Teaching Sequence

Work through this resource material in the following sequence:

10 minutes

Tune in: Activating prior knowledge

10 minutes

Find out: The three requirements for fire

30 minutes

Take action: Is the model accurate?

10 minutes

Reflection

Please make sure to read the About Cool Burning fact sheet.

Tune In: Activating prior knowledge

Step 1. Discuss:

What do you already know about cool burning?

Step 2. Read:

Fact sheet - How Do Aboriginal And Torres Strait Islander Peoples Use Fire To Manage Country?

Step 3. Discuss:

At first I thought...
Now I think...

You can also use the following information to clarify student understanding of cool burning practices:

Cool burns are a land management technique. Started soon after the wet season, before the grass completely dries out, cool burns do not damage plants, seeds or animals to any significant extent. During a cool burn, the grasses on the ground burn slowly, allowing most of the small animals to escape. Seedlings, green grass, tree trunks and fallen logs are not burnt or damaged. The rising heat from the burning grass usually won’t singe the eucalyptus leaves above. Overnight, the cool moisture in the air will put out any remaining fires before the morning.

The practice of cool burning has been used by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples for many thousands of years. However, in recent years, scientists from around the world have become more and more interested in these practices as one way of managing devastating bushfires alongside other strategies, such as reducing fuel loads (back burning) and addressing the impacts of climate change.

Find Out: The three requirements for fire

Take Action: Is the model accurate?

Step 1.

Independently, students use the data about seasonal rainfall collected from near the Fish River Station to answer the questions on the Student Worksheet.

Step 2.

Students then bring up the fire map www.firenorth.org.au on their devices and answer the questions on the Student Worksheet.

Notes: when they hit search results for Fish River they will be asked to choose one of three locations. All three locations for the NT will bring up the same map.

The map is modified every few hours. During the dry season, there are significant changes to the map from month to month. The map is cleared and restarted during March. Two maps are provided in the Student Worksheet if there isn’t enough data on the map.

Students are asked to interpret the legend in the bottom right-hand corner. It is small and might be difficult to read. They are asked to recognise hotspots. Hotspots are hot areas that satellites have recorded in the past 48 hours. Students need to click on hotspots. There is a greater chance to see hot spots when they look at a map of a larger area.

'Fire scars' is the term used for past fires. These are recorded in shades of different colours for the month in which the fire passed through. The timing of the appearance of fire scars is closely linked to the seasons.

Students need to relate the map to the cycle of seasons and explain the fire history for the year. They should compare the map of Fish River Station with a map of the entire region.

Step 3.

Students will first need to make a printout of a map from the www.firenorth.org.au website. It doesn't matter if the printout is black and white.

Step 4.

Using a contrasting pen, students should label the different elements that they are now familiar with on their own map. Their labels should note the legend and the purpose of the colour mapping. There are places, roads and rivers on the map. Students should identify how these features are significant to burning patterns in their region.

Reflection

Discuss:

What other technologies could be useful in mapping fires in the future and why?

Teacher Reflection

Take this opportunity to reflect on your own teaching:

• What did you learn about your teaching?
• What worked well?
• What didn't work well?
• What would you share?
• Where to next?
• How are you going to get there?

Fire Mapping

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Summary

Learning intentions:

Students will...

Success criteria:

Students can...

Partner acknowledgement

Lesson Guides and Printables

Lesson Details

Skills

Curriculum Mapping

Resources Required

Additional Info

Related Professional Learning

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