Her Name is Nanny Nellie (ATOM Study Guide)

NB: This study guide includes both a full guide as well as a condensed Grab and Go version.

Her Name is Nanny Nellie is a powerful story of one woman’s determination to know and connect with the truths of her family’s history.

In 1925, the Australian Museum in Sydney exhibited three statues of Aboriginal people: a child, a man and a woman. These statues were given no names. They were instead exhibited as nameless objects to be studied by visitors – examples of a supposed ‘dying Aboriginal race’. One of these statues depicted Ngarigo woman Nellie Bungil Walker. The statues remained on display until 1995.

Her Name is Nanny Nellie follows the journey of Nellie’s great-granddaughter Irene Ridgeway, to connect with Nellie’s life and to see the statues restored and exhibited with the dignity they always deserved. Through the story of Irene and her family, Her Name is Nanny Nellie powerfully addresses the ongoing questions of history and truth-telling in Australia.

Curriculum Links:

Her Name is Nancy Nellie is relevant to secondary students in the learning areas of:

• Senior Secondary English (Unit 1)
• Year 11 Modern History
• Year 10 History
• Year 9–10 Media Arts
• Year 10 Civics and Citizenship

In addition, Her Name is Nanny Nellie also relates to the general capabilities of:

• Literacy
• Ethical Understanding
• Critical and Creative Thinking
• Intercultural Understanding
• Personal and Social Capability

as well as the cross-curriculum priority of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Histories and Cultures.