Young students will be inspired by the legends of the Australian women’s football team, with the release of a Stan Original documentary Trailblazers and free school resources for grades five to ten.
The 15 free lesson plans have been developed by Cool.org in collaboration with Documentary Australia, MECCA M-POWER and Equity Trustees. These resources aim to promote gender equality in sports and beyond, empowering students and teachers with impactful and inspiring stories.
In the lead-up to the 2024 Paris Olympics, Trailblazers celebrates the remarkable rise of Australian women’s football. Featuring legends of the game and current Matildas stars, including inaugural captain Julie Dolan, Sam Kerr, Steph Catley, Mary Fowler, Ellie Carpenter and more, Trailblazers showcases the incredible rise of women’s football and the team’s journey to success and fight for equality.
The film will be shown in classrooms across the country alongside the educational resources. The impact campaign aims to inspire students to “Blaze a Trail” and take action for gender equality in sports and beyond via the Trailblazers website, www.trailblazersfilm.com.au.
“The school resources for Trailblazers are incredibly exciting and have enormous potential to bring about change for women and girls in sports and society more broadly,” Documentary Australia’s Impact Director, Lisa Kanani, said.
“At a community level, girls are participating in sports at significantly lower levels than boys, and we hope the stories in the film and accompanying resources inspire a new generation to participate in and support women’s sports.”
CEO of Cool.org, Thea Stinear, said the organisation is proud to partner with the makers of Trailblazers to deliver the documentary and accompanying curriculum-aligned education resources to classrooms across the country.
“The Trailblazers film and the Cool.org resources present positive and inspirational role models to students. This initiative stands to make a lasting impact on students and contribute to a more inclusive and equitable society,” she said.
About the film
Trailblazers is a Stan Original documentary by Savage Films, Milestone Films and LM Films production by director/producers Maggie Miles and Maggie Eudes and producer Lucy Maclaren. Website: Trailblazersfilm.com.au
About Documentary Australia
Since 2008, Documentary Australia has been Australia’s only not-for-profit organisation fostering social impact through storytelling. By offering tax deductibility to donors to support filmmakers, Documentary Australia enables documentaries to be made and seen, and to make a positive social impact. To date, Documentary Australia has facilitated more than $35 million in philanthropic funding. Website: documentaryaustralia.com.au
About Cool.org
Cool.org supports 175,000 Aussie educators with high-quality lesson plans, teaching tools and professional learning courses. Its resources embed environmental, social and economic sustainability into core subject areas, such as English, Science, Art and Maths. Using a unique action-based learning model, it empowers students to be change agents helping to solve real-world issues. Its goal is to improve access to quality education so that all students can reach their full potential. Website: cool.org
