Systems of language
Reproduce the sounds and rhythms of spoken Noongar, understanding that although Noongar and English use the same alphabet, there are different sounds in Noongar, and link these to written symbols; for example:
- vowels: a, aa, e, i, o, oo, sounds are consistently the same
- consonants: soft and hard sounds
- practise producing sounds, blowing paper or feather, feeling air near lips, up and down tongue motions, feel throat vibrating
- unfamiliar digraphs, such as
- bw – similar to bwana – bwoka
- dw – similar to twitch – dwert
- kw – similar to quiet – kwenda
- -ly – as in million
- ng – as in sing
- ny – as in onion
Identify key features of sentence patterns with extensive support and understand basic elements of language structures, including:
- noticing and using nouns for content, such as day/night, birds, weather and uses of water
- becoming aware of word order for present tense, such as (noun, nominative pronoun, location-affix, verb); for example, Dwert baal boya-k yaakiny; Ngooni baal kep-ak yaakiny
- using common singular and plural personal pronouns for people and animals; for example, ngany, noonook, baal, baalap, ngalak (Baalap waangkaniny. Ngalak djakoorliny.)
- understanding demonstrative pronouns, such as this, that; for example, nidja, alidja, (Nidja yongka. Alidja koomba yongka!)
- understanding the use of possessive pronouns, for example, noonan (your) Naatj noonan kwerl?; and nganyang (my) Alidja nganyang dwert!
- noticing and using interrogative pronouns and question words, such as what, where, who?; for example, Naatj, Naatj baal warniny? Windji/Windja, Windji/Windja baal koorliny? Ngiyan, Ngiyan kep-ak yaakiny?
- using simple modelled questions and statements
- noticing simple adjectives as opposite pairs, such as long/short, open/closed, full/empty, fast/slow; for example, woori/woora, koorart, bardaa, didin, moorart, wirt, kert-kert, dabakarn
- noticing simple adjectives, such as good, happy (moorditj, djoorap)
- extending knowledge of colours, such as green, black, white, grey, orange, pink (nodjam, moorn, djardak, djendal, yoont-mirda, mirda-djardak)
- extending knowledge of numbers one to ten; for example, maar, maar-keny, maar-koodjal
- noticing commonly used quantifiers, such as lots, good, slowly, fast; for example, boola, moorditj, dabakarn, kert-kert
- using simple action words in present tense, such as, waangkaniny, barniny, ngaarniny, doorakiny (talking, walking, eating, drinking)
- developing an understanding of common location and place affixes/suffixes and meanings, such as in, on, near, at; for example, boorn-ngat; bilya-k-ngat; boodja-k; marlak-ngat
- noticing the use of the affix/suffix -kadak in informal conversations, for example, kooda-kadak waabiny (playing with friends)
- noticing English verb 'to be' (is, are, am, am not) is not in the Noongar language
- noticing the dual meaning of the verb nyininy; for example, Yongka baal djooraly-ak nyininy. (Kangaroo is sitting in the grass.) and Yongka baal marlak-ngat nyininy. (Kangaroo lives in the bush.)
Recognise that, in Noongar, texts have a purpose; for example, stories, paintings, songs and dances all have a message
Recognise that communication can also occur through sign language
Identify which Noongar stories belong to which natural features, animals, plants and land, and recognise their significance, such as Boodjin Boya