Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander knowledge of the features of the world and navigation methods involved geographical, astronomical and environmental knowledge that was transmitted by various means, including narratives, songs, star maps, and visual designs.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people developed and used expert knowledge to navigate through country for many reasons – to trade, to find materials for tools, in search of seasonal foods, for social interactions and to find reliable sources of water. This knowledge also had to be shared with others and mapping techniques were developed to achieve this. Significant markers such as the direction of sunrise, unusual geological outcrops and stars were often used for this purpose. Many elements of the dreaming contain oral maps which allowed the transfer of this map information
Includes curriculum resources