The Echidna and The Shade Tree is a picture book written by Mona Green
and illustrated by Pamela Lofts. It is an Aboriginal dreamtime story which
talks about how the Aboriginals believed that the Nongra river came about and
how the Echidna got spikes in his back(they were spears thrown by the other
animals, as he stole the shade tree).
The language used
is quite basic, and it feel like it is being narrated by a person, which is the
technique the author was clearly aiming for.
The illustrations
use Aboriginal paints and colours. This also would be good to look into as
students could learn to paint in such a way. Having such colours and plain
effect shows the Aboriginal culture which is what the book is doing.
A book like this
is great when looking into Aboriginal Studies and even I learnt something from
reading this. Culturally, Australian students should have some history about their
background and the Aboriginals belief. This would make for a good engagement activity
for primary school students.
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