School Programs at the Constitutional Centre of Western Australia

Students explore the concepts of rules, community, and the democratic process of voting to build on their understanding of civics and citizenship.

Through the use of storytelling and puppets, this program introduces students to the imaginary town of Parkesville and its inhabitants and discusses the concept of rules required to form a constitution, and the democratic process of voting to elect representatives. (EYLF Outcome 2; ACHASSK070; ACHASSK071)

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Students explore the concepts of rules and community to develop their understanding of civics and citizenship.

Through the use of a large storybook and puppets, this program introduces students to the imaginary town of Parkesville and its inhabitants to explore the problem of prejudice in the new community and how the residents deal with this issue. (EYLF Outcome 2)

Students continue to build their understanding of civics and citizenship by exploring the need for rules and the importance of laws in society.

Through class and group discussion, students compare the difference between rules and laws, and explain the need for and importance of laws in society. They consolidate this knowledge by completing a game and group activity which helps relate rules and laws to everyday situations. (ACHASSK092)

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Students continue to build their understanding of civics and citizenship by exploring the purpose and services provided by local government.

Through class discussion and the completion of activities and games, students learn about local government and the services it provides in their community. The program concludes with a letter writing activity to their local government leader to reflect on local services they enjoy and areas they think need improvement. (ACHASSK091; ACELY1694)

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Students continue to build on their understanding of the concepts that underpin Australia’s democracy as they further develop their understanding of civics and citizenship.

Through a series of interactive activities students learn about the concept of democracy including its origins, features, and the values which underpin democracy in Australia. Students put this information into action by completing a group activity. (ACHASSK115)

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Students continue building on their understanding of civics and citizenship by looking at the Westminster system, and the history and current functioning of Australia’s system of government.

Through interactive activities students learn about the differing and shared structures, roles and responsibilities of the three levels of government. This includes a discussion of key figures such as the Monarch and their representative in Australia. (ACHASSK144; ACHASSK143)

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Students continue building on their understanding of civics and citizenship by looking at the impact of history on the current functioning of Australia’s system of government.

Through a series of interactive activities including a role-play, students consolidate their understanding of the feudal system in medieval England and explore the issues which led to the creation of the Magna Carta and explain its key points. To complete the program, students examine how the Magna Carta links to modern democracy, and the ways Australia’s democracy has been influenced by ‘The Great Charter’. (ACHASSK143; ACHASSK134)

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Students continue building on their understanding of civics and citizenship by looking at the history and current functioning of Australia’s system of government.

Through class discussion and the completion of interactive activities students learn about what Australia was like before 1901, and examine the road to Federation including the timeline, concerns of the colonies, key figures, and the referendums of 1899 and 1900. (ACHASSK134; ACHASSK143)

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Students continue building on their understanding of civics and citizenship by looking at the functioning of Australia’s system of government and Federal Parliament.

Through an interactive role-play students learn about and examine the way federal laws are initiated, debated, and passed through Parliament. Students sit in a chamber-style classroom and engage in a mock parliamentary debate to consolidate their understanding of how a bill is passed by the Federal Government. (ACHASSK146; ACHASSK143; ACHASSK144)

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Through a series of interactive activities including a class role-play students learn about the historical context of Australia’s Constitution and examine the structure of the government it establishes. This includes a look at the three arms of government, their structure, and the separation of power between them. (ACHCK048)

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Through the completion of interactive activities and group discussions, students examine the process by which referendums may change the Australian Constitution, including the way in which they are initiated and decided upon. Students will explore examples of attempts to change the Australian Constitution such as the 1967 (Aboriginals) referendum, culminating in the students casting their vote on the 1999 republican proposal to determine if a double majority was achieved with the class vote. (ACHCK049)

Please note: This program can only be booked by contacting the Constitutional Centre team directly at cceducation@dpc.wa.gov.au. 

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Through discussion and small group activities students work to consolidate their knowledge on Australia’s democracy, investigate types of democracy in comparison to Australia, and classify the rights and responsibilities of Australian citizenship. Students also look closely into the freedoms of speech, religion, movement, media, assembly, and association. (ACHCK061; ACHCK062)

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Through the completion of interactive activities and group discussion, students learn about the roles and responsibilities of political parties and independent members within Australia’s federal parliament. This includes an examination of how government is formed, what happens in the case of a hung parliament, and an introduction to the concept of political spectrums. (ACHCK075) 

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Students support their progression through the Politics and Law ATAR course by looking at roles, responsibilities, and powers of key players in Australia’s system of government.

This session walks students through a constitutional perspective of the events leading up to and including the 1975 crisis. Students look closely at the relevant sections of the Australian Constitution, and examine the role of constitutional conventions in the functioning of Australia’s system of government and distribution of power. (UNIT 3 Politics and Law ATAR)