©ABC 2017

Questions for discussion

Executive Orders

1. Discuss the BtN Executive Orders story as a class. What points were raised in the

discussion?

2. What changes has Donald Trump made since becoming President?

3. Who does the travel ban affect?

4. How was an Australian teenager affected by the ban?

5. How did some people react to the ban?

6. What is an executive order?

7. How is President Trump using executive orders?

8. In Australia, who does the Prime Minister need to get approval from to make changes?

9. Executive orders have been used by previous US Presidents. True or false?

10. How do you feel about the US President being able to make executive orders?

Do the quiz on the BtN website.

Hijab Day

1. What does the BtN Hijab Day story mainly explain?

2. Where was Itrat born?

3. Which parts of the body does a hijab cover?

4. Which religion do Muslim people follow?

5. Why do Muslim girls and women wear hijabs?

6. When does Itrat wear a hijab?

7. Wearing a hijab in Australia is a choice. True or false?

8. Why does Itrat choose to wear a hijab?

9. How do some people react to Itrat wearing a hijab?

10. What do you understand more clearly since watching the BTN story?

Check out the Hijab Day resource on the Teachers page.

Social Media Agreements

1. Discuss the BtN Social Media Agreements story in pairs. What points were raised in the

discussion?

2. About how many photos are uploaded online every day?

a. 2 000

b. 2 million

c. 2 billion

3. Give an example of a social media app that kids are uploading photos to.

4. How did the kids in the BTN story react to the terms and conditions of Instagram?

5. When you agree to terms and conditions, you’re basically signing a ________________.

Episode 1

7th February 2017

©ABC 2017

6. What has a law firm in the UK done to help kids understand what they’re signing up to?

7. What were the kids surprised to discover about the terms and conditions?

8. Do you use social media? If so, which ones?

9. How has your thinking about changed since watching the BTN story?

10. Do you think social media companies should be doing more to help young people

understand what they’re signing up to?

Check out the Social Media Agreements resource on the Teachers page

Vote in the Behind the News online poll.

Remote Schooling

1. Describe what going back to school was like for the kids in the Remote Schooling story.

2. Which school do the kids go to?

3. How do the students have their lessons?

4. What do the kids like about School of the Air?

5. Briefly describe a school day for the kids.

6. How is it different to your school day?

7. What do they find difficult about going to School of the Air?

8. Which school is Elke starting this year?

9. What’s a school day like for you? Think about how you get to school, how you

communicate with your teachers and other students, and what is unique about your school.

10. What was surprising about this story?

Write a message about the story and post it in the comments section on the story page.

Farm Living Songs

1. What was the main point of the BtN story?

2. Explain what Aimee is doing and why she’s doing it.

3. Where is her farm?

4. How does Aimee describe living on a farm?

5. Give an example of a theme from one of Aimee’s songs.

6. How does Aimee share her songs?

7. Describe the popularity of her videos.

8. What do you understand about living on a farm since watching the BTN story?

9. What did you like about the story?

10. What question would you like to ask Aimee?

Write a message about the story and post it in the comments section on the story page.

©ABC 2017

Teacher Resource

Hijab Day

1. What does the BtN Hijab Day story mainly explain?

2. Where was Itrat born?

3. Which parts of the body does a hijab cover?

4. Which religion do Muslim people follow?

5. Why do Muslim girls and women wear hijabs?

6. When does Itrat wear a hijab?

7. Wearing a hijab in Australia is a choice. True or false?

8. Why does Itrat choose to wear a hijab?

9. How do some people react to Itrat wearing a hijab?

10. What do you understand more clearly since watching the BTN

story?

Class Discussion

After watching the BtN Hijab Day story, respond to the following questions:

Hold a class discussion about the information raised in the Hijab Day story.

Here are some possible questions to help guide the discussion:

Why do many Muslim girls and women wear hijabs?

Which religion do Muslim people follow?

Why do some people think women shouldn’t wear hijabs and

burkas?

Why do you think people complained about the Australia Day ad

featuring two Muslim girls wearing hijabs?

What did you SEE in this video?

What do you THINK about what you saw in this video?

What does this video make your WONDER?

What did you LEARN from this story?

How did this story make you FEEL?

What was SURPRISING about this story?

Episode 1

7th February 2017

November 2016

Students will develop a deeper

understanding of why Muslim girls

and women wear hijabs.

Health and Physical Education –

Years 3 & 4

Describe how respect, empathy

and valuing diversity can positively

influence relationships

Civics and Citizenship Year 4

How a person’s identity can be

shaped by the different cultural,

religious and/or social groups to

which they may

belong (ACHCK014)

Reflect on their cultural identity and

how it might be similar and

different from others (ACHCS021)

Civics and Citizenship Year 7

How Australia is a secular nation

and a multi-

faith society (ACHCK051)

How values, including freedom,

respect, inclusion, civility,

responsibility, compassion,

equality and a ‘fair go’, can

promote cohesion within Australian

society (ACHCK052)

©ABC 2017

Cultural Diversity

Begin with a brainstorm about cultural diversity in Australia. Ask students to think about:

How many cultures are represented in Australia?

Which cultures are represented?

How do they celebrate their culture?

Students will conduct a survey to investigate the cultural diversity that is represented in their classroom.

Students can formulate their own questions or use the example questions provided below. Student will

collect and record the data from their survey, and then present their findings in an interesting way.

Ways to celebrate cultural diversity in your classroom:

Hold a shared lunch inviting students to share their culture by bringing along a plate of food.

Hold a series of cooking classes with the students. Students will learn about ingredients and recipes

used in different cultures and then cook the meal in class.

Design, illustrate and then display posters highlighting the cultural diversity in their classroom.

Create a profile of the diversity of languages spoken by students in the class.

Host a community cultural event at school.

Invites speakers/guests from the local community to talk about cultural diversity.

Further Investigation

Australia’s population is one of the most culturally diverse populations in the world. Students will explore and

learn more about Australia’s people, culture and lifestyle through research, comparing information from a

variety of sources. Students will present their findings in an interesting way, for example, a graph or

infographic.

Why do some Muslim women wear burkas?

There is a wide variety of clothing worn by some Muslim women around the world. Investigate the different

types of clothing that some Muslim women wear.

Describe the differences between the burka, niqab, hijab, chador and dupatta.

Why do some Muslim women wear burkas? Consider cultural and religious reasons.

Survey questions

Where were you born?

Where were the members of your family born?

Do you speak a language other than English at home?

What family celebrations do you celebrate?

©ABC 2017

The following articles will help students to understand the differences:

ABC News Explainer: Why do Muslim women wear a burka, niqab or hijab?

CBBC Newsround: What's the difference between a hijab, niqab and burka?

The BTN Ramadan story looks at young Muslims

celebrating the Islamic holy month of Ramadan.

1. Which religion do Muslim people follow?

1. During the month of Ramadan, most Muslim

people do something called fasting. What does

that mean?

2. What do Muslim people think about during

Ramadan?

3. What is the name of their religious book?

4. The Islamic calendar is based on the cycles of

the ___________.

5. Why does Ali find Ramadan hard?

6. Why can school be difficult for him during Ramadan?

7. Who doesn’t have to fast?

8. What do you understand more clearly about Ramadan since watching the BtN story?

There are activities for students to understand Ramadan in more detail.

Behind the News – Burka Ban

http://www.abc.net.au/btn/story/s4102605.htm

ABC News – Explainer: Why do Muslim women wear a burka, niqab or hijab?

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-09-23/why-do-muslim-women-wear-a-burka-niqab-or-hijab/5761510

Behind the News - Ramadan Begins

http://www.abc.net.au/btn/story/s4256718.htm

CBBC Newsround – Guide: What is Ramadan?

http://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/23286976

©ABC 2017

Teacher Resource

Social Media Agreements

1. Discuss the story in pairs. What points were raised in the

discussion?

2. About how many photos are uploaded online every day?

3. Give an example of a social media app that kids are uploading

photos to.

4. How did the kids in the BTN story react to the terms and

conditions of Instagram?

5. When you agree to terms and conditions, you’re basically signing

a ________________.

6. What has a law firm in the UK done to help kids understand what

they’re signing up to?

7. What were the kids surprised to discover about the terms and

conditions?

8. Do you use social media? If so, which ones?

9. How has your thinking about changed since watching the BTN

story?

10. Do you think social media companies should be doing more to

help young people understand what they’re signing up to?

Note taking

Students will practice their note-taking

while watching the BTN

Social Media Agreements story. After

watching the story, ask students to reflect

on and organise the information into three

categories.

What information in the story was...?

Positive

Negative or

Interesting

Glossary

Students brainstorm terms that relate to cyber safety. Below are some

terms to get them started. Ask students to share what they know about

each term and compile a glossary.

Apps

Cyber safety

Cyber security

Episode 1

7th February 2017

Students will learn why it’s important

to understand social media terms

and conditions.

Digital Technologies – Years 3 & 4 Plan, create and communicate ideas

and information independently and

with others, applying agreed ethical

and social protocols

Digital Technologies – Years 5 & 6 Plan, create and communicate ideas

and information, including

collaboratively online, applying

agreed ethical, social and technical

protocols

Digital Technologies – Years 7 & 8 Plan and manage projects that create

and communicate ideas and

information collaboratively online,

taking safety and social contexts into

account

Health and Physical Education

Years 3,4 5 & 6

Identify and practise strategies to

promote health, safety and wellbeing(

ACPPS036) (ACPPS054)

©ABC 2017

Digital footprint

Digital citizen

Terms and conditions

Privacy settings

How do you communicate online? Working in small groups, students share and record all the ways they communicate online. Encourage

students to share the positive and negative feelings and experiences they have.

What are your favourite websites and apps?

Do you use social media? If so, which ones?

Who do you stay in touch with through your mobile phone and the internet?

What do you think positive online communication means? Give some examples.

What is negative online communication? Think of at least three verbs or adjectives that describe

negative communication.

What are some strategies to deal with negative online communication?

Comparing Social Media

Students research a range of different social media websites or apps, learn what they are used for, examine

why age restrictions on these sites are important and what they know about the terms and conditions. The

quick guide to popular social media sites and apps is a useful resource.

Social media

website or app

How old do you have to be to sign up?

What is it used for? What can you do?

13 years old

It is a social networking website.

It helps you keep in touch with friends and family.

You can post photos, share links and other information.

©ABC 2017

List 3 reasons why social media age restrictions matter?

Further Investigation: Explore the terms and conditions of a social networking site. What does it ask its users

to agree to?

Behind the News has covered a number of stories about staying safe online. Students can watch the stories

and respond to the questions:

BTN Digital Footprint story

1. How can a person’s movements be tracked? 2. Why has online privacy been an issue in recent

years. 3. What sorts of information are people sharing

online? 4. How can online activity be monitored? 5. How can information footprints be useful? 6. Give examples of how people can make smart

choices online.

BTN Data Security story

1. What is meant by the term ‘targeted advertising’?

2. What websites and apps do you use?

3. What is your digital footprint? Think about the information that you post online.

4. Make a list of people or organisations that might track your online activity?

5. How important is data security to you? Discuss as a class.

6. What can you do to secure your data?

BTN Cyber Smart story

1. What does cyberbullying mean?

2. How is cyberbullying different to bullying someone

face-to-face?

3. Why do you think some people that bully online

would never do it face-to-face?

4. What is trolling?

5. What are some strategies kids can use to help deal

with cyberbullying?

6. List some positive aspects of social media and

communicating online.

BTN Password Power story

1. Why is password security important? 2. Give some examples of passwords that were on the

`worst passwords’ list. 3. Complete the following sentence: The best

passwords are… 4. Give an example of a strong password. 5. What would be your 5 tips for good computer

security?

©ABC 2017

Further Investigation

A focus for Safer Internet Day is encouraging kids to

balance their screen time with other activities. The

BTN Technology Challenge story asks students to

think about how much time they spend on devices.

There are also activities for students to complete

including auditing the time they spend on technology

and challenging them to see how long they can go

without technology.

Instagram – Tips for Parents

https://help.instagram.com/154475974694511

Common Sense Media – Facebook, Instagram and Social

https://www.commonsensemedia.org/social-media/age/tweens

Office of the Children’s eSafety Commissioner - Games, Apps and Social Media safety

https://www.esafety.gov.au/esafety-information/games-apps-and-social-networking

Office of the eSafety Commissioner – Social Networking

https://www.esafety.gov.au/esafety-information/esafety-issues/social-networking

Office of the eSafety Commissioner – Social Networking information for teachers

https://www.esafety.gov.au/esafety-information/esafety-issues/social-networking/social-networking-

information-for-teachers

Behind the News – Digital Footprint

http://www.abc.net.au/btn/story/s3220088.htm

Behind the News – Data Security

http://www.abc.net.au/btn/story/s3845649.htm

Behind the News – Cyber Smart

http://www.abc.net.au/btn/story/s3630903.htm

Behind the News – Password Power

http://www.abc.net.au/btn/story/s3374197.htm

©ABC 2017

BtN: Episode 01 Transcript 7/02/17

Hi I'm Nathan Bazley and welcome to another year of BTN! Coming up today.

We tackle President Trump and find out how he's been able to make so many big decisions so quickly.

We reveal what's actually written in the terms and conditions we all agree to without actually reading them.

AND what's it like to go back to school when school is just a few metres from your house but hundreds of kays from anywhere else.

All that coming up soon, but first: The summer holidays were certainly not a quiet time news wise. So here's a quick wrap up of some of the biggest stories you need to know.

This Week in News

The weather had everyone talking over the summer break. South Australia was hit with massive storms. While flash flooding turned Uluru into one big waterfall and Sydney had its hottest January on record!

Things also heated up on Australia Day with some calling to change the date. Some people reckon it isn't right to celebrate the arrival of the First Fleet because of the impact it had on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. But others say it should stay where it is.

In New South Wales, Premier Mike Baird stepped down to spend more time with his family. He's been replaced by Gladys Berejiklian who becomes the Liberal party's first Female Premier in that state.

Meanwhile in the United States, there was another big changeover that you probably heard about. Donald Trump officially became President. There was a big inauguration ceremony followed by some big protests. Since then, Trump's been filling headlines

©ABC 2017

around the world, including one about a tense phone call with our own Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull. Phew, it sure has been a busy summer!

Executive Orders

Reporter: Matthew Holbrook

INTRO: Now as you heard there, over the holidays Donald Trump was inaugurated as the President of the United States. And in the weeks since, many of his decisions have made headlines around the world. But how has he been able to change so much so quickly? Doesn't he have to get the approval of a parliament like our leader does? Well as it turns out he's got a power that our PM doesn't have. Take a look. If you're the leader of one of the biggest countries in the world, do you have the power to do whatever you want? Not that kind of stuff, more the power to make decisions without needing anyone else's approval. Well, that's a subject people are talking about right now, because of this guy, Donald Trump. He's only been in the top job for a little while, but he's already made some big changes that affect not just America, but the rest of the world. One of those is a travel ban that's stopped people from seven different, mostly Muslim countries, entering the United States for 90 days. Thousands of people travelling into and out of the US, some who had lived there for years, were stopped from boarding flights home or held when they landed. It even affected some Australians like this teenager from Melbourne, Pouya, whose parents are from Iran, and was supposed to go on a school trip to the States but had his visa application denied. POUYA, STUDENT: Maybe mid-last year we started preparing for this trip, so it's been quite a while and to just over one night have that overturned is quite disappointing. Pouya found out a week later he'd be allowed to travel after the rules were relaxed but the ban's still upsetting many people. Here in Australia, the Prime Minister would need the approval of the rest of his party, and then need to win votes in the House of Reps and the Senate to change things up like that. But President Trump was able to make this decision without needing anyone else's approval. He did it using something called an "executive order". Basically, with the stroke of a pen, the President of the United States can tell government agencies, like those in charge of immigration, what he wants them to do, and how they should enforce existing laws. Since becoming President, Trump has already used executive orders to control immigration and refugees, to request a wall be built between Mexico and the US, and to make changes to the healthcare scheme former president Barack Obama brought in. It might sound like an awful lot of power for one person to hold, but there are rules the President has to follow. One, executive orders can't be used to create new laws or to go against existing ones. And two, they can't go against anything in America's constitution

©ABC 2017

which is a document that spells out exactly how the country should be run. But even with those two limitations, it's still a powerful, well, power. Lots of Presidents have used them in the past. Obama made 275 of his own during his time in office. But still, many don't agree with executive orders, and how they're sometimes used. For example, the head of the US Department of Justice refused to support the executive order on immigration, saying it's against the constitution. Trump's response to her? DONALD TRUMP: You're fired. Yep, she lost her job. But several courts have demanded the ban be put on hold until it can be looked at more closely. It seems the debate over executive orders, and how much power they hold, won't be going away any time soon.

Ask a Reporter

Have you got a question about Trump's Executive Orders? Ask me live on Friday during Ask a Reporter! Head to our website for all the details.

Hijab Day

Rookie Reporter: Itrat

INTRO: Now over the holidays the Islamic religion was in the news a lot too. While some of that attention was because of Donald Trump's recent immigration restrictions, in Australia there was also a fair bit of controversy over an Australia Day billboard featuring two young girls in hijabs. Recently it was World Hijab Day so we asked Rookie Reporter, Itrat to tell us what a hijab actually is and why she wears one.

Hi BTN! My name is Itrat! I'm 12 years old and I was born in Pakistan. I moved to Australia with my parents and my four little brothers as refugees one year ago. If you hadn't already noticed, I'm wearing something on my head! It's called a hijab. It's a scarf that covers my head and neck. It's worn by lots of Muslim girls and women all around the world. Muslim means we follow the religion of Islam. A long time ago, we had a prophet; his wife and his daughter, they were wearing scarf and after that every Muslim started to wear scarf.

©ABC 2017

You've probably seen some other kinds of Muslim head scarves too, like the niqab, which looks like this, or the burka, which looks like this. But the most common one you'll see in Australia is the hijab, like I wear! I wear my scarf every day, except night when I'm sleeping. My favourite one is this one, guys. You don't even know, it's so pretty! Like when I'm going wedding, I'm just wearing this one. In some Islamic countries women have to wear a hijab in public, because it's the law. But in most countries, including Australia, it's more of a choice. Not every Muslim girl wears one, but I choose to! I choose to wear hijab because it's my cultural thing and if I don't wear hijab - the other Muslim girls they wear hijab - and if I don't it looks a little bit weird, and I love my hijab that I'm wearing. My friend Hadya chooses not to wear one all the time. ITRAT: Hadya, why do you sometimes not wear a scarf? HADYA: It’s really hard for me to wear a scarf. My mum giving me two choices, if I want or I don't want. But the weather is so hot, my hair is so long, that's why I can't wear a scarf. My hijab doesn't stop me from doing anything, like playing sport. I love soccer! I think it's sad that sometimes people talk about hijabs like they're bad things. Some peoples they're like mean, or like not understanding us and they'll say why are you wearing scarf and it feels really upset, like they're upsetting our friends or my mum or me. Sometimes other kids ask us about our hijabs. We don't mind talking about it as long as they're being respectful. WAJIHA: It's kind of upsetting when they say "Why do you wear a scarf? Is it because you have head-lice or something?" It makes me kind of upset. ITRAT: If some people say "Why are you wearing scarf?" Say it nice way and be accepting. Luckily, I feel accepted by everyone in Australia, especially when I'm at school! I hope you learnt a little more about me and my head scarf today and next time you see someone wearing one, I hope you give them a smile!

Social Media Agreements

Reporter: Carl Smith

INTRO: A new survey has found 53% of kids aged between 8 and 13 use Instagram even though you are not actually allowed to until after you turn 13. That rule is just one of many

©ABC 2017

written in most social media sites' terms and conditions - that huge document that you have to say you've read before you can sign up. But what else is in there? Well, experts say most terms and conditions pages are way too complex for kids to understand, so they're campaigning for a change. Every day it's estimated around 2 billion photos are uploaded online. If you printed those out and stacked them up, it'd make a column about 200 kilometres high, that's roughly the height of 22 Mt Everests. Every single day! And Aussie kids are constantly adding to that pile using social media apps like Instagram. KAYLA: I do use Instagram, a lot, yes. ALICE: Maybe two times a day, I check it in the morning and the evening. ALICIA: If I'm doing anything exciting I'll take a picture of that and put it on Instagram. But with all those pictures of your life and yourself on the net, do you know who's able to look at them? Or who could use them? ALICE: Umm I haven't really thought about that too much, but that would worry me a bit if people were using my photos. JORDAN: Yeah, I'm not really quite sure what they can do! ALICIA: I wouldn't expect people to be able to get onto my Instagram without having to request me first. KAYLA: Yeah, I honestly don't know! Well all of those details are written in here. You might know it as that thing you have to click 'agree' to before you can use a new app. It's a Terms of Use. And Instagram's, for example, is actually 5000 words long! EMMY: It was very confusing, all the words were all jumbled up and they were very big words. JORDAN: It's just put in a way so that adults can understand it, so that Instagram can't get sued or anything like that, but it's not really for kids to go `I can’t do this, I can’t do that’. ALICIA: It shouldn't take that long just to read the terms and conditions! But when you agree to Terms like these you're basically signing a contract and agreeing to everything in it. Even if you don't understand it all! ALICE: I don't know what I've agreed to! Instagram could hold me to all these things that I don't even know what I'm not supposed to be doing! That's why a law firm in the UK has come up with this kid-friendly version of Instagram's terms and conditions to help kids understand what they're really signing up to.

©ABC 2017

KAYLA: I was quite shocked by some of the stuff that was on there, now that I can understand it. JORDAN: They can watch any of our private messages, and record any of our personal information without us knowing. ALICIA: It's so bad how they can keep your photos and messages, and how they know so much about you! ALICIA: It says that they can give it to companies that we haven't given permission for them to have our pictures, and it's very scary actually. ALICE: It's so much shorter, the fact that they can write it this short makes me wonder why they had to write it so long and difficult to understand. Some social media companies are already working to make it easier for kids to figure out how to use their apps safely and responsibly. And Instagram - which is owned by Facebook - says that they: "spend a lot of time working with our community, including young people, and thinking about how we can create a safe and open environment for everyone" But some say many of the big social media companies need to do better. And in the meantime, you might want to take a slightly closer look at what you've already agreed to before uploading your next great snap.

Poll

And we'd like to know how you feel about those terms and conditions. Let us know on our website. Should social media sites be forced to give kids a simple version of their terms and conditions? Yes or no?

Quiz

And sticking with social media, How many people use Instagram each month? 100 million 600 million 6 billion The answer - 600 million

©ABC 2017

BTN Investigates

Have you seen or heard something in the news that you'd like explained? Well now clarity is only a click away with BTN Investigates. It's a new section on our website where you can tell us what topics you want us to cover. It could be something that's confusing you, worrying you, or just making you really happy. For all the details on how you can submit your BTN Investigates' topic just head to our website.

Sport

It was a massive weekend for Women's AFL with the first ever round of the new National comp kicking off on Friday. Carlton smashed Collingwood in the opening game 46 to 11 and the stadium was packed with 24,500 fans turning out for the match. Way more fans came to see the game than the AFL expected and it meant some were turned away. But the players were stoked with the support. DARCY VESCIO, PLAYER: I feel so privileged to be part of it and all the girls were just soaking it all in.

The Aussie netball team has defended its Quad Series Title after winning all three of their games against New Zealand, South Africa and England. The last was a nail biter with the Diamonds just edging out England 47 to 46.

And it's the biggest event on the US sporting calendar more than 100 million Americans tuned in to watch the 51st Superbowl. The New England Patriots faced off against the Atlanta Falcons and by halftime it looked like the Falcons had the whole thing wrapped up. Lady Gaga impressed the crowd in the break - singing, dancing and flying through the air. But the Patriots bounced back in the second half eventually sending the game to overtime at 28 all. They went on to snatch the win and accomplish the biggest comeback in Superbowl history.

Meanwhile, astronauts on the International Space Station got in on the Superbowl hype in the spaciest way possible. Tim Kopra decided to see how far he could throw a football in zero gravity. While the total distance was only about 73 metres, if you account for the

©ABC 2017

speed the Space Station is moving about 28 thousand kays an hour above the earth, the ball actually travelled something like half a million metres - not a bad effort!

School of the Air

Rookie Reporters: Elke, Riley & Livia INTRO: Now, for most kids going back to school is an exciting or maybe nervous time. But for the kids in this next story, it's not a big deal they're only going a few metres from home. Here's Elke, Riley and Livia with their report on what it's like going back to School of the Air. ELKE: This is our home, our school, our business and our community. We live 220 km north west of Longreach in outback Queensland. RILEY: My morning routine is that we wake up at 6 o'clock, have breakfast, we let out the dogs, we check the horses and our chookies then we go over at 7:30 and start school. KIDS: Welcome to the Orielton school house. RILEY: School of the Air is living miles and miles apart from the teachers and the school and corresponding with them on the telephone and computer. ELKE: At a mainstream school you'd normally change rooms or have a new teacher, no offence mum, but for us we rearrange our desks and change posters sometimes, this year specially we get to paint the walls and have a little bit more fun. LIVIA: What I like about school is when it’s a sick day I can wear my pyjamas to school. RILEY: And it only takes 10 seconds to get back to the house. RILEY: Hello everybody this is my desk and my school equipment. Up here is the school timetable that tells us when our on air lessons are on and what number they are. I have maths from 8:30 - 9:30 I have English from 11 o'clock to 12 o'clock. RILEY: Thought I might give you a tour of the reading room. over here we have all our books, and games and reading materials. We come here for quiet time, and over here we have materials to make things for science. LIVIA: Sometimes it's a little difficult to hear what your teacher is saying on air cause they're so far away. RILEY: What I find difficult about school of the air is that we have internet issues out here so the connection usually drops out. And that can really disrupt your lessons. RILEY: One thing that people might not know about distant ed is that we never miss a day of school even if we are sick we travel etc. we also make up for it during the weekends and sometimes in the holidays.

©ABC 2017

RILEY: We also go to swimming carnivals and athletics at Longreach which is 220 km's away from here on a dirt road. LIVIA: I think it’s better doing school at home because you get to see all your family it would be pretty cool to hop on a bus and wear a uniform. ELKE: Well this week I'll be packing up and getting ready for a 700 km drive up to Townsville starting boarding school at Townsville Grammar. ELKE: Done and Dusted, ready for boarding school 2017 ELKE: I'll be getting taught at a mainstream school which will be very exciting and I'll be getting lessons five days a week ELKE: Also I will be wearing a uniform every day. ELKE: I think what I will miss most when I move to boarding school is my family, the animals and the thousands of acres we can get lost in. RILEY: I'm pretty lucky because we do school at home. But I do get pretty distracted out the window - there's loaders, trucks, motorbikes and I really wish I was out there. ELKE: Farwell from Elke, Livia and Riley and Flat Stanley and from our outback Orioten school.

NATHAN: Thanks guys!

Farm Life

Reporter: Carl Smith

INTRO: Now finally today we're staying in the country to meet the girl trying to show the world what farming life is like through song. Take a look. AIMEE: Every year the story is the same, we plant the seed into the ground and look into the sky for rain. Have you ever wondered what living on a farm is really like? Well that's exactly what Aimee is trying to teach the world through song. AIMEE: We grew it here 'cause we are farmers and we feed the world. AIMEE: Hi I'm Aimee. I'm from a small town in South Australia called Alawoona It’s about a 3-hour drive away from Adelaide, which is that way. AIMEE: Living on a farm can be heaps of fun, but it's not always easy. It can be long, hot, tiring and stressful - especially during harvest time. So my Dad and I decided to brighten things up by making music parody videos! AIMEE: The Bulla Burra team, are ready to roll.

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AIMEE: We also have a theme in each video, like harvest, seeding or feeding the world. And we've even managed to get some of our Bulla Burra team involved. Even when they don't want to! Farmers singing: It's time for harvest again! It's time for harvest again! Aimee's videos are getting so popular they're now even getting hits overseas. AIMEE: We didn't think anyone would take much notice of them. But we've now had hundreds-of-thousands of views online and stacks of followers - it's awesome! FARMERS: I'm a farmer! I'm a farmer! I'm a farmer! And we all know that farmers feed the world. AIMEE: To be honest I think our friends and neighbours think we're a bit nuts but every now and again, we do catch them singing "It's time for harvest again!" or one of our other songs, so I think they like it! AIMEE: I really hope you enjoyed our videos and through them it makes you understand a bit more about where your food comes from and how fun farm life is! Bye!

Closer

And that's it for today! But there is heaps more stuff for you on our website, including class activities for this ep, and all of the details about how you can have your questions answered with BTN Investigates. Thanks for joining me, and I'll see you next week for more BTN.