By Michael Hilkemeijer
When Emma first introduced ANZAC Day to her preschoolers, she wasn’t sure how they would respond. Would the concept of remembrance feel too abstract? Could four-year-olds really understand the meaning behind the poppy or the silence we hold? Then she downloaded the Digital Poppy Art lesson plan and everything changed.
As the children explored their tablets, digitally drawing red petals with simple swipes of their fingers, Emma listened to their thoughts:
“That flower is for a soldier.”
“This is like a hero flower.”
In that moment, Emma realised something powerful—children don’t need war stories to connect to ANZAC Day. They need symbols, stories, and opportunities to express meaning in their own way. And that’s exactly what the lesson plans in the ICT in Education Teacher Academy provide.
Don’t Just Download Lesson Plans—Use Them to Strengthen Digital Teaching
A lesson plan can give you an activity for the day. What it usually does not give you is a clear way to improve how you use digital technology in that lesson, or how to make the next lesson better.
That is why this process matters. Inside the ICT in Education Teacher Academy, lesson plans are not meant to sit on their own. They are accessed through a clear professional learning pathway that helps you use digital tools with more purpose, ask better questions about your teaching, and make small changes that strengthen student learning over time. In the Adaption stage, the focus is simple: you are already using digital technology in your teaching, and now you want to make it more meaningful, more intentional, and more effective.
What This Looks Like for an ANZAC Day Digital Lesson
Let’s say you choose a digital ANZAC Day lesson such as digital poppy art, a virtual memorial tour, or digital storytelling. The goal is not just to “do” the activity. The goal is to use that lesson to improve how you teach with technology.
That means asking:
- How is the digital tool helping children learn?
- What thinking am I encouraging?
- What could I improve next time?
This is what makes the process different. The lesson becomes part of your professional learning, not just part of your planning.
Step 1: Start with One Digital Lesson You Already Use
In this stage, you begin with a lesson or digital activity you already use, or with a done-for-you lesson that already includes digital technology. You are not expected to learn a whole new tool or redesign everything. The purpose is to strengthen how and why you use ICT in a lesson you can already picture teaching.
For an ANZAC Day lesson, that might mean:
- using a drawing app for digital poppy art
- using a screen or tablet for a virtual memorial tour
- using a storytelling app for children to record their ideas
Why this helps teaching
It removes overwhelm. You are not chasing more ideas. You are starting with one digital lesson and using it more purposefully.
Why this helps children
Children get a more focused learning experience because the technology is chosen to support understanding, communication, and creativity, not just engagement.
Step 2: Ask Why the Digital Technology Is Being Used
This is one of the most important parts of the process. You use the Wisdom Tool to ask a focused question such as:
- What is the purpose of using ICT in this lesson?
- How does ICT support learning outcomes here?
- How can ICT be used more intentionally in this activity?
The answer then points you to referenced sources inside the membership, including lesson plans, workshops, and expert presentations, so you can follow the thinking behind the lesson—not just the steps.
Why this helps teaching
You stop using digital tools just because they are available. You begin using them because they support a clear teaching goal.
Why this helps children
Children are more likely to use the technology to make meaning, explain ideas, and connect with the lesson in a deeper way.
Step 3: Make One Small Improvement to the Lesson
After looking at the lesson more closely, you go back and make one intentional change. The workbook is very clear here: you do not need to change everything. One small, purposeful adjustment is enough. That might mean:
- refining your questioning
- giving children more choice
- making the learning goal clearer
- using the digital tool in a way that better supports understanding
For an ANZAC Day lesson, one small change could be:
- asking children to explain what the poppy means while they create it digitally
- pausing during a virtual tour to ask what children notice and wonder
- letting children choose how to represent remembrance in a digital story
Why this helps teaching
This is where your practice improves. You are not just repeating a lesson. You are refining it.
Why this helps children
Small changes often create deeper responses. Children start thinking, explaining, choosing, and creating more meaningfully.
Step 4: Use Reflection to See What Actually Happened
The next part is reflection. You briefly record:
- the teaching strategy you focused on
- the change you made
- how ICT supported learning more purposefully
This matters because it helps you see the difference between:
- a lesson that simply kept children busy
- and a lesson that genuinely supported learning through digital integration
Why this helps teaching
Reflection helps you notice what worked and why. That is what builds confidence and better decision-making.
Why this helps children
When teachers notice how children responded to the digital lesson, future lessons become stronger, clearer, and better matched to student needs.
Step 5: Use the Community to Strengthen the Lesson Further
In the Adaption stage, the community is not just there for posting updates. It is there for professional dialogue. You can:
- share an insight
- ask a focused question about strategy
- respond to another member’s post
The goal is to learn through dialogue, not just participation.
For ANZAC Day activities for preschoolers, that might look like:
- asking how others helped children think more deeply during a digital remembrance activity
- sharing how children responded to a virtual tour
- finding out how another educator adapted the same digital lesson for a different age group
Why this helps teaching
You are no longer working it all out alone. You get ideas that are grounded in actual teaching practice.
Why this helps children
Their learning benefits from lessons that have been refined through shared professional thinking, not just individual trial and error.
Step 6: Deepen Thinking and Creativity Through the Same Digital Lesson
The next focus in this stage is helping children think more deeply and use technology more creatively. Again, the process stays simple. You start with a familiar ICT-supported lesson, use the Wisdom Tool to explore how critical thinking and creativity can be supported through ICT, then make one change that strengthens either thinking or creativity.
The workbook gives very practical examples:
- add an open-ended question
- ask children to explain their reasoning
- provide more choice in how they respond
- allow children to design or represent ideas digitally
For an ANZAC Day digital lesson, this could mean:
- asking children why they chose certain colours or symbols in a poppy artwork
- inviting them to create their own digital remembrance story
- encouraging them to compare what they noticed in a memorial tour and explain their ideas
Why this helps teaching
You move from simply running a digital activity to shaping how children think and create within it.
Why this helps children
They do more than complete a task. They question, explain, choose, imagine, and communicate.
What Emma’s Experience Shows
Emma did not need more ANZAC Day ideas for preschoolers. She needed a better way to use one digital lesson.
She started with one familiar lesson, asked why the digital tool was being used, made one small improvement, reflected on what happened, and then built on it. That process turned the lesson from a one-off activity into a professional learning opportunity. The digital lesson became stronger, her teaching became clearer, and the children’s learning became more thoughtful and purposeful.
That is the value of accessing lesson plans this way.
Why This Process Stands Out
If someone is just searching for lesson plans, this is the part worth stopping for:
You are not only getting a lesson.
You are getting a way to:
- choose a digital lesson with purpose
- understand why the digital technology matters
- improve how you teach it
- strengthen student thinking and creativity
- use reflection and shared professional dialogue to make the next lesson better
In the Adaption stage, the workbook describes this as deepening ICT knowledge through creative strategies, collaboration, and refinement of teaching approaches. Each step builds toward more innovative and student-driven technology use.
Final Thought
A good ANZAC Day teaching resources can help children engage in remembrance.
A well-used digital ANZAC Day lesson can do more than that. It can help you strengthen your teaching, use ICT more intentionally, and give children richer opportunities to think, create, and communicate.
That is why accessing lesson plans through this process matters.
Why Explaining ANZAC Day to Preschoolers Matters
ANZAC Day holds deep cultural significance in Australia, and young children can begin to understand its values through developmentally appropriate approaches. As the ANZAC Day Commemoration Committee explains, this day isn't about glorifying war but about remembering courage, mateship, and community. When children participate in meaningful, symbolic activities, they begin to develop empathy and cultural identity.
But as noted by educators at Brisbane Kids, how we approach ANZAC Day in early learning settings must be sensitive, age-appropriate, and creative. The lesson plans in the ICT in Education Teacher Academy reflect this by using digital tools to foster creativity, communication, and understanding.
ANZAC Day Lesson Plans with a Difference
Here are 3 standout ANZAC Day activities for preschoolers that not only meet EYLF outcomes but also support educators in progressing along their professional growth journey using technology.
1. Digital Poppy Art
Activity Description:
Children use drawing apps on tablets or whiteboards to create a poppy. Younger children might colour a pre-made digital outline; older children can draw their own, exploring the symbolic meaning of the flower.
ICT Resources:
• Tablets or interactive whiteboards
• Drawing apps (e.g., Doodle Buddy, Paint 3D)
Learning Outcomes (EYLF):
• Expressing ideas using digital media (5.3)
• Responding to shared stories about ANZAC history (2.1)
Transformation Pathway:
This activity supports teachers in the Adoption to Adaptation stage of the Success Path. By using digital creativity tools with intentional learning goals, educators begin to plan differentiated and meaningful ICT activities.
Real Example:
A member shared in the community forum how their children presented their digital poppies in a class slideshow with recorded voice explanations. The member logged this in their workbook using the Creative ICT section and reflected on how it deepened children’s cultural understanding.
2. Virtual Tour of the Australian War Memorial
Activity Description:
Children explore the Australian War Memorial through a virtual tour. Educators pause key moments to explain exhibits using child-friendly language and images.
ICT Resources:
• Tablets or computer
• Google Earth or War Memorial website
• Optional: photo collage or drawing tools for reflection
Learning Outcomes (EYLF):
• Exploring historical places through digital tools (4.2)
• Understanding cultural heritage (2.1)
Transformation Pathway:
This lesson progresses educators to the Infusion Stage, especially when followed by a child-led reflection activity or presentation. It encourages inquiry-based learning using ICT, paired with intentional teaching strategies.
Real Example:
An educator who accessed this lesson via the Intentional Teaching in ECE workshop logged how children responded with curiosity and empathy during the tour. By uploading children’s digital reflections, they initiated a class-wide discussion that demonstrated meaningful ICT integration.
3. ANZAC Tales – Digital Storytelling
Activity Description:
Children use storytelling apps such as Book Creator or Puppet Pals to create a digital story around an ANZAC theme. They narrate and illustrate their story with their own voice recordings and digital drawings, making this a deeply personal and imaginative project.
ICT Resources:
• Tablets with a storytelling app
• Microphones for voice recording
Learning Outcomes (EYLF):
• Retell stories using digital tools (5.2)
• Use ICT for imaginative storytelling (4.4)
Transformation Pathway:
This lesson supports movement into the Adaption or Infusion stage of the Success Path. It enables educators to scaffold digital storytelling through intentional planning, encouraging rich communication and creative expression with technology.
Real Example:
A member used this lesson in conjunction with the Nurturing Creativity in Early Childhood Education with Technology workshop. She documented how each child created a unique “ANZAC hero” tale using drawn poppies and recorded voice-overs. The project became a digital storybook gallery, shared privately with families. Using her workbook, she tracked growth in TPK (Technological Pedagogical Knowledge) and added reflections to her Workshop & Resources Integration log.
What Makes These Lesson Plans Stand Out?
While many activities online simply ask children to make paper poppies or listen to a story, our ANZAC Day lesson plans go further:
• They integrate digital technology purposefully—not just for engagement, but for meaning-making.
• They include scaffolded steps for educators to reflect, document, and differentiate—using templates from the membership workbook.
• They are supported by community collaboration—members can ask, “How did you adapt this for non-verbal learners?” and receive real, practical responses.
• They are linked to a professional growth framework—helping educators move from following an idea to adapting it confidently and eventually designing their own.
Inside the membership, tools like the Wisdom Tool let you search "ANZAC Day symbolic art" and receive curated guidance and extensions with references. The Community Forum lets you post children’s work and reflect with other educators on how it impacted learning.
Why You Should Download Our ANZAC Day Lesson Plans Today
• They make explaining ANZAC Day to preschoolers developmentally appropriate through ICT-based creative expression.
• They guide you through real professional learning, not just one-off activities.
• They help you document your progress in alignment with the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers.
• They encourage reflection, adaptation, and shared learning through the Teacher Academy’s community features.
Whether you're introducing the meaning of a poppy or guiding a virtual tour, these lesson plans provide structure and inspiration. Download one today and take your first step toward ICT transformation in early childhood education.
Ready to transform how you teach with technology?
Explore more ANZAC Day resources and begin your journey inside the ICT in Education Teacher Academy—where lesson plans become lasting impact.
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