Getting Started
Learning for life
- People change the environment to meet their needs, and these changes impact on and change the environment.
- Our natural resources, like water and clean air, are precious.
- We have a responsibility to care for and protect our environment for the future.
- The planet's natural resources are finite.
- Many spaces and species are threatened because of human impact on the environment.
- Natural events affect and change the environment.
- There are international agencies that promote environmental protection.
- I may only be one child but I can make a difference.
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Overview
It is Tasmania in the 1930s, a time when money is short, jobs are few and many families depend directly on their environment for survival. The land gives a living for those tough enough to tackle it head on – taming its growth, cutting its timber, trapping its creatures.
It was not a time of words like 'environment', 'conservation', 'protection', 'sustainability' and phrases such as 'carbon footprint' or 'environmental impact study'.
Rosie's father is a timber cutter – 'heavy set and hairy and rough as they come' – in the wild isolation of the Florentine Valley west of Hobart. Her life is bound by her bush environment and its people – like Elias Churchill who is a snarer, and whose very presence makes Rosie shiver.
One day, Churchill calls when Rosie's dad is in the forest. As he turns to leave, she sees something trussed up and slung across his saddle like a bed roll. However, because she is frightened, she pretends to see nothing and goes back to feeding the chooks.
When her father returns, she tells him about it and learns about the mysterious tiger-wolf and the bounty that has been placed on its head. Fascinated by the prospect of seeing both a train and a tiger-wolf she goes with her father to see the creature being loaded to be taken to Hobart. But, again, she sees something she wishes she hadn't – something she cannot forget – that catches up with her many years later.
Since the last thylacine died in 1936, unconfirmed sightings have given the species such a mystery and mystique that it almost has legendary status. Although many of the world's species are added to the extinct list every year, none seem to have the same impact on the imagination as the thylacine.
This book allows students to explore the concept of extinction, the effect that humans can have on the environment, and how even just one child might have an impact. It also allows students to consider the impact that humans can have on their environment, intentionally or not, and the concept of conservation.
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Author profile
Gary Crew was born in Brisbane in 1947. He began work as a draftsman but after ten years he decided to become a teacher.
He began writing fiction, particularly for young adults, because the boys he was teaching could not find any books they wanted to read. His first novel, published in 1985, was called The Inner Circle. In 1989 he gave up teaching to write full time. As well as novels, he writes picture books, often using a particular historical event as the foundation for the story. He also likes to write crime and science fiction.
Gary has won many awards for his works, both in Australia and overseas, including the CBC Picture Book of the Year Award in both 1993 and 1998.
He is married with grown-up children and lives in the mountains overlooking the Sunshine Coast. He enjoys gardening, reading, watching movies and playing with his Jack Russell terriers.
He is now a senior lecturer in Creative Writing, Children's and Adult Literature at the University of the Sunshine Coast.
You can find out more about Gary at www.home.gil.com.au/~cbcqld/crew/crew.htm
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Illustrator profile
Mark Wilson was born in Melbourne in 1949. He always loved drawing, and spent most evenings sketching on huge sheets of paper that his dad brought home from his work. Later, he studied mural design and painting and also did a Diploma in Education the following year. At the same time he was a drummer in a rock band.
In the early seventies, he was a designer and illustrator for student magazines for the Victorian Education Department. At the same time he was in a heavy rock band called 'Centrefold' and then another called 'Piranha'. He still sings with 'The Dodgy Chairs'.
He developed a love of nature and the bush when his family moved to East Gippsland and, since then, much of his subject matter has reflected wildlife and conservation issues, particularly endangered species. His most recent book The Last Tree focuses on the devastation facing the forests and creatures of East Gippsland. This picture book won him his third Whitley Award for Children's Literature. This award 'recognises and rewards outstanding grass-roots nature conservationists around the world'. Mark has also won a number of awards for his work from both the Children's Book Council of Australia and the Wilderness Society.
He has illustrated two other titles in this series (also by Gary Crew): I Said Nothing: The extinction of the paradise parrot and I Did Nothing: The extinction of the gastric-brooding frog. Mark has also illustrated A Prayer for the Animals; Young Murphy (also by Gary Crew); Yellow-Eye (author David Spillman); Carpet of Dreams (author Tessa Duder); and The Penguin Shore (author Tim O'Brien).
You can find out more about Mark Wilson at www.marklwilson.com.au/
References
Bailey, C 2001, Tiger Tales: Stories of the Tasmanian Tiger, HarperCollins, Sydney
Guiler, E 1991, The Tasmanian Tiger in Pictures, St David's Park Publishing, Hobart
Rolland, W 1997, The Tasmanian Tiger: The elusive thylacine, Kangaroo Press, Roseville, NSW
Wellington, Craig (producer) 1996, 'The Tasmanian Tiger – the definitive documentary' (video), Winning Post Productions, Hobart
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Useful websites 
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Focus questions
Before reading the book
- What is the creature on the front cover of the book?
- Who has seen one? Why/Why not?
- What does 'extinction' mean?
- If we know this creature as a Tasmanian tiger, why does Gary Crew refer to it as a thylacine?
- What other names has the creature been given over time?
- Why do you think the name 'Tasmanian Tiger' has endured?
- What clues are there in the illustrations that this is a story set in another time?
- How does the style of illustrations prepare you for the story?
During reading the book
- What was Rosie's life like?
- How was it different from the life you have?
- Why does Rosie think that trappers were 'hardly a notch above the slaters that crawled on the forest floor'?
- Why does Rosie think that Churchill had 'the smell of death'?
- What does Rosie's father mean when he says Churchill will 'be after the bounty' for the tiger-wolf?
- How much is a pound worth today?
- What was it that Rosie saw on the train that distressed her so much?
- Why wouldn't she tell her father why she was crying?
- What is the significance of the picture of the thylacine with her cubs?
- Why did Rosie's father consider Elias to be a lucky man to have sold the thylacine to Hobart Zoo?
- How did Rosie's life change after her father was killed?
- Why did delivering some mending for her mother have such an impact?
- How does a modern-day zoo exhibit differ from the one that Rosie found her thylacine in?
- Why do you think the thylacine was kept in such poor conditions?
- How does including the illustration of the newspaper headlines of the time help you understand the story better?
- What did Rosie mean when she said it was her thylacine?
- Why did she say she was sorry?
- Do you think she could have done something that might have changed the thylacine's future? What could she have done?
After reading the book
- What is the significance of the illustration on the title page?
- How did the illustrations help you understand the story better?
- What are some of the techniques the illustrator has used to portray the story's message?
- Could the story have been told without the words?
- Could the story have been told without the pictures?
- Even though this is a story set in the 1930s, could it be a story of our time? Why?
- If you were Rosie, what would you have done?
- What could you do now if a creature you cared about was threatened with extinction?
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Activities
Responding to text and images
Introducing the thylacine
Individuals 
Small groups
If you were to try to trap a thylacine, what would you need to know about it so you could be successful?
Start a class concept map about what the students already know about the thylacine. Reread the story and add any observations that the students make.
Study a variety of pictures of the thylacine.
What more can we find out about it by examining these pictures? Can we answer these questions?
- What did they look like?
- What colour were they?
- Why are they called thylacines?
- Why might they have had stripes?
- How big did they grow?
- Where did they live?
- What parts of Tasmania were their natural habitats?
- Where did they sleep?
- Were they nocturnal or diurnal?
- Did they hibernate?
- What did they eat?
- How did they hunt?
- Did they rely most on their hearing, sight or sense of smell?
- How did they move?
- How fast could they move?
- Were they agile or clumsy?
- Could they swim?
- Could they climb?
- How did it communicate?
- Who were their enemies?
- Were they afraid of humans?
- Were they likely to have attacked humans?
- Would they have been friendly?
- What scared them?
- How did they protect themselves?
- Did they have special survival skills?
- Were they clever?
- Did they live in groups?
- Did they live in families?
- Were they solitary?
- How long did they live?
- When did they mate?
- What were their families like?
- How did they look after their babies?
- Were they smart?
- Were they shy?
- Were they curious?
- When would it be best to search for them?
- Why are they extinct?
Add the new information to the concept map. Read the story again to search for answers for those questions not answered.
Is there anything else you would need to know? Make a list of any other questions that the students suggest. Classify the questions into broad bands of inquiry and assign small groups the task of investigating these and producing a report. Discuss the sorts of resources that might provide the best answers, where these might be located and how they can be used most efficiently.
If the thylacine is extinct and has not been seen by anyone alive today, how can we be sure that what we discover is true? As a class, work through the entry for thylacines on Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thylacine and compare the information there with what the students have discovered. Explain that a wiki is a collection of knowledge, understandings and opinions that can be edited or added to by anyone with an interest in the subject.
Is there anything in the Wikipedia entry that is different to what we have discovered about thylacines? How could we check which information is correct? Are there any changes we could/should make to the Wikipedia entry?
Diary of a thylacine
Individuals
Imagine you are the thylacine caught by Elias Churchill. Write a journal that describes your life and feelings both before and after your capture. Use the journal to create a documentary using software such as PowerPoint or Photostory (PC), or Keynote (Mac) to retell your story. Illustrate your work using appropriate pictures from either print or electronic sources. Under copyright laws you can use these for an educational purpose such as this.
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Themes for Education for Sustainability
Goodbye thylacine
Individuals
In his book Tiger Tales, Col Bailey writes: 'this wretched animal was subjected to an insidious and long-lasting campaign of extermination by Tasmanian graziers'. This is very emotive language clearly putting him on the side of the conservationists.
However, there is always more than one side to an issue. In this case, as well as the conservationists, there were the trappers trying to make a living; the farmers who blamed the thylacine for killing their stock; the Aboriginal people who had lived in harmony with the creature for a long time; and the government officials who were being pressured by the farmers to do something.
Put yourself in the shoes of one of the members of these groups and make a list of the arguments you would use to persuade the Premier of Tasmanian to decide in your favour. Write a letter to the Premier stating your opinion. Try to avoid using emotive language, while putting your case succinctly and accurately.
Which group do you think the author, Gary Crew, would place himself in? Why do you believe this?
Which group do you think the illustrator, Mark Wilson, would place himself? Why do you believe this?
Investigate where and how the image of the thylacine has been used as part of an emblem or logo. Design a t-shirt with an appropriate logo and slogan (without copying one in use because these are copyrighted) that might have been worn by someone who supported your perspective.
Different times, different solutions
Individuals Small groups 
Class
In 1888 a bounty was placed on thylacines which led to their extinction.
Could there have been a different solution which satisfied everyone's needs and yet protected and preserved the animal?
Could the outcome have been different if the world had not plunged into Depression? Why?
How might the issue have been tackled today?
Discuss the possible alternatives and why they were not adopted.
Investigate a modern-day example of a creature under threat and how its protection and preservation is being addressed – or not.
What does 'extinction' mean?
What local, national and/or international organisations are there to protect the rights and lives of animals, especially endangered species?
What is the Red List? See http://www.iucnredlist.org/
What do we know, understand and value today that perhaps was not appreciated in times past?
Investigate methods, such as television advertisements, stories, websites and posters that are used to focus public attention on a particular issue. What could you do, as an individual or a class, to raise awareness of the plight of one of these creatures?
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Research themes
Chain reaction
Individuals Small groups
The thylacine became extinct in Tasmania because of the actions of humans. How did it contribute to the balance of nature in the bush while it was alive?
Investigate how its absence might have affected the cycles of life in the environment. Create a diagram of a food chain with the thylacine and then another without it.
Discuss the ways humans can have an impact on the environment, and why it is necessary to tread lightly on the land. What does it mean to 'leave only footprints, take only photographs'?
The future of the thylacine
Individuals
Since the last known specimen of the thylacine died in Hobart Zoo on 7 September 1936 there have been a number of sightings of what is thought to have been thylacines in the wild and, following the rediscovery and regeneration of the giant panda, there are many people whose hopes have been raised and who believe the thylacine is not extinct.
You are a reporter about to interview someone who believes they have sighted a thylacine. Make a list of the questions you will ask, focusing on those that cannot be answered by just one word so that you will have material for a rich report. Write your article.
Imagine a thylacine has been found and you are the reporter assigned to cover the story for a national newspaper. Write an article entitled 'The Discovery of the Century!' Locate copies of newspaper articles announcing the death of the thylacine in Hobart Zoo and use these as a model for your article.
Some scientists believe that they can clone a thylacine using the DNA of the one that was captured by Elias Churchill. Visit http://www.biotechnologyonline.gov.au to see how this might be done. Write an editorial expressing your opinion on whether this is a good or bad thing. What points would you need to consider? What is the difference between fact and opinion? What is the difference between an article and an editorial?
Imagine you are the curator of the zoo that is to house this newly discovered thylacine. Design a habitat that would meet its needs and ensure its survival. Make a plan and use this to make a model of the space. How would it differ from the conditions at Hobart Zoo when the last thylacine lived there? What is the current role of zoos in the protection and preservation of endangered species?
Fur or fake?
Individuals
Elias Churchill was just one of many who made a living trapping animals like possums and rabbits so their skins could be made into coats and cloaks, usually for the rich.
In other countries, creatures like mink are still bred especially for this purpose and in parts of Canada, baby seals are clubbed to death for their skins. Snake and crocodile skins are used to make shoes and handbags while feathers from ostriches and other exotic birds are used in decoration. However, this practice is diminishing as the market for these sorts of products is shrinking because of public protests.
Investigate the facts of one of these situations, or something similar, and what actions are being taken to address them. What could you, as an individual, do to contribute to the cause?
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Assessment
Assessment tasks are dependent on the teacher's identified outcomes of the unit, the tasks selected and the evidence that teachers determine to be acceptable for the age group.
Changes in values and attitude evolve over time as our expertise and experience grows and so cannot be measured. However, by exposing students to activities such as these we start them on their journey of awareness of the wider world, particularly if we give them the opportunity and time to reflect on their learning.
Reflections
- How has this story impacted on you? What will you remember about it when you are older?
- Have the words or the pictures had the most impact? Why?
Use the reflections sheet to think and write about what you have learned and how it might have changed your thinking and understanding.
The extinction trilogy
Read the other two books in this series: I Said Nothing: The extinction of the paradise parrot and I Did Nothing: The extinction of the gastric-brooding frog and compare the stories, message and illustrations.
Imagine you are the judge awarding this series the Wilderness Society's Environment Award for Children's Literature http://www.wilderness.org.au
What would you say in your speech about the value of these books for students understanding the environment?
If you were Gary Crew or Mark Wilson, what would you say in your acceptance speech about why you wrote/illustrated them?
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