Didge Ya Know? Information Cards

Wingaru’s Didge Ya Know? posters and facts have long been classroom favourites, so it’s super exciting to launch our new Didge Ya Know? information card sets. Each set has 20 cards full of deadly facts designed to encourage students to explore the world around us. 

I will never cease to be amazed about the direction yarns can take with a little encouragement, nor the vast amount of knowledge our young ones hold and are able to share when given the opportunity. In fact, these cards were inspired by a conversation I had with about echidnas and snot bubbles with my jarjum, who is an avid collector of facts. These card sets have been given the thumbs up from him, and each group of young people we have shown them to.

The first of the sets is Didge Ya Know? Animals and Their Eggs, which provides facts about 20 Australian oviparous (egg-laying) species that we share Country with. Our Didge Ya Know? Landmark cards feature gorgeous illustrations and First Nations info on 20 well-known locations across Australia. 

Both sets have been created with versatility in mind and can be aligned with most KLAs – in fact, there is no limit to how these creative, fun and informative cards can be used in the classroom, but here are some ideas to get you started. 

Research Activities:

Independent Research Project

Give each student a Didge Ya Know? card as the starting point for their research, and ask them to find out more about the subject they get, while gathering additional information to support their findings. Then, ask students to create a project to present their results – this could be a poster, speech, video, diorama, infographic, PowerPoint or any other creative format. This actively encourages independent learning in the classroom, research skills and presenting information creatively.

Interviewing the Experts Activity

Ask students to pair up and give each pair a research card. Students will learn as much as they can on their topics to become an ‘expert’ on the subject. Then one student will take on the role of the expert and the other will be the ‘interviewer’. The interviewer will prepare a set of questions to ask the expert during the interview. You could set up a film-studio environment and record the interview, creating a fun and realistic atmosphere. Students will learn to research information and the public speaking skills needed to communicate it, as well as collaboration, creativity, and confidence.

DYK Card Journal Activity

Each day, give students a new DYK card to read. After reading, students update their research journal with key information from the card, including the name, location, interesting facts, and their personal reflections. This activity helps students build a deeper understanding of the topics while encouraging regular reflection and journal-keeping.

Literacy Activities:

Sentence Unscramble

Using the cards, scramble a few of the sentences up. Get students to work in pairs or small groups to unscramble the words and rebuild the sentence correctly. This activity improves sentence structure and word order skills.

Creative Writing Prompts

Give students one of the DYK cards to use as a creative writing prompt, and ask them to use this prompt to write letters, journal entries, blog posts, short stories, etc. This fosters imagination and enhances writing skills.

Hatchling Drawing Activity

Using the DYK Egg cards, get students to choose one card and read the information provided. Afterwards, ask students to draw what they think the hatchling looks like based on the details from the card. Below their sketch, students should write a short description of the hatchling, including its traits and any additional facts they've learned, which enhances reading comprehension and analytical thinking.

Storytelling Circles

Using one of the DYK cards as a prompt, get students to sit in a circle and take turns telling parts of a story based around the information on the selected card. Each student contributes a sentence or paragraph, building on the previous person’s ideas. This promotes creativity, narrative structure, speaking skills, and collaboration.

Creative Activities:

Monster Creation Activity:

Using the DYK Egg cards, ask students to select different body parts from various animals to create their own unique monster (e.g: the legs of a cassowary, body of a gecko, head of an echidna, wings of a bowerbird). Students then draw, paint, or sculpt a representation of their monster. To complete the activity, each student will name their monster and share its physical traits and characteristics with the class. This activity encourages creativity and imaginative thinking.

Museum Exhibit Activity

Have students create museum exhibits based on their research or projects. These exhibits can be physical displays, dioramas, or digital presentations, depending on the subject. Once all the exhibits are ready, organise a ‘museum tour’ where students take turns walking around the classroom, learning from each other’s work. Each student will present their exhibit, explaining the key things they learnt, promoting public speaking, creativity, and peer learning.

Destination Advertising Campaign Activity 

Get students to work in groups to create an advertising campaign for a holiday destination using the locations from the Didge Ya Know? Landmark cards. Students should research the destination's attractions, culture, and unique features, then design marketing materials such as a brochure, poster, video ad or radio commercial. Each group presents their campaign to the class, highlighting why their destination is worth visiting. The class then discusses the campaigns, offering feedback and voting on the most persuasive advertisement. This activity fosters research, teamwork, creativity, and persuasive speaking skills.

Creative Journalling

Ask students to pretend they are exploring Australia; on their ‘journey’, get them to write in a journal about specific landmarks and animals they have seen. Their journal can include drawings, poems, or any form of expression related to their learning. This promotes reflective thinking and self-expression.

Aboriginal Perspectives Learning:

Mapping it Out Activity

Using a large map of Australia, get students to locate various landmarks and animals featured in DYK Landmark and DYK Egg cards. For each location, students create information cards that are attached to the map. These cards should include the traditional name of the site or animal, the Traditional Owners, the surrounding Traditional Owners, and the traditional uses or purposes of the site or animal. This activity broadens students' knowledge of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures, fostering a deeper understanding and acceptance of First Nations histories and traditions.

Aboriginal Languages Activity

Using the DYK Egg cards, divide students into small groups, and ask each group to research the traditional name for a specific animal from different Aboriginal mobs. After completing their research, students compare the traditional names across the different languages, looking for similarities and differences. They may notice that mobs in neighbouring areas have similar words for the same animal. Once the research is complete, students place cut-out images of the animals, along with their traditional names, on a large map at the location of each mob’s country. This activity promotes cultural understanding and highlights the connections between language, land and animals in Aboriginal cultures.

Aboriginal Sites Activity 

In this activity, students will use the DYK Landmark cards to learn about the relationship Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have with landmarks across Australia. Each student or group selects a landmark and explores its historical, cultural and spiritual significance to Aboriginal communities connected to it. Students then present their findings in a report, poster, or creative project such as a diorama or digital map. This activity enhances students' cultural awareness, research, collaboration, communication, creativity and geographical knowledge while fostering respect for Aboriginal cultures and their connection to the land.

Wingaru’s Didge Ya Know? cards offer a fun and flexible way to explore a wide range of topics in the classroom, and can incorporated into research projects, literacy activities, and creative tasks to encourage curiosity, critical thinking and a deeper understanding of First Nations perspectives. Give the suggested activities a go and see how they inspire learning in your students!