I have painted the Illawarra coastline and two of the five islands off the coast of Wollongong. Our school acknowledges the Wodi Wodi and Five Islands people

in our acknowledgment of Country. Our teachers liaised with a local Elder and the local Wollongong Aboriginal Education Centre to write our Acknowledgment of Country. Aunty Bev is our lovely Elder who helps us to celebrate NAIDOC Week, Sorry Day, and our annual walk for reconciliation. Aunty Bev also helps us to do the right thing when making art and learning about our local culture. My painting shows our

beautiful coastline, beaches, mountains, bushland and two of the five islands. We sometimes visit Mount Keira and view the sculptures depicting the Dreaming legend of the west wind and his six little daughters. I live in Illawarra and love to learn about our Aboriginal heritage and culture.

Reconciliation means… Acknowledging Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the traditional owners of this land and recognising that this fact is still important today and we do this through the school’s Acknowledgment of Country