# Prepare a small, teachable local encounter

This is an original planning checklist, not a substitute for the school's approved agreements or community protocols. Use one source set for several activities. The preparation may take several conversations; no instant approval or fixed preparation time is promised.

## 1. Begin through the existing school relationship

Ask the principal or established First Nations education/community contact which relevant Traditional Owner authority and source process applies to the school's actual Country/Place. A child's identity, a family's participation or an arbitrary visitor does not make them responsible for authorising community knowledge. If there are several relevant names or perspectives, follow the authority's guidance rather than choose one from a web guess.

In Queensland state schools, the [Department of Education Languages and cultures page](https://education.qld.gov.au/student/aboriginal-torres-strait-islander-education/languages-cultures) describes partnership with Language Custodians. It is a starting support route, not permission for this school's lesson. Other sectors/jurisdictions use their own established process.

## 2. Bring a concrete proposal

Offer the six short [activity structures](ACTIVITIES.md), intended age/group, response options and one proposed source encounter for review. Ask what local material is appropriate and who can approve it. Include a proposed date, a later revisit and the school's process for payment/time if a person is asked to select, create, deliver or review material. Make room for changes, another source, another time or a refusal.

**An ordinary invitation draft for the school's normal channel:**

> We are planning a small Foundation HASS activity about our school's Country/Place and its importance. Could you guide us to the right authority and an appropriate source for this group? We would like children to encounter a short account, find an agreed school cue and choose a question or response. We can use an existing approved source or discuss a visit if useful. We would agree the content, access, credit, payment/time and classroom use before teaching. Recording or public sharing would need a separate agreement. We are happy to change the plan or wait for a suitable time.

This is a draft to adapt locally, not a message sent by SubjectNest and not an agreement.

## 3. Select the exact source and scope

An appropriate source could be an authorised written account, already cleared recording, approved school representation, ordinary spoken account from an invited authorised person, or a combination. A live guest is not compulsory. The source needs to support **both** importance to First Nations Australians and the school's Country/Place; one small source may leave some aspects for a later encounter.

Confirm the exact name/context and any pronunciation through the agreed source. Ask which excerpt, school cue, description, ordinary feature, drawing response and audience are appropriate. A text-only account can teach importance and questions without becoming a map-location task. The [AIATSIS education-resource guide](https://aiatsis.gov.au/education/guide-evaluating-and-selecting-education-resources) offers a primary resource-selection reference; it does not approve a particular local source.

Keep a clear distinction between reading/showing, copying, adapting, recording, translating, classroom display and public publication. Follow existing source terms and the agreed cultural scope. An approval for classroom use does not authorise a website upload. The [Queensland ICIP Protocol page](https://education.qld.gov.au/students/aboriginal-torres-strait-islander-education/languages-cultures/icip-protocol) links the department's language-program processes and templates; use applicable school processes rather than treating this checklist as cultural or copyright consent.

## 4. Prepare access before delivery

Agree an exact short description or authorised transcript where appropriate; keep speaker/source identity and meaning intact. If a visual/map source is authorised, prepare a broad school cue and an exact adult-directed or tactile equivalent from that source. Do not invent boundaries, language words or pronunciation. A source that cannot appropriately be described/copied may need a different agreed access route or another source.

Preview any permitted recording on the intended device at a comfortable locally chosen level, with pause/stop and an equivalent agreed text/sign/visual route where available. A recording is optional; this kit contains no candidate spoken translation or audio. Record which part the child actually encountered. Do not count silently viewing a transcript as hearing a recording.

Offer response options to everyone: point/direct, speech/sign/communication board, drawing/scribing, quiet individual or small-group work, later sitting, private keeping or pass. Keep any child language interpretation exact and attributed; an unreviewed machine translation is not source or learner meaning verification. No child must act as a cultural spokesperson, disclose identity or recount family knowledge.

## 5. Agree review, custody and the next use

Before teaching, confirm the source/version, agreed credit, intended group/audience, access arrangements, any review/expiry/withdrawal process and where permitted copies belong. Keep minimal school-approved records. No uploads, photography or new recording are needed to run the six activities.

Ask how to refer a child's new question and correct a misunderstanding. Keep unanswered questions open; do not expand a local account into a statement about all First Nations peoples. If a source or scope changes, revisit the plan before the next use. Proposed public contribution is a separate process with appropriate authority and rights; it is not a condition of classroom participation.

**Ready enough to begin?** Exact appropriate source + relevant school Country/Place context + agreed use/access/credit + educator preparation. If one part is pending, record who will take the next preparation step and when to review it. Use the ordinary familiar-place alternative meanwhile, with K04 content still pending.