Great Barrier Reef (ATOM Study Guide)

Great Barrier Reef is a spectacular, visual, natural and social history giant-screen film about Australia's iconic Great Barrier Reef. The film is told through the eyes of the people who live and work on and for the reef. It is presented as the story of one everyday hero, a girl named Jemma, who, from her own corner of the Great Barrier Reef, is taking giant steps towards helping inhabitants of this living structure, and giving the reef a chance to heal.

This 42-minute 3D film features Australia's greatest natural icon, the world's largest living structure, which is described as one of the richest and most complex natural ecosystems on Earth. As stated in the introductory segment: 'The largest reef on Earth.
 More than 1,600 miles long, that's further than Boston to Miami. 
Its massive outer reefs form a 'barrier', offering protection to an extraordinary diversity of life.'

Curriculum Links:

• Conservation
• Sustainability
• Endangered Species
• Science as Human Endeavour
• Citizen Science
• English Language Arts
• Geography

Curriculum and the Classroom:

• Activities in this guide are designed for use in Grade 3 to Year 8.
• Content in the research projects described in Great Barrier Reef is also suitable for incorporation into high school Geography, Earth and Environmental Science and Biology courses.
• The guide has a major cross-curriculum theme of Sustainability running through all film-related lessons and the lessons are designed to be cross-curricular in nature.
• Students are asked to gain key scientific knowledge while developing their understanding of Geography and Language Arts.

Cross-curriculum Priority – Sustainability:

• Sustainability addresses the ongoing capacity of Earth to maintain all life.
• Sustainable patterns of living meet the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs.
• Actions to improve sustainability are both individual and collective endeavours shared across local and global communities.
• Actions necessitate a renewed and balanced approach to the way humans interact with each other and the environment.