade differently.
- Police
- Diggers
- Squatters
- Women
- Children
Activity
Divide the class into 6 qual groups.
Each group is given a different scene from the book.
Have each group discuss the following things about their picture:
- What is happening in the picture?
- How is the illustrator portraying the mood and emotions around what is happening? (Shapes used, angle/view point of picture, colours used, facial expression, body posture etc)
- What insights is the picture giving into the way of life of people on the goldfields?
- Is the picture effective?
- Each group shares their ideas and thoughts with the class.
Further Resources
Click on the following buttons for further information and resources about The Eureka Stockade.