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Education Services Australia

'I Think ...' – All together now

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TLF-Resource R6076

Australian Children's Television Foundation http://www.actf.com.au

This animated short features the unscripted voices of a highly articulate group of 5- to 9-year-old children discussing the definition of a community and the responsibilities of individuals within a community. The children’s discussion is illustrated by animation that draws heavily on Indigenous Australian symbols and colours. The animation is supported with sound effects.

  • The children agree that a community is more than a group of people and attempt to define it. For some children the idea of community is about knowing other people, for some it is about proximity or physical closeness, while for others community is defined by the relationships between individuals and groups of people and a sense of connectedness and a desire to help or care for one another.
  • The idea of communities within communities is explored. Examples of separate communities (such as sport or church groups) within a larger community (of town or city) are described. This idea is then expanded from a town community to communities of countries and a global community.
  • The clip contains a discussion about social responsibility within a community and the effect that the size of a community may have on this sense of responsibility. It is suggested that in larger communities people are less likely to help others, and conversely, that smaller communities are more caring.
  • The animation demonstrates how a philosophical discussion might proceed, for example through listening to one another, responding to and building upon one another’s ideas. The children’s willingness to listen, consider and reflect upon alternative viewpoints and review ideas demonstrates a high level of interpersonal and communication skills, and of self-confidence. Explaining and synthesising ideas during the discussion enables the children to develop and clarify concepts of community and individual responsibility in relation to the experiences of the group.
  • The animation uses contrasting visual styles to distinguish contrasting settings. Animated Indigenous Australian imagery and earthy natural colours are used to illustrate cultural and historical connections between individuals, groups of people, and the wider community. However, discussions about city life are illustrated in a different style and with bright, unnatural colours.
  • The children discuss conflict and the question of whether everyone can be considered to be part of a particular community. One child observes that enemies are a natural part of communities. Concepts of togetherness, cooperation, caring, conflict and separation are discussed. The ideas expressed by the children are reinforced through the animation that uses simple lines and shapes such as circles that bring characters together or that create barriers to indicate separation.
  • The animation makes use of a variety of sound effects to support meaning and visual imagery. The moo of a cow links with dialogue and an image that relates to a move to the country, and the sound of a bouncing ball accompanies an image of two characters throwing a ball to one another. Other sound effects include soft voices, laughter, birds chirping, a church bell and the noise of city traffic including a car horn and the crash of a traffic accident.
  • This clip forms part of 'I Think ...', a philosophy anthology of 26 animations developed by the Australian Children's Television Foundation (ACTF). According to the ACTF website, a range of resources is available to support teachers in using the anthology.

  • Civic responsibility
  • Communities
  • Conflict (Human relations)
  • Homeless

Content provider

  • Australian Children's Television Foundation
  • Fitzroy VIC 3065 Australia
  • http://www.actf.com.au

Copyright owner

  • Film Finance Corporation Australia Limited
  • With permission of the Australian Children's Television Foundation, Film Finance Corporation Australia Limited and Heytesbury Pty Ltd
  • Sydney NSW 2000 Australia

Copyright owner

  • Heytesbury Pty Ltd
  • East Perth WA 6004 Australia

Publisher

Author

  • Pavel Kyral
  • animator

Colour independence
Device independence

Moving image

image/jpeg
image/png
text/css
text/html
video/mp4

4481079 bytes

Microsoft Internet Explorer - minimum version: 7.0 (MS-Windows)
Firefox - minimum version: 2.0 (MS-Windows)
Safari - minimum version: 2.0 (MacOS)

QuickTime Player - minimum version: 7.2

MacOS - minimum version: X
MS-Windows - minimum version: 2000 - maximum version: XP

© Curriculum Corporation and Australian Children’s Television Foundation, 2008, except where indicated under Acknowledgements.

The Le@rning Federation is managed by Education Services Australia on behalf of the Ministerial Council for Education, Early Childhood Development and Youth Affairs (MCEECDYA). Copyright.