Questions for discussion

Gender Equality1. In small groups discuss the issues raised in the Gender Equality story.2. Julia Gillard is not Australia’s first Prime Minister. True or false?3. Describe what life was like for women in the 1800s.4. What does suffrage mean?5. Who were the suffragettes?6. What did they do to change things for women?7. Which state was one of the first in the world to give women the right to vote?8. How did war change the role of women in society?9. What were some important changes for women in the 1960s?10. Do you think women have equal rights to men? Explain your answer.

Use BtN’s Gender Equality teacher resource. http://www.abc.net.au/btn/resources/teacher/episode/20130625-genderequality.pdf

G8 Summit1. Why is it called the G8?2. What countries are represented at the G8 Summit?3. The countries represented are some of the _________ and most ___________ countries in the

world.4. Where is it being held this year?5. What issues have been discussed in the past?6. What topics are being discussed this year?7. When and why did the G8 start?8. What was Live 8 trying to raise awareness about?9. Why have there been protests in previous years?10. What do you understand more clearly since watching the BtN story?

Use BtN’s G8 Summit teacher resource. http://www.abc.net.au/btn/resources/teacher/episode/20130625-g8summit.pdf

Anzac Story1. Discuss the Anzac Story story with another student.2. Which war did Leslie Duxbury fight in?3. What did Lucinda do to win a trip to France?4. How did Leslie encourage people to join the army?5. How many people died at Fromelles?6. What did Lucinda find in the battlefield?7. What was the most special part of the trip for Lucinda?8. Describe Lucinda’s memorial to Leslie?9. Why did Lucinda want to share her story when she returned to Australia?10. Which part of the BtN story was most powerful or moving? Why?

Send a message to Lucinda on the Anzac Story page. http://www.abc.net.au/btn/story/s3784919.htm

©ABC 2013

Episode 1825th June 2013

Women’s Footy1. What was the main point of the Women’s Footy story2. Why do you think women playing AFL has been a controversial issue?3. What is the AFL doing to start a women’s football league?4. What two teams will play in an exhibition match in Melbourne?

a. Sydney Swans and Collingwood Magpiesb. Melbourne Demons and Western Bulldogsc. Geelong Cats and Hawthorn Hawks

5. How were players selected for the exhibition match?6. Describe Alex’s reaction to being picked in the draft?7. Which team does Alex play for?8. Approximately how many women’s footy clubs are there around Australia?9. What do you think the future of women’s football is? 10. What are some of the benefits of playing team sport?

Should more girls be encouraged to take part in sports usually played by boys? Have your say on the BtN online poll. To vote head to the BtN website http://abc.net.au/btn/polls.htm

Popcorn1. Briefly summarise the Popcorn story.2. What is the outer part of the popcorn kernel called?3. Popcorn is the same as sweet corn. True or false?4. In your own words, describe what happens when popcorn pops.5. The two shapes of popcorn are…6. Which shape is supposed to feel better in your mouth?7. Why are moisture levels important when farming popcorn?8. What can affect popcorn farms and their crops?9. What else can be a problem for farmers selling their popcorn?10. What was surprising about this story?

Test your knowledge in the Popcorn quiz. Go to the BtN website and follow the links.

©ABC 2013

Activity

Gender EqualityKey LearningStudents will investigate the experiences of democracy and citizenship of women, in particular the suffragette movement.

The Australian CurriculumHistory /Historical Knowledge and Understanding / Australia as a nation

Experiences of Australian democracy and citizenship, including the status and rights of Aboriginal people and/or Torres Strait Islanders, migrants, women, and children.(ACHHK114)

investigating the experiences of democracy and citizenship of women (for example the suffragette movement, the bar on married women working, equal pay, the Sex Discrimination Act 1984)

English /Language /Expressing and developing ideas

Understand how to use banks of known words, as well as word origins, prefixes and suffixes, to learn and spell new words (ACELA1513)

English /Literacy /Texts in context

Identify and explain language features of texts from earlier times and compare with the vocabulary, images, layout and content of contemporary texts (ACELY1686)

English /Literature /Literature and context

Identify and explore ideas and viewpoints about events, issues and characters represented in texts drawn from different historical, social and cultural contexts (ACELT1619)

Discussion Questions1. In small groups discuss the issues raised in the Gender Equality story.

2. Julia Gillard is not Australia’s first Prime Minister. True or false?

3. Describe what life was like for women in the 1800s.

4. What does suffrage mean?

5. Who were the suffragettes?

6. What did they do to change things for women?

7. Which state was one of the first in the world to give women the right to vote?

8. How did war change the role of women in society?

9. What were some important changes for women in the 1960s?

10. Do you think women have equal rights to men? Explain your answer.

Activities

©ABC 2013

Episode 1825th June 2013

Facilitate a class discussion

After watching the BtN Gender Equality story facilitate a class discussion. Here are some discussion starters:

Act like an historian

Provide your students with the opportunity to act like an historian in the classroom. Students will develop an understanding of the suffragette movement and then present their findings in an interesting way.

Further investigation – Democracy Timeline Ask students find answers to the questions below and then create their own democracy timeline.

Whilst Australian women gained the right to vote in the late 1800’s, many women around the world still do not have the right to vote. Ask students to find out where in the world women still do not have the vote. Students will highlight their findings on a world map.

Women in politics

©ABC 2013

Discussion questions What does gender equality mean to you? How did you feel after watching the story? What surprised you about the story? List some facts that you learnt from this story. What challenges have women faced in the past? What challenges do women still face

today? How would your life be different if people didn’t fight for women’s rights?

Research questions When were women first given the right to vote in Australia? This may differ from

state to state. When were Australian Aboriginal Women given the right to vote? When were women first given the right to stand for federal parliament in Australia?

This may differ from state to state. Who was the first woman elected as a member of parliament in Australia? Who was the first woman Australian prime minister?

Can you find any other important events that have contributed to gender equality in Australia’s history? Include these in your democracy timeline.

Act like an historian What does suffrage mean? Find a dictionary meaning. Describe the suffragette movement. Imagine you are a suffragette living in the late 1800’s – write a persuasive letter, article

or petition to your local government explaining why women should be able to vote.

Working in groups of three or four, students will use the Parliament@Work website  or other sources to find out how many women there are in each of the following:

the parliament in your State or Territory the Commonwealth House of Representatives the Commonwealth Senate

What did you find surprising about your findings? Do you think women have full equality in politics? Explain your answer.

Further Investigation

International Women's Day is a global day celebrating the economic, political and social achievements of women past, present and future. How does your school honour and celebrate the achievements of women all around the world? http://www.internationalwomensday.com/default.asp#.UcEt3-emgVA

8 Related Research Links

ABC The Making of Modern Australia – Struggle for Women’s rightshttp://www.abc.net.au/tv/makingaustralia/educationextras/episode-three/clip-two.htm

National Museum of Australia – Women and Equality as Citizenshttp://www.nma.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0010/19378/Women_equality_full_colour.pdf

CBBC Newsround – Who were the suffragettes?http://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/22766676

Australian Electoral Commission – Women and the Right to Vote in Australiahttp://www.aec.gov.au/Elections/australian_electoral_history/wright.htm

Australian Government – Australian suffragetteshttp://australia.gov.au/about-australia/australian-story/austn-suffragettes

Australian Electoral Commission – Electoral Milestones for Womenhttp://www.aec.gov.au/Elections/Australian_Electoral_History/milestone.htm

©ABC 2013

Activity

G8 SummitKey LearningStudents will clarify their understanding of the G8 summit and what it aims to achieve. Students will have the opportunity to hold their own junior G8 summit in the classroom.

The Australian CurriculumEnglish /Literacy / Interacting with others

Participate in and contribute to discussions, clarifying and interrogating ideas, developing and supporting arguments, sharing and evaluating information, experiences and opinions (ACELY1709)

Use interaction skills such as acknowledging another’s point of view and linking students’ response to the topic, using familiar and new vocabulary and a range of vocal effects such as tone, pace, pitch and volume to speak clearly and coherently (ACELY1688)

Use interaction skills when discussing and presenting ideas and information, selecting body language, voice qualities and other elements, (for example music and sound) to add interest and meaning (ACELY1804)

English /Literacy /Creating Texts

Plan, draft and publish imaginative, informative and persuasive texts, selecting aspects of subject matter and particular language, visual, and audio features to convey information and ideas (ACELY1725)

Plan, draft and publish imaginative, informative and persuasive print and multimodal texts, choosing text structures, language features, images and sound appropriate to purpose and audience (ACELY1704)

Plan, draft and publish imaginative, informative and persuasive texts, choosing and experimenting with text structures, language features, images and digital resources appropriate to purpose and audience (ACELY1714)

Discussion Questions1. Why is it called the G8?

2. What countries are represented at the G8 Summit?

3. The countries represented are some of the _________ and most ___________ countries in the world.

4. Where is it being held this year?

5. What issues have been discussed in the past?

6. What topics are being discussed this year?

7. When and why did the G8 start?

8. What was Live 8 trying to raise awareness about?

9. Why have there been protests in previous years?

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

©ABC 2013

Episode 1825th June 2013

Activities

Facilitate a class discussion

After watching the BtN G8 Summit story encourage students to participate in and contribute to a class discussion about the G8 summit and its role. Students can find out more about the G8 summit by visiting the CBBC Newsround website http://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/22937970

G8 Junior Summit

As a class, students will form their own G8 Junior Summit. Students will need to think about and discuss issues that are important to their class or school.

Hold a class discussion to clarify students’ understanding of the G8 summit and what it aims to achieve.

Explain that students will be working in groups of 4-5 to look at a range of topics, including health care, education, the arts and so on. They may also like to discuss the suggestions from the Youth Summit. They can record their ideas on the template on the following page. Some key questions to focus group discussions include:

Once students have discussed and recorded their ideas, re-group as a class and collate the suggestions. Rate the suggestions from highest to lowest priority. Consider taking your suggestions to your next SRC meeting.

©ABC 2013

Discussion questions

Why’s it called the G8? What countries are represented in the G8? How long has the G8 been happening for? What happens at the G8 summit? How long does the summit last for? Why do people protest at G8 summits?

Key questions

What is the issue/suggestion and why is it important?

How do you believe it will improve your classroom or school?

What might be some of the issues implementing the suggestion?

Reflection How did conducting the G8 Junior summit make you feel? Consider the impact that you can have on

social change and the empowerment of young people in your community.

What surprised you when completing the activity?

8 Related Research Links

ABC News – Obama, Putin disagree on Syria at icy G8 talks in Northern Irelandhttp://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-06-18/leaders-gather-for-g8-summit-in-northern-ireland/4761386

CBBC Newsround – What is the G8 and what does it do?http://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/22937970

Unicef – What is the Junior 8 Summit?http://www.unicef.org/ceecis/voice_children_6720.html

©ABC 2013

Health & Physical Education

Arts (school events)

School rules

Facilities

Curriculum

Uniforms

Safety

G8 Junior classroom summit

Activity

End of Term Quiz1. Another word for fishing is...

a. Liningb. Anglingc. Wading

2. What’s it called when the fishing line gets caught on something in the water?a. Lureb. Baitc. Snag

3. What is the ACL?a. Anterior Chest Lungb. Anterior Cruciate Ligamentc. Abdominal Ligament

4. Which is the medical term for the thigh bone?a. Cartilageb. Tibiac. Femur

5. A forest that’s been allowed to grow for many years without human interference is...a. An old growth forestb. A eucalypt forestc. A new growth forest

6. When a whole chunk of forest is cleared at once it’s called...a. Old growth forestb. Regenerationc. Clear-felling

7. What is the top layer of a forest called?a. Emergentb. Canopyc. Tree tops

8. Which word means genetically identical? a. Clone

b. Stemc. Embryo

9. In which film are dinosaurs brought back from extinction? a. Star Warsb. Avatarc. Jurassic Park

10. Which is an embryo? a. A fertilised eggb. An unfertilised eggc. A cell with no nucleus

11. A luge is a type of...a. Sledb. Skic. Shoe

12. Luge gloves have...a. Fingertip holesb. Spiked fingertipsc. Steel-capped fingertips

13. Which company makes the Falcon?a. Fordb. Holdenc. Toyota

14. Car making factories are part of which industry?a. Primaryb. Manufacturingc. Service

15. In Latin, what does the word auction mean?a. I increaseb. I decreasec. I sell houses

16. What does NBN stand for?a. National Broadband Networkb. National Broadcast Network

©ABC 2013

Episode 1825th June 2013

c. Normal Broadband Network

17. Asbestos is a... a. Plantb. Mineralc. Gas

18. What does DIY mean? a. Done in yearsb. Don’t install yourselfc. Do it yourself

19. Who has won the Formula 1 World Drivers’ Championship a record 7 times?a. Mark Webberb. Michael Schumacherc. Lewis Hamilton

20. Which continent does corn originally come from?a. Europeb. Asiac. South America

©ABC 2013

Answers1. b. Angling

2. c. Snag

3. b. Anterior Cruciate Ligament

4. c. Femur

5. a. An old growth forest

6. c. Clear-felling

7. a. Emergent

8. a. Clone

9. c. Jurassic Park

10. a. A fertilised egg

11. a. Sled

12. b. Spiked fingertips

13. a. Ford

14. b. Manufacturing

15. a. I increase

16. a. National Broadband Network

17. b. Mineral

18. c. Do it yourself

19. b. Michael Schumacher

20. c. South America

©ABC 2013

BtN: Episode 18 Transcript 25/6/13On this week's Behind the News:

Do women get treated the same as men? Maybe, maybe not but either way you won't believe how different it used to be.

We meet some girls out to prove that playing top flight footy isn't just for the boys.

And we check out the explosive world of popcorn what makes this very addictive snack actually pop?

Hi I'm Nathan Bazley, welcome to Behind the News. Also on the show today, we visit the G8 Summit to find out what these powerful countries get up to every year.

But first let's catch up with the main news stories of the week in the Wire.

The WireThe American man who released secret details about the US Government's internet spying is trying to seek asylum in Ecuador. Edward Snowden revealed that the US Government has been spying on the American public's phone calls and internet usage. He's now moved to Russia and wants to escape to Ecuador so the US Government can't bring him home to face charges.

*********

The Dalai Lama has wrapped up his Australian tour. During the tour he spoke to big crowds in Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide and Darwin. If you missed him, here's what he had to say to you.

SOPHIA THOMSON: What is your advice for young people growing up in today's world?

DALAI LAMA: "So pay attention, not only brain, but warm heartedness."

********

And if you looked up at the moon Sunday night, you might have noticed it was a little bigger and brighter than usual. The reason? Sunday night was a Supermoon!

Seriously. That's the name the moon is given when it passes closest to earth. On Sunday it was only about 357 thousand kays away.

Experts say that made it look about 10% bigger and 30% brighter.

Gender EqualityReporter: Sarah Larsen

INTRO: There's been a lot of talk in the media recently about whether women are treated equally to men. It's called sexism and it's something even the Prime Minister says she's been a victim of. But while people disagree about how fairly women are treated today there's no doubt they weren't treated equally in the past. Here's Sarah with a piece of history that might surprise you.

SARAH LARSEN, REPORTER: These days we tend to think of boys and girls as being pretty much equal. You can both get an education. When you turn 18 you'll both be able to vote. You'll both be able to work in just about any field you want. And either one of you could become the prime minister. But it wasn't that long ago that the scales weren't nearly so even.

If you were a woman in the 1800’s you couldn't have done the same things as men. Your main job would have been seen as getting married and having children. Then, everything you had would belong to your husband. You wouldn't even be allowed to vote. And it was in the late 1800’s that many women started to demand change. They called them suffragettes.

REPORTER: Suffrage means the right to vote for politicians to represent you. In a democracy every vote counts and it means your opinion is just as important as anyone else's.

Some argued that women shouldn't be allowed to vote because they were too emotional and not smart enough to understand politics and that their place was at home. But the suffragettes fought hard to change their minds. They debated, wrote articles and petitions, protested, even faced arrest. And eventually it paid off.

REPORTER: It was in this building 119 years ago that the Government of South Australia became one of the first in the world to give women the right to vote and the first anywhere to also give them the right to run for parliament.

It was the first tip of the scales towards equality. The first and then the second world wars had a big effect on the role of women in society. With so many men called off to fight, women were asked to do all sorts of jobs they ever done before. Many enjoyed what they did. And they were good at it.

But when the war was over they were expected to go back to being housewives. They could learn, they could vote and they could work but women still weren't equal. They faced discrimination in the workplace and the media. They were generally paid less than men for doing the same job and were expected to stop working when they got married.

LINE FROM THE INDESTRUCTIBLE MAN: Just about an hour ago I had you fired. What? Why did you do that? I thought being my wife would take up all of your time.

In the 60’s and 70’s women again fought for their rights. There were some big revolutions like the birth control pill which meant women could control when they had children. Women protested for equal pay, equal opportunities, even the right to drink in bars with men.

And the world kept changing. Women led countries and businesses. They went to space and they were ordained as religious leaders. Australia got female judges and a governor general and three years ago the country elected its first ever female prime minister.

So do women now have equal rights with men? Some say yes. It's now against the law in Australia to discriminate against women. But others say not quite. On average women still earn less money than men. Fewer women run big companies and fewer sit in parliament.

And some reckon women are still judged differently to men. But at least in Australia the scales are definitely more even than they were and you can enjoy your equality thanks to the efforts of the many Aussie women who went before.

Quiz 1Time for the first quiz of the show.

The question is: Who was the first woman elected to an Australian parliament?

Catherine Spence

Edith Cowan

Doris Blackburn

Answer: Edith Cowan

She was elected to the West Australian Parliament in 1920.

G8 SummitReporter: Sarah Larsen

INTRO: We often hear about organisations like the United Nations, which gets countries to work together to try to solve the world's problems. But that's not the only group with world affairs in mind. Recently the leaders of some very powerful countries came together for the G8 summit in Northern Ireland. So what is this 'G8' and what does it do? Sarah finds out.

They're the leaders of some of the world's most powerful countries. And every year they come together to tackle the biggest problems facing the world. They are the group of eight and this is their summit. OK, so, these guys aren't exactly the Avengers.

But you have to admit, there are a fair few superpowers here at the G8 summit in Northern Ireland. These guys represent some of the richest and most powerful countries in the world. The USA, the UK, Russia, Japan, Canada, Germany, France, Italy and the entire European Union.

The idea for G8 started way back in 1973 with an oil crisis. Arab countries which mined oil refused to export it and all of the countries that relied on that oil for their cars and their planes and just about every-thing else, well, they freaked out a little bit.

The US decided to call a meeting with a few powerful leaders to discuss what to do. It was such a success that the leaders decided to do it again. And in 1975 the heads of West Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom the United States met in France and decided to have a yearly get-together with their group of six. The next year Canada was invited to join and the G6 became G7. In 1997 Russia made it the G8.

Now the European Union's involved too - so it's actually a group of nine but it's still called the G8. Each year one of the G8 countries has a turn at hosting the meetings and deciding what issues they're going to talk about.

Over the years they've tackled all sorts of things from stopping nuclear weapons to finding energy sources for poorer countries. They've looked at ways to improve global health and address poverty and climate change. Sometimes they invite guest countries to talk about different issues. In 2008 the Australian PM went along to discuss cutting carbon emissions.

But of course, some big powers aren't included in this supergroup, like China and India, the world's most populated countries. African and Latin American countries aren't represented either and some say that's not right. The summit also attracts protests almost every year as people see a chance to draw attention to the global issues they care about.

In 2005 musicians and activists tried to get the G8 leaders to do something about poverty by holding a series of massive concerts called Live 8.This year the protest agenda included coal seam gas mining and gay marriage. And inside the summit leaders were tackling global food supplies, tax laws and the war in Syria.

For the past 2 years Syria has been torn apart by a civil war between the government and rebel groups. Both sides accuse the other of torture and murder. And many have called on other countries to do something to end the conflict.

But there are some big disagreements on whose to blame and what should be done. It was pretty clear that Russia and the USA didn't see eye to eye. While there might be some awkward moments one of the ideas of the G8 is to try and encourage leaders to get along. Because achieving world peace isn't just about being powerful, it's about understanding each other and working together to make the world a better place.

Anzac StoryReporter: Nathan Bazley

INTRO: Kids are often asked to write assignments. But it's not every day that those assignments end up earning you a free trip overseas. That's exactly what happened to Lucinda Duxbury but her trip was about more than just a holiday. It was a chance to tell the story of one soldier who never had a chance to tell his own. Here is that story.

LUCINDA: This is Leslie Varley Duxbury.

He's got the same last name as me, but I don't think we're related. What I do know though, is that nearly 100 years ago, he gave his life for this country in World War I.

He's also the reason I'm packing my bags today. I'm going overseas because I wrote about Leslie for an essay competition. And as one of the winners, I now get the chance to travel to the battlefield where he died, find his grave and give him the memorial he never got.

LUCINDA: Hi I'm Lucinda and today I'm going to France! I'm only going for ten days, but I'm really going to miss everyone, especially my little dog Alfie, say hello Alfie!

LUCINDA: It's so big! It's massive, it just keeps going! I think ten million elephants could fit in here with leg room.

But while I'm flying today, Leslie would've got on a ship to make his first and only journey overseas. Nearly 100 years ago, young men right around Australia were being asked to enlist in the army.

Leslie did that when he was 24. Before that, he'd been encouraging people to join up by singing patriotic songs. You can see his name here on this sheet music. This is the ship he went over on. He left his parents behind and went to war. And soon, he found himself in France with heaps of others, ready to fight.

LUCINDA: Hello we're in Amsterdam, just come from Dubai, and now we're just about to go to Brussels, on this plane out there somewhere. Do you have anything else to say Cassidy? I need a sleep.

Once we arrived, we were taken to heaps of memorials. The first thing that hit me was how many graves there were.

LUCINDA & SOPHIE: Here we are at Lijssenthoek military cemetery, the largest military cemetery in Belgium. Over ten thousand graves are here. And it's really big. Soldiers from pretty much everywhere. There's French soldiers over there, instead of the normal headstones they have crosses. It's the biggest cemetery we've been to so far. It's huge. It's probably places like this where you realise how many lives were lost.

We also saw heaps of battlefields. This field, called Fromelles, was the most shocking. LUCINDA: We're here on the German front line at Fromelles. We're just sitting on a German bunker here. It's very strong. And I’ll just be giving a little interview with Sophie here. There were five thousand five hundred people who died here. How does that make you feel?

SOPHIE: Well I guess because this was our first conflict along the Western Front it's easy to understand why Australians struggled to fight against the Germans who'd been here and had supplies. And our supplies weren't quite up to date, you'd say, so I guess I can understand how quickly those men were wiped out. But when you think of 5,500 soldiers as well, 2,000 British soldiers as well, that's a lot of men, especially in one or two days of battle, so it's quite horrific.

LUCINDA: This memoriam here depicts the true story of an Australian soldier named Simon Fraser, as he risked his own life to save a mate, who he heard call out from the battlefield, "don't forget me cobber!" It's really important I think, as it doesn't glorify war, it commemorates mateship, and mateship is essential to the Anzac spirit.

There were reminders of the fighting everywhere we looked.

LUCINDA: I just tipped that out!

GUIDE: Wow did that just come out? That's powder! If you had a match you could light that! That's amazing, it's a hundred year old cartridge case!

And there were other surprising things we got to see too. We visited a school in a small French village that was saved by Aussie soldiers during the war. Inside, the kids are reminded of that every day. We were also really lucky to go to a dawn service here on ANZAC day.

LUCINDA: I'm here at the Australian National Memorial at Villers Bretonneux and the dawn service has just concluded. It was a really special service and was really moving.

So many people packed in to see it, so we were very lucky to see it too. But the most special part of the trip for me was finding the grave of Leslie, who was the reason I was there.

LUCINDA: I'm finally here at Heath cemetery, where my soldier, Leslie Varley Duxbury is buried.

LUCINDA: Today we remember you, 2nd Lieutenant Leslie Varley Duxbury, as you rest here on foreign soil.

I laid a picture of his parents at the grave, a copy of the sheet music he'd sung before he left and a footy, because he'd loved to play. I feel like, by doing my essay on him, I'd got to know Leslie really well, so it was a really emotional moment.

Once I got home again, I wanted to give other kids the chance to get to know a soldier like I did. So I told them how they could.

LUCINDA: Learning about Leslie, I really started to feel connected to him and I really got involved in his story.

And hopefully, they'll enter the same competition I did, and have a chance to meet a soldier who lived nearly 100 years ago who gave his life for Australia.

PRESENTER: And there's an extended version of that story on the BtN website if you'd like to see more. And while you're there check out our new Rookie Reporter page we've had lots of stories from kids all over the world. And you can even send in one of your own.

Women’s FootyReporter: Sophia Thomson

INTRO: Australia's football codes are very much dominated by men, including Aussie Rules. But recently there's been a lot of talk about setting up a women's league with an AFL trial match planned for this month. Sophia caught up with a young player, who argues the case for more girls to get involved.

SOPHIA THOMSON, REPORTER: It's the most watched sport in Australia, with the top AFL players enjoying fame and fortune. It's also a sport that's full of guys. The only girls you're likely to see are behind the posts.

Over time there have been a handful of women's Aussie Rules clubs around Australia. But the games never attracted a big following and you'd certainly never see them on TV. Now there's been a push to have women taking the

field in an all female league at the highest level. It's been a controversial issue for years. Some people used to think women shouldn't play a contact sport like footy because they aren't as strong as men. Others say a women's league would struggle, because it wouldn't get enough sponsorship to keep it going.

But now the AFL is getting involved to help start a footy league for women. And it will take its first steps in Melbourne, an exhibition match between the Melbourne Demons and the Western Bulldogs. A draft was held by the league back in May, which saw 50 of Australia's best female footy players selected to play.

Alex was one of the lucky ones!

ALEX PRICE, PLAYER: I think I was more shocked than anything. I think just running out on the MCG like it's just a childhood dream of mine and I've always wanted to play AFL but when I was younger I never thought I could because it's a male dominated sport. So yeah, just running out on the MCG will be like a dream come true.

The only problem, the date!

ALEX: It's on the same night as my formal, so I had the choice of playing on the MCG or my formal, so it was a pretty easy decision for me.

Alex plays for the Port Adelaide Women's Football club. It's one of around 100 women's footy clubs around Australia. They train a couple of times a week and play games on weekends. But don't be fooled into thinking women's footy isn't tough!

ALEX: Come out and watch one of our games cos I can tell you that there's some pretty big hits out there and the girls can handle themselves.

And Alex would like to see more girls getting involved.

ALEX: Just get around a training or two and see if you like it cos once you start you probably won't wanna go back cos the environment around a girls footy team is just amazing, yeah you'll just have friends for life so yeah.

It's hoped there'll be a full women's league within the next few years.

FRANK LEONARD, COACH: I would anticipate a couple of decades from now you will have issues pertaining to infrastructure, will there be enough ovals? Will there be enough volunteers to table women's footy? So the issues around women's footy isn't have we got enough players, have we got the infrastructure to manage those players who want to play.

And if that happens, we could see young players like Alex reaching new heights.

Online PollOK let's make that our poll this week.

The question is:

Should more girls be encouraged to take part in sports usually played by boys?

To vote just head to our website.

Last week we asked if governments should be allowed to monitor what we do online.

23% said yes they should.

77% said no they shouldn't.

Thanks for voting.

The ScoreReporter: Natasha Thiele

Time for this week's sports news now. Here’s the Score.

The Australian Cricket Board has sacked coach Mickey Arthur just a fortnight out from the start of the Ashes test series. The sacking comes after repeated problems within the Aussie team and a disappointing showing at the Champions Trophy. Arthur's contract was meant to continue until 2015.

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The Wallabies have lost their first match against the British and Irish Lions 23 – 21. But it could have been a narrow victory if this hadn't happened.

That kick in the dying seconds of the game would have won it for the Wallabies. On the upside though Israel Folau had a standout debut for the national side scoring two impressive tries.

Quiz 2OK, our next story takes us behind the scenes of popcorn popping but first let's have a quiz. The question is: What is a cob of corn also known as?

Ear

Arm

Elbow

Answer: Ear

PopcornReporter: Natasha Thiele

INTRO: Now a trip to the movies without a box of buttery popcorn is hardly a trip to the movies at all. It's been sold in cinemas for decades but do you have any idea where popcorn comes from and how it pops? Tash takes a look.

NATASHA THIELE, REPORTER: Popcorn has been a much-loved snack for many years and it's just as popular today! But, what do you know about this tasty snack? Let's find out.

Popcorn is a special kind of corn, because it's the only type that will completely pop! There are a couple of reasons why. Firstly, the outer bit of popcorn kernels called the husk is pretty strong. But the secret is water. A little bit of water can be found on the inside of the kernels. When the kernels are heated up to around 230 degrees Celsius, pressure builds up inside and the water turns into steam. That forces the kernels to literally explode inside out.

REPORTER: This is what you end up with popcorn flakes. Now they come in a couple of different shapes, the butterfly one and the mushroom. Butterfly-shaped flakes are the ones you usually find at the movies and they're meant to feel a lot better in your mouth. While mushroom flakes are commonly used in packaged popcorn because they're a lot tougher and they don't get squished.

But where does popcorn come from before it ends up in our mouth? Gerard runs a popcorn farm near Griffith in New South Wales. He's been growing and processing the stuff for 11 years and he's now the biggest grower of popcorn in the country!

GERARD TOSCAN, POPCORN FARMER: Popping corn's, it's like, tougher to grow than ordinary maize. Moisture's a lot more critical. It doesn't handle the heat as well as maize. Sweet corn is a lot tougher again.

The cobs are harvested and the corn's taken a few kays away to this factory. It's transferred into silos where it's left to air. This makes sure the moisture levels inside each kernel are just right. The corn is then cleaned and packaged and small batches are cooked up to make sure it's ready for its next journey. It ends up here, before being sent off to cinemas in Australia and New Zealand.

It all seems like a pretty simple and smooth process, but there are things that can affect popcorn farmers and their crops. They need to make sure the corn

stays clean. If it hits the ground, it has to stay there because farmers can't risk stones ending up in buckets of popcorn.

GERARD: If it hits the deck, you're gonna get dirt in it, so you just have to go over the top and leave it. 'Cause once those stones get in there, they're in there, a child in a cinema picks up that bit of popping corn, think it's a kernel, breaks a tooth. I get a complaint and a bill.

Crops can also be destroyed by weather events like drought or rainstorms. And cheaper popcorn from overseas can also be a problem. In the past, countries like Argentina have sold popcorn at much cheaper prices which our guys can't compete with.

So next time you crunch on some popcorn, you'll know a little bit more about this tasty snack!

CloserAnd that's it for the show. You can jump onto our website if you want to get more info on any of the stories. You can send us your comments and don't forget to vote in this week's poll. I'll see you next time.