Walzing+Matilda

•Listen to and read the song ‘Waltzing Matilda’ Visit: [|www.matildacentre.com.au/]. Write a list of the words no longer in common use, and not known by your group. Use a dictionary to find the meanings of these words (make sure that you are using an Australian dictionary).

•Use the website [|www.matildacentre.com.au] to work out what is happening in the song. Identify where the actions are taking place. What part of Australia is it? When is it happening? Why might the swagman be stealing a sheep?

•Use the website [|www.nla.gov.au/epubs/waltzingmatilda/] to research the writer and how he wrote the song. Find a map of Australia to pinpoint where the song was developed. Use the internet or your library to find out more about Banjo Paterson (Who was he? Where did he live? How did he make a living? Etc.).

•Use the website [|www.nla.gov.au/epubs/waltzingmatilda/] to find out the meaning behind the song. Some people talk about the shearer’s strikes of the 1890s and think this song is a political protest against the squatters and their treatment of the shearers. What do you think? Justify your response based on your research.

•Use this website to uncover the story behind the Australian National Anthem: [|www.nla.gov.au/epubs/waltzingmatilda/]. What is an anthem? Which one do we now use? Is this representative of all Australia? What other anthems were considered for Australia’s National Anthem? Which one does your group prefer? Why? Justify your choice.