What actually works when it comes to creative history teaching?

In this episode of Hey History Teacher, we go inside real classrooms to find out - from songs and dress-ups to protest reenactments, and even stomping on a cardboard box.

You’ll hear from experienced primary and secondary school teachers across Australia sharing practical, classroom-tested ideas that bring history to life, like:

1. using songs to help students remember complex content
2. sharing a colour-coded Scope and Sequence so students can see what’s coming and stay motivated, and
3. simple, low-prep activities.

We ask:

1. What does the research say about creativity and learning?
2. How do you balance creativity with curriculum demands?
3. And where do you start if you’re short on time?

You’ll hear how creativity helps students:

1. remember complex content
2. engage more deeply with difficult histories
3. and connect emotionally with the past

If you’ve ever wondered whether creative teaching is “worth it”, or how to be more creative in class, this episode is for you.

Resources, Scope and Sequence, and tipsheet

1. Teach like a pirate by Dave Burgess
2. Tom Appleby, Convict Boy by Jackie French
3. Nanberry: Black Brother White by Jackie French
4. Chad Cary’s colour-coded Scope and Sequence Word doc (in Teacher Downloads)
5. Free professional development tipsheet for this episode (in Teacher Downloads)

Lyrics of Chad Cary’s Ancient Rome song to the Brady Bunch theme song

It's the story of a man named Cato who was being such a big pain in the butts.

He was blocking legislation, with the Optimates, which made the Triumviirs sad.

It's the story of a man named Caesar who was rising up through the political ranks.

He wanted a triumph and to run for Consul. But he could not do both.

Until one day when Caesar called Pompey and Crassus.

And said, "Hey boys, we should all team up!

If we decide to pool our resources together."

That's the way that they became the First Triumvirate.

First Tri um vir ate.......... Tri um vir ate.....

That's the way that they became the first Triumvirate!

Research mentioned in this episode

‍Cole, B., Mooney, M., & Power, A. (2013). Imagination, creativity and intellectual quality. In G. Munns, W. Sawyer, & B. Cole (Eds.), Exemplary teachers of students in poverty (pp. 123-135). Routledge. In Golledge,C . (2026) Inside the History Classroom: Portraits of Exemplary Teaching Practice Routledge.

Manaf, Abdul & Dewanti, Sintha & Mam, Socheath & Susetyawati, Endang & Ernawati, Ika. (2022). Is there a correlation between creativity and learning achievement? A meta-analysis study. REID (Research and Evaluation in Education). 8. 78-89. 10.21831/reid.v8i1.51493.

Baartman LKJ and Prins FJ (2018) Transparency or Stimulating Meaningfulness and Self-Regulation? A Case Study About a Programmatic Approach to Transparency of Assessment Criteria. Front. Educ. 3:104. doi: 10.3389/feduc.2018.00104

Voices

Educators: Chad Cary (New South Wales), Catherine Baron (Western Australia), David Boon (Tasmania), Christine Abadier (New South Wales), Paul Foley (South Australia), Natalie Fong (Queensland), and Megan Tucker (South Australia).

Host: Professor Anna Clark

Credits

1. Hey History Teacher! is supported by the History Teachers Association of NSW.
2. Executive Producer is Professor Anna Clark.
3. Producer is Jane Curtis at UTS Impact Studios.
4. Sound engineering by John Jacobs.
5. Made on Gadigal Country in Sydney Australia.

Starting out as a history teacher can feel overwhelming.

How do you manage a classroom, cover the syllabus, and help students make sense of the past - all at the same time?

Experienced history educators from across Australia share practical advice for teachers who are new to the subject.

From building relationships with students and learning from colleagues, to teaching historical inquiry and source analysis, this episode offers 10 practical tips to help you feel more confident in the history classroom.

Facebook groups for history teachers

1. History Teachers Resources Australia
2. Primary History Teachers Australia
3. History Teachers Australia
4. Australian 5/6 Teachers
5. Modern History Teachers NSW
6. HSIE Teachers of NSW
7. North West NSW History & HSIE Teachers
8. NSW Ancient History Teachers Community
9. Did we miss one? Please let us know

State history teachers associations

1. History Teachers' Association of Australia
2. History Teachers' Association of Western Australia
3. History Teachers' Association of South Australia
4. Geography and History Teachers Association NT
5. Tasmanian History Teachers Association
6. ACT History Teachers Association
7. Queensland History Teachers Association
8. History Teachers' Association of NSW
9. History Teachers' Association of Victoria

Resources and tipsheet

1. Teaching History: A Practical Guide for Secondary School Teachers by Jonathon Dallimore
2. Agora: a quarterly professional journal for history teachers published by the History Teachers' Association of Victoria (HTAV)
3. Starter packs for history teachers by the HTAV
4. Tipsheet for this episode

Voices

Educators: Sarah Coleman (Queensland), Catherine Baron (Western Australia), David Boon (Tasmania), Paul Foley (South Australia), Christine Abadier (New South Wales), and Megan Tucker (South Australia).

Host: Professor Anna Clark, University of Technology Sydney

About Hey History Teacher!

Hear practical ideas, fresh inspiration and thoughtful conversation about how history is taught in primary and secondary school classrooms in Australia.

Hey History Teacher! is for teachers, teacher-educators and pre-service teachers.

You’ll hear conversations and advice about over 8 episodes, including:

1. teaching difficult histories
2. creative history teaching
3. approaching First Nations histories with care and confidence
4. complexity in history teaching
5. how early-career teachers can find their their feet in the history classroom
6. great history teaching, and
7. teaching the Australian Wars.

It's grounded in current research and features fifteen classroom educators and academics from around Australia.

Each episode comes with a free downloadable Tip Sheet to support your teaching practice.

Credits

Hey History Teacher! is supported by the History Teachers Association of NSW.

Executive Producer is Professor Anna Clark.

Producer is Jane Curtis at UTS Impact Studios.

Sound engineering by John Jacobs.

Made on Gadigal Country in Sydney Australia.

What does great history teaching look like?

Is it passion for the past? Creativity in the classroom? The courage to follow students’ questions - even when it means throwing out the lesson plan?

Historian Anna Clark speaks with experienced teachers and university educators from across Australia about what great history teaching really looks like in the primary and secondary school classroom.

From building strong relationships with students, to self-regulation, and being able to say, "I need more information and I'll get back to you."

And, the key skills history teachers pass on to students - like asking and answering good questions, researching ethically, thinking routines for source analysis, and communicating historical arguments.

Resources and tipsheet

1. Project Zero by Harvard Graduate School of Education
2. See, Think, Wonder thinking routine
3. Tipsheet for this episode

Research mentioned in this episode

Zuleica Ruiz-Alfonso, Jaime León, The role of passion in education: A systematic review, Educational Research Review, Volume 19, 2016, Pages 173-188, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.edurev.2016.09.001. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1747938X16300343

Voices

Educators: Claire Colledge, Sarah Coleman, Ben Lawless, Chad Cary, Natalie Fong, David Boon and Catherine Baron.

Host: Professor Anna Clark

About Hey History Teacher!

Hear practical ideas, fresh inspiration and thoughtful conversation about how history is taught in primary and secondary school classrooms in Australia.

Hey History Teacher! is for teachers, teacher-educators and pre-service teachers.

You’ll hear conversations and advice about over 8 episodes, including:

1. teaching difficult histories
2. creative history teaching
3. approaching First Nations histories with care and confidence
4. complexity in history teaching
5. how early-career teachers can find their their feet in the history classroom
6. great history teaching, and
7. teaching the Australian Wars.

It's grounded in current research and features fifteen classroom educators and academics from around Australia.

Each episode comes with a free downloadable Tip Sheet to support your teaching practice.

Credits

Hey History Teacher! is supported by the History Teachers Association of NSW.

Executive Producer is Professor Anna Clark.

Producer is Jane Curtis at UTS Impact Studios.

Sound engineering by John Jacobs.

Made on Gadigal Country in Sydney Australia.

What does great history teaching look like in practice?

How do teachers handle the challenges with teaching history today?

Hear practical ideas, fresh inspiration and thoughtful conversation about how history is taught in primary and secondary school classrooms in Australia.

Hey History Teacher! is for teachers, teacher-educators and pre-service teachers.

You’ll hear conversations and advice about over 8 episodes, including:

1. teaching difficult histories
2. creative history teaching
3. approaching First Nations histories with care and confidence
4. complexity in history teaching
5. how early-career teachers can find their their feet in the history classroom
6. great history teaching, and
7. teaching the Australian Wars.

It's grounded in current research and features fifteen classroom educators and academics from around Australia.

Each episode comes with a free downloadable Tip Sheet to support your teaching practice.

Credits

Hey History Teacher! is supported by the History Teachers Association of NSW.

Executive Producer is Professor Anna Clark.

Producer is Jane Curtis at UTS Impact Studios.

Sound engineering by John Jacobs.

Made on Gadigal Country in Sydney Australia.

Have you ever told the truth but it felt like no one listened? This episode is all about truth-telling.

Hey History! follows Travis Lovett, a proud Gunditjmara/Kerrupmara man and Commissioner at the Yoorrook Justice Commission, on a 400km 'Walk for Truth' across Victoria.

1. Who is Travis Lovett, and why is he going on a really, really long walk?
2. What is the Yoorrook Justice Commission?
3. What is 'truth-telling', and how can it happen with history?

Host Axel Clark and students from St Patrick’s Primary School join Travis on his Walk for Truth through Port Fairy.

Hear:

1. Why telling the truth is important—at school, at home, and in Australian history.
2. That 'history' isn’t fixed — it changes when new voices and stories are heard.
3. What is a 'commission'?
4. What difference does it make when we tell the truth about history?
5. How the Yoorrook Justice Commission has gathered stories and evidence over 4 years.

Voices

1. Travis Lovett, Yoorrook Justice Commissioner 2021-2025
2. Olga Lyons, Principal, St Patrick's Primary School, Port Fairy Victoria
3. Dr Matthew Keynes, Research Fellow, Faculty of Education, University of Melbourne
4. Aunty Nellie Flagg's testimony to the Yoorrook Justice Commission (excerpt)
5. Uncle Henry Atkinson's story shared with the Yoorrook Justice Commission
6. Year Three and Four students of St Patrick's Primary School, Port Fairy Victoria
7. Rosa Ellen (voice actor for news report)

Credits

1. Hosted by Axel Clark.
2. Made on Gadigal and Gunditjmara Country by Jane Curtis.
3. Executive producers are Clare Wright and Anna Clark.
4. Production assistance from Alexandra Morris.
5. Thanks to all the students whose voices you hear in this episode and their schools and teachers: St Patrick's Primary School, Princes Street Primary school, Marrickville West Primary School, La Perouse Primary School, and Yirrkala Bilingual School.

Hey History! is produced by the Australian Centre for Public History at UTS and UTS Impact Studios.

Impact Studios' executive producer is Sarah Gilbert.

Thank you

This episode was made possible by Dusseldorp Forum, a family foundation committed to a just and equitable Australia, one that is caring, ethical and honours our First Peoples.

Special thanks to Principal Olga Lyons and St Patrick's Primary School Port Fairy, Rosa Ellen, Rachel Fyfe and the Yoorrook team.

In this special live recording of Hey History! host Axel Clark asks historians Clare Wright, Anna Clark and Kiera Lindsey what historical objects can tell us about the past?

What can a piece of ochre tell us about Australia’s Deep Time History?

And what about a pair of South Australian pink shorts?

We ask kids what objects are special to them, and play guessing games with objects - including one that's in the Guinness Book of World Records!

This episode of Hey History! was recorded on Kaurna Country for the 2025 Schools Day of Adelaide Writers Week.

Many thanks to

1. Adelaide Festival, especially Suzanne Critchley, and Tahlia Greco
2. The History Trust of South Australia for the use of an image of Don Dunstan's shorts
3. National Museum of Australia for kindly granting permission and usage of images from their collection including: The water bottle of Robert O'Hara Bourke, a gold panning dish, and Chris the sheep

Voices

1. Anna Clark is a Professor of History at the University of Technology, Sydney.
2. Clare Wright is a Professor of History and Public Engagement at La Trobe University.
3. Kiera Lindsey is South Australia's History Advocate and an award-winning historian.

Episode image

Photo of Hey History on stage live in front of primary school students in the Women's Pioneer Memorial Garden in Adelaide, South Australia.

Credits

1. Hosted by Axel Clark.
2. Produced on Gadigal Country by Anna Clark, Clare Wright and Jane Curtis.
3. Executive producers are Clare Wright and Anna Clark.
4. Podcast concept, design and development by Anna Clark.
5. Sound engineering by John Jacobs.
6. Thanks to all the students whose voices you hear in this episode and their schools and teachers.

Hey History! is produced by the Australian Centre for Public History at UTS and UTS Impact Studios.

Impact Studios' executive producer is Sarah Gilbert.

How do you teach and talk about Australian history with kids?

This is a bonus episode for teachers, carers and parents featuring Professor Anna Clark and Professor Clare Wright.

Teaching and talking about history with kids can be rewarding and challenging.

From their experience studying and teaching history, Clare and Anna tackle questions like:

1. How can kids in primary school work with history’s complexity?
2. How can primary students consider the moral lessons of what they're learning?
3. How do you encourage kids when they're interested in history but get some facts wrong?
4. What’s one crucial thing to get across to kids about history?

Anna and Clare look at a concern about saying the wrong thing when talking about Australian history, and look at how to do Reconciliation while teaching or talking about history with kids?

And you'll hear why asking questions is an important part of how you talk about history, and how to use primary sources and historical objects to connect kids with the history of our country.

Voices

1. Anna Clark is a Professor of History at the University of Technology, Sydney.
2. Clare Wright is a Professor of History and Public Engagement at La Trobe University.

Episode image

Photo of Clare Wright (left) and Anna Clark (right) in the recording studio at University of Technology Sydney.

Music

Thannoid by Blue Dot Sessions.

Transcript

1. Download How to talk with kids about Australian history transcript in Word
2. Download How to talk with kids about Australian history transcript as PDF

Credits

1. Made on Gadigal Country by Anna Clark, Clare Wright, Jane Curtis and Britta Jorgensen.
2. Executive producers are Clare Wright and Anna Clark.
3. Podcast concept, design and development by Anna Clark.
4. Indigenous Cultural Consultant is Katrina Thorpe.
5. Story editor is Kyla Slaven.
6. Learning material by Nick Adeney, Victorian primary educator
7. Curriculum advisors are Nicole Laauw, Department of Education NSW, and Rose Reid, Association of Independent Schools of NSW

Thanks to all the students whose voices you hear in this episode and their schools and teachers: Princes Street Primary school, Marrickville West Primary School, Westbourne Grammar School, Preshil Primary School, La Perouse Primary School, and Yirrkala Bilingual School.

Hey History! is produced by the Australian Centre for Public History at UTS and UTS Impact Studios.

Impact Studios' executive producer is Sarah Gilbert.

What were the Gold Rushes? Why did people from all over the world get ‘gold fever’?

What was life like on the Ballarat goldfields of Victoria, on Wada Wurrung Country?

With so many different groups of people, how did everyone get along?

Did First Nations people mine gold too? What was the Eureka Stockade?

How did the Gold Rushes change Australia?

Students from Preshill Primary School and Westbourne Grammar in Melbourne tell us what they know about the Gold Rushes.

Fred Cahir, Andrew Pearce, Sarah Van de Wouw and an oral history about a Chinese miner share the different experiences of goldfields life.

How to use this episode in your classroom

1. Play all the way through (28 minutes) or play half the episode (14 minutes) and pause.
2. We'll tell you when you've reached halfway, and recap the episode.
3. Use the 4 page Learning Materials worksheet PDF with your class, and find more resources on our website.

Voices

1. Professor Fred Cahir is a professor in Australian History at Federation University.
2. Andrew Pearce is the Learning Program Leader at Sovereign Hill, Ballarat.
3. Sarah Van de Wouw is the Education Officer at the Eureka Centre, Ballarat.
4. Gabrielle Wang interviewed by Anna Zhu for the Australians with Chinese heritage oral history project, from the National Library of Australia online catalog.

Episode image

Gold panning dish. Image courtesy of the National Museum of Australia.

Music

Lady Marie, Rush to the Clearing, Borough and Jespen by Blue Dot Sessions.

Transcript

1. Download Gold Fever transcript in Word
2. Download Gold Fever transcript as PDF

Credits

1. Hosted by Axel Clark.
2. Made on Gadigal Country by Anna Clark, Clare Wright, Jane Curtis and Britta Jorgensen.
3. Executive producers are Clare Wright and Anna Clark.
4. Podcast concept, design and development by Anna Clark.
5. Indigenous Cultural Consultant is Katrina Thorpe.
6. Story editor is Kyla Slaven.
7. Learning material by Nick Adeney, Victorian primary educator
8. Curriculum advisors are Nicole Laauw, Department of Education NSW, and Rose Reid, Association of Independent Schools of NSW

Thanks to all the students whose voices you hear in this episode and their schools and teachers: Princes Street Primary school, Marrickville West Primary School, Westbourne Grammar School, Preshil Primary School, La Perouse Primary School, and Yirrkala Bilingual School.

Hey History! is produced by the Australian Centre for Public History at UTS and UTS Impact Studios.

Impact Studios' executive producer is Sarah Gilbert.

Why did kids get transported from Britain to Australia?

What were their crimes? Did they miss their families?

What was life like as a convict in Van Dieman’s Land, an open air prison on Palawa land?

Students from Princes Street Primary School in Hobart tell us what they know about convict kids.

Hamish Maxwell-Stewart and Marcelle Mangan tell the story of transportation, convict tattoos and tokens, and convict life at the Cascades Female Factory in Hobart.

They answer kids’ questions and reflect on what the evidence can and can’t tell us about the convicts.

How to use this episode in your classroom

1. Play all the way through (32 minutes) or play half the episode (16 minutes) and pause.
2. We'll tell you when you've reached halfway, and recap the episode.
3. Use the 4 page Learning Materials worksheet PDF with your class, and find more resources on our website.

Voices

1. Professor Hamish Maxwell-Stewart is a specialist in convict history and is at the University of New England.
2. Marcelle Mangan is a tour guide at the Cascades Female Factory, Hobart.

Episode image

Convict love token from J. Fletcher. Image courtesy of the National Museum of Australia.

Transcript

1. Download Convict kids transcript in Word
2. Download Convict kids transcript PDF

Music

Less Jaunty and Apollo Diedre by Blue Dot Sessions.

Credits

1. Hosted by Axel Clark.
2. Made on Gadigal Country by Anna Clark, Clare Wright, Jane Curtis and Britta Jorgensen.
3. Executive producers are Clare Wright and Anna Clark.
4. Podcast concept, design and development by Anna Clark.
5. Indigenous Cultural Consultant is Katrina Thorpe.
6. Story editor is Kyla Slaven.
7. Learning material by Nick Adeney, Victorian primary educator
8. Curriculum advisors are Nicole Laauw, Department of Education NSW, and Rose Reid, Association of Independent Schools of NSW

Thanks to all the students whose voices you hear in this episode and their schools and teachers: Princes Street Primary school, Marrickville West Primary School, Westbourne Grammar School, Preshil Primary School, La Perouse Primary School, and Yirrkala Bilingual School.

Hey History! is produced by the Australian Centre for Public History at UTS and UTS Impact Studios.

Impact Studios' executive producer is Sarah Gilbert.

In 1770, Captain Cook got secret instructions to find the ‘Great South Land’.

His ship The Endeavour sailed into Kamay Botany Bay, the land of the Gweagal people.

How did the Gweagal people meet Captain Cook and his crew?

How did they communicate?

What happened over the eight days that Captain Cook stayed in Botany Bay?

Students from Marrickville West Primary School in Sydney tell us what they know about this encounter.

Ray Ingrey and Paul Irish, along with Captain Cook’s own diary, tell the story of this first meeting, answer kids’ questions, and reflect on how it went.

How to use this episode in your classroom

1. Play all the way through (23 minutes) or play half the episode (11 minutes) and pause.
2. We'll tell you when you've reached halfway, and recap the episode.
3. Use the 4 page Learning Materials worksheet PDF with your class, and find more resources on our website.

Voices

1. Ray Ingrey is a Dharawal person from the La Perouse Community. He is a Director of the Gujuga Foundation.
2. Paul Irish is a professional historian who has worked for the past twenty years with Aboriginal heritage and history.
3. Captain’s Cook diary is voiced by Nick Hopwood.

Episode image

Gweagal spears reproduced with the permission of the Dharawal and La Perouse community, and Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, University of Cambridge, formerly MAA D 1914.1-4

Transcript

1. Download a transcript of First meetings at Kamay Botany Bay in Word
2. Download a transcript of First meetings at Kamay Botany Bay as PDF

Music

Curiously and Curiously and Roundpine by Blue Dot Sessions.

Credits

1. Hosted by Axel Clark.
2. Made on Gadigal Country by Anna Clark, Clare Wright, Jane Curtis and Britta Jorgensen.
3. Executive producers are Clare Wright and Anna Clark.
4. Podcast concept, design and development by Anna Clark.
5. Indigenous Cultural Consultant is Katrina Thorpe.
6. Story editor is Kyla Slaven.
7. Learning material by Nick Adeney, Victorian primary educator
8. Curriculum advisors are Nicole Laauw, Department of Education NSW, and Rose Reid, Association of Independent Schools of NSW

Thanks to all the students whose voices you hear in this episode and their schools and teachers: Princes Street Primary school, Marrickville West Primary School, Westbourne Grammar School, Preshil Primary School, La Perouse Primary School, and Yirrkala Bilingual School.

Hey History! is produced by the Australian Centre for Public History at UTS and UTS Impact Studios.

Impact Studios' executive producer is Sarah Gilbert.

How did First Nations people learn before books, school and the internet?

What are some of the teaching places on Country? Can a cave or a beach be a classroom?

What’s the role of rock art, like engravings, stencils and prints, in the ‘oldest classroom’?

What are the different kinds of classrooms First Nations kids learn ion today?

Students at La Perouse Primary School in Sydney tell us what they know about how their ancestors learnt on Country.

Wayne Brennan and host Axel Clark visit a very old rock shelter on Dharug and Gundungurra Country. We hear about different kinds of rock art, learning when you’re ready and ways of passing down knowledge.

Merrikiyawuy Ganambarr-Stubbs invites us into her classroom at Yirrkala Bilingual School in North East Arnhem Land.

How to use this episode in your classroom

1. Play all the way through (24 minutes) or play half the episode (12 minutes) and pause.
2. We'll tell you when you've reached halfway, and recap the episode.
3. Use the 4 page Learning Materials worksheet PDF with your class, and find more resources on our website.

Voices

1. Wayne Brennan is an archaeologist at the University of Sydney , a Gamilaraay person and Blue Mountains custodian.
2. Merrikiyawuy Ganambarr-Stubbs is the Principal of Yirrkala Bilingual School, a Yolngu woman and leader.

Episode image

Red ochre used in painting. Image courtesy of the National Museum of Australia.

Transcript

1. Download The Oldest Classroom transcript as Word
2. Download The Oldest Classroom transcript as PDF

Music

Thannoid and Highway 94 by Blue Dot Sessions.

Credits

1. Hosted by Axel Clark
2. Made on Gadigal Country by Anna Clark, Clare Wright, Jane Curtis and Britta Jorgensen
3. Executive producers are Claire Wright and Anna Clark
4. Podcast concept, design and development by Anna Clark
5. Indigenous Cultural Consultant is Katrina Thorpe
6. Story editor is Kyla Slaven
7. Learning material by Nick Adeney, Victorian primary educator
8. Curriculum advisors are Nicole Laauw, Department of Education NSW, and Rose Reid, Association of Independent Schools of NSW

Thanks to all the students whose voices you hear in this episode and their schools and teachers: Princes Street Primary school, Marrickville West Primary School, Westbourne Grammar School, Preshil Primary School, La Perouse Primary School, and Yirrkala Bilingual School.

Hey History! is produced by the Australian Centre for Public History at UTS and UTS Impact Studios.

Impact Studios' executive producer is Sarah Gilbert.