Colour the flag

Speaking and listening – Pre-intermediate to Upper-intermediate

Let’s talk about

AUSTRALIA
Conversation cards

One of Australia‘s nicknames is

What do you know about Where in the world is
Down Under.
Australia? Make a list of cities, Australia? Describe and locate
Why is this?
facts and landmarks. on the map.

What’s the capital? What’s the How big is Australia? Do you know any famous
biggest city? What’s the How many people live there? Australians?
sports capital? Compare with other countries. Talk about them.

When was Australia founded? The Queen of England is the In the middle of Australia
When did it become head of state in Australia. Why there is a famous red rock.
independent? Guess. is this? What’s it called? How big is it?

What are the original people of

Which animals are endemic Where is the Great Barrier
Australia called? What do they
(= native) to Australia. Reef located? What is it?
look like? Where do they live?
Brainstorm. Make a list. Is it important? Why?
What do they do?

What are the most common What’s a boomerang? What sports are popular in
wild animals in Australia? What’s it made of? Australia? Guess.
What about farm animals? What’s it used for? Explain why.

Australia has plenty of raw What languages do people ‘All Australians are criminals.’
materials. Which ores and speak in Australia? Is this true? Was it ever true?
minerals are mined? Are they easy to learn? Explain.

Typical Australian words and expressions

1 ankle biter a no problem
1 2 3 2 barbie b food
Match 3 didgeridoo c I'll pay this time
dingo 4 g'day (good day) d barbecue
emu 5 joey e Australia
4
frilled lizard 6 my shout f small child
kangaroo 7 no worries g hello
koala 8 Oz h baby kangaroo
kookaburra 9 tucker i Aboriginal wind instrument
platypus
Tasmanian devil
thorny dragon
Speaking and listening – Pre-intermediate to Upper-intermediate

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FAST FACTS Speaking and listening – Pre-intermediate to Upper-intermediate

Location
• Australia is located in southern Industry
hemisphere between the Indian Ocean • mining, industrial and transportation
and Pacific Ocean. equipment, steel
• The country called Australia is on a
continent which is also called Australia. Agriculture
• wheat, barley, sugarcane and fruits
Geography
• world’s smallest continent, 6th largest Natural Resources
• plentiful supply of precious metals such
country
as iron ore, copper, gold or uranium
Area : 7,686,850 sq km (slightly smaller
Livestock
than the contiguous 48 US States)
• cattle, sheep and poultry
Capital: Canberra
Animals
Owls, bottlenose dolphin, crocodile (salt
Population: 21 million (July 2008 estimate)
water), bilby, parrot, dugong, fur seal,
pelican,
Government
great white shark, platypus, tree frog,
• Democratic, federal-state system
western swamp tortoise, giant cuttlefish,
recognizing British monarch as
pygmy possum, dingo, red kangaroo, emu,
sovereign
kingfisher, kookaburra, flying fox (grey-
• Queen Elizabeth II is the Queen of
headed),frilled necked lizard, sulphur
Australia
crested cockatoo, Tasmanian devil, koala,
kangaroo, wallaroo, magpie, wombats,
Money: Australian Dollar (AUD)
wallaby.

Climate: generally arid (= dry) to semiarid

Sports
• Australians love sports, including rugby,
Languages: English and native languages
football, golf, soccer, swimming, and
cricket.
History
• They have gained high level of
• United Kingdom formally claimed the
achievement in Olympics and other
western part of Australia in 1829
international sporting events.
• Australia gained Independence on the
11th December 1931