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Today is September 27 and it is rainy and cold. When I arrived at the horse park this morning, it was only 15 degrees Celsius (59 degrees Fahrenheit), the wind was blowing, and the rain was making huge puddles in the arena. Because this in an Olympic event, the competition had to continue. Fortunately, the rain stopped just before the horses entered the arena. The team dressage medals will be given out this afternoon. Australia is rich with history and legends. The Aboriginal people of Australia, like our Native Americans, have wonderful stories that have been passed down for generations. Those stories are called dreamtime tales. The closing ceremony of the Atlanta Games in 1996 included a dreamtime story about how Australia's rivers and lakes were formed. The legend said that larger-than-life kangaroos and other animals roamed Earth; rivers and lakes were formed where they walked. Today, I would like to share an Aboriginal folk tale and a simple follow-up activity. This tale, a synopsis of which appears below, comes from a book titled Tales of the Dreamtime by K. Langloh Parker. The entire text of the tale is available online at Australian Aboriginal Tales & Legends. That Web site offers a handful of Aboriginal tales that you might share with students.
HOW THE SUN WAS MADEThe tale tells of a time long ago -- a time when there was no sun, only a moon and stars. One day a quarrel ensued between an emu and the emu's native companion, Brolga. In a rage, Brolga rushed to the nest of emu, grabbed one its eggs, and heaved the egg toward the sky. The egg broke on a pile of firewood. The wood burst into flames as yellow as the egg yolk. The dazzling burst of light was unlike anything that had ever been seen before. A good spirit thought it would be a good idea if such a display occurred on a daily basis. But what of the people who might be sleeping when it occurred? There must be some way to notify all people of the daily brilliance so they would not miss it. When the spirits heard the laughter of Goo-goor-gaga they knew it was the one beast that might save the light for the world! Goo-goor-gaga agreed to laugh his loudest at every dawn of day, which he has done ever since.
Teachers: Share the story of Goo-goor-gaga with your students. Let them draw a picture of their favorite part of the story.
As a follow-up activity, students might take a look at the other tales offered on the Web site Australian Aboriginal Tales & Legends. Groups of students might work together to illustrate these tales and to retell them in words and pictures for the rest of the class. Click here to return to the article index. Barbara Taddeo has created these activities for the students of three schools -- but she has been kind enough to agree to share her daily reports with Education World's readers. We're pleased to be included in these daily mailings to the students in Taddeo's 7th grade class in Room 31 at Borel Middle School in San Mateo, California; Mrs. Hirschmann's class at Thomas Jefferson Elementary School in Turersville, New Jersey; and Lacey Rhoades' class in Mesa, Arizona.
Barbara Taddeo
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Barbara Taddeo is at the Olympic Games -- and she is sharing the experience with Education World readers! Taddeo, a middle school special education teacher from San Mateo, California, will share her observations -- and some activities too. Follow Taddeo's journey through her reports from Sydney! 
