Thanks very much, Pedro!

Thank you for sending us this photo of a typical Australian animal.This is what you can find under "kangaroo" in Wikipedia:
"A kangaroo is a marsupial from the family Macropodidae (macropods, meaning 'large foot'). In common use the term is used to describe the largest species from this family, the Red Kangaroo, the Antilopine Kangaroo, and the Eastern and Western Grey Kangaroo of the Macropus genus. The family also includes many smaller species which include the wallabies, tree-kangaroos, wallaroos, pademelons and the Quokka, some 63 living species in all. Kangaroos are endemic to the continent of Australia, while the smaller macropods are found in Australia and New Guinea.

In general, larger kangaroos have adapted much better to changes wrought to the Australian landscape by humans and though many of their smaller cousins are endangered, they are plentiful. They are not farmed to any extent, but wild kangaroos are shot for meat, although there is some controversy harvesting kangaroos for meat has many environmental and health benefits over other meats.

The kangaroo is an Australian icon: it is featured on the Australian coat of arms, on some of its currency,and is used by many Australian organisations, including Qantas."

The Programme

Australia week 2008

1 - 13 March

Porgramme

• March 4th, Tuesday

17,15 Lecture: Australia

• March 5th, Wednesday

19,30 Lecture: Getting to know Australia

• March 7th, Friday

10,00 Lecture: discovering Australia
11,00 Coffee and Biscuits
16,00 Film. Muriel's Wedding
18,00 Barbecue

What's more

• Exhibition about Australia (landscapes, education and culture, celebrities, history and folklore, curiosities, etc.)
• Web Task contest: Australia: a land to discover

It's next week!!!

Hi everyone out there! We're nearly there. Next week there will be lots of activities in our school about Australia, why don't you have a look at what's on ? As soon as I have the official programme, you will have it here. But I guess you already know about some of the events because you are also working on this. Any comments, any suggestions about the event are welcome.

Valentine SMS

Today it's Valentine's Day. Have you thought of sending someone you love a SMS?
If so, here is one of the most popular ones this year....

U r unique

U r caring &
U r the best….
N I’m d luckiest to
Have U in my life!
HAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY MY SWEET HEART!

Happy Valentine

And now for fellow teachers

Hi everyone out there at my school. I know these days you are busy with exams, but our week on Australia is nearly here! If you want to take some fun activities for your students to your class, check this link. I'm sure you'll find something to suit your needs!
Hope you go through the week, at least, with a smile.

The situation

In this video, we can watch and listen to the opinion of some Australians about the situation of aborigine population in the country.

Stolen Generations apology revealed

Samantha Maiden and Matthew Franklin February 12, 2008

PRIME Minister Kevin Rudd has revealed the wording of Federal Parliament's apology to the Stolen Generations.
Mr Rudd has told Parliament the apology will be for the “indignity and degradation thus inflicted on a proud people and a proud culture".
It pledges that Australia will work to ensure that "the injustices of the past must never, never happen again”.
Mr Rudd has just tabled the words he will use, the first part of which reads:
"Today we honour the Indigenous peoples of this land, the oldest continuing cultures in human history.
We reflect on their past mistreatment.
We reflect in particular on the mistreatment of those who were Stolen Generations – this blemished chapter in our nation’s history.
The time has now come for the nation to turn a new page in Australia’s history by righting the wrongs of the past and so moving forward with confidence to the future.
We apologise for the laws and policies of successive Parliaments and governments that have inflicted profound grief, suffering and loss on these our fellow Australians."
Read the full text of the apology here.
The National Aboriginal Alliance welcomed the wording of the apology, with spokesman Michael Mansell saying Mr Rudd had deliberately framed the motion to leave the door open to compensation for the stolen generations. Mr Mansell said the reference in the text to the government wanting to right the wrongs of the past suggested Mr Rudd was not ruling out compensation. “We look forward to working with the Prime Minister and the Government on working out the terms of the compensation package if that's what his words mean,” he said.
"The fact that these words are used in the text does indicate that the door is open for negotiations.”
Asked why he could form this conclusion when Mr Rudd had previously ruled out compensation, Mr Mansell said there had been a huge shift during Mr Rudd's short time in power and it was possible Mr Rudd was open to compensation but was not willing to clearly indicate this in the text of the apology. Mr Mansell said the one thing missing from the wording was an explanation for why indigenous children were targeted by authorities for removal from their parents. But despite this the aliance was totally behind the stolen generations in accepting the apology. “We are all looking forward tomorrow to hear the Prime Minister of Australia deliver that apology to the stolen generations,” Mr Mansell said. “I think the stolen generations members will be very relieved that that word (sorry) has finally been used because, as we know, the previous prime minister refused to use the very word that the victims were looking for.”
Source: The Australian