The first Night of Notables was held at our school in 2003. This means that every student in the school can recall the fun they had in Year 7, dressing up as a famous person and showing their parents and the rest of school how creative and thoughtful they could be. And here’s an amazing thing: older students love to come and see what the new kids on the block are doing for the Night of Notables. Those new kids on the block are YOU! Which notable person will you choose? How will you make the night special and memorable?
Here’s a tip: choose someone that no one else has ever chosen. Choose someone YOU don’t know very much about. That way there will be a mystery for you to solve and many people will be curious to know about the person you have chosen.
So here are some notable people who, despite their great achievements and determination to improve human life, have (at least to my knowledge) never been chosen by students before. I’ve taught Year 7 every year since the Night of Notables was introduced, so I do have a pretty good idea. For each person below, I’ve tried to give a little description or at least include a link to a reputable site that will tell you about the person. I am hankering for someone to choose one of these people, instead of the obvious people who are chosen every year. Be original! Go for it!
PS: You won’t be able to watch any of the You-Tube videos at school, I’m afraid. Our computers crack up when you ask too much of them. But don’t despair: these videos should work at home.
Notable People who have never been N O T A B L E at our School:
Kath Walker (Oodgeroo Noonuccal) She was an Aboriginal writer and activist who gave back her MBE in protest against the treatment of her people. Influential in winning the vote for Aborigines, she was a writer of great purpose and conviction. For instance, she wrote: “We need help, not exploitation.” One of her saddest poems was about an old man who was the last of his tribe. There was noone left who could speak to him in the language of his people. The poem shows her sense of loss and the desperate isolation of the old man. Oodgeroo Noonuccal wrote many moving poems. She was also partially responsible for gaining the vote for Aboriginal people. Click on this link to read a brief introduction to her life: http://www.library.uq.edu.au/fryer/worth_fighting/2.html
http://catalogue.nla.gov.au/Search/Home?lookfor=Judy+Horacek&filter%5B%5D=format%3APicture
Sir Mark Oliphant was a brilliant Australian scientist whose work in nuclear physics was partially responsible for the creation of the bombs that destroyed Hiroshima and Nagasaki. He was forever regretful at the calamity they had caused, however, and later spoke out against the use of science for immoral ends.
http://www.abc.net.au/schoolstv/australians/oliphant.htm
http://www.abc.net.au/pm/stories/s153006.htm
http://www.ngv.vic.gov.au/barak/artist.html
Sofonisba Anguissola was a great woman painter of the Renaissance. Until the internet came into being I didn’t even know she existed. Woman artists rarely make it into art books. Yet some of her paintings are just lovely. They warm my heart because they show people enjoying life and doing quite ordinary things – even smiling! One of her most famous paintings shows a few young girls playing chess and smiling. This was quite rare in those days. There’s also a self-portrait of the artist at her easel.
- Golda Meir – Israeli Prime Minister