Calendar for cultural diversity

The 2025 Calendar for Cultural Diversity and School Planner, with the theme Learning Together, are now available and may be downloaded and printed by schools and education offices. A3 version is recommended for printing.

Download the 2025 Calendar for Cultural Diversity (PDF 10.7 MB)

Download the 2025 Calendar for Cultural Diversity - A3 printing (PDF 48.4 MB)

Download the 2025 School Planner for Cultural Diversity (PDF 5.83 MB)

The calendar for cultural diversity provides annual dates and information for commemorations, celebrations, national days, international days, religious observances and other key events of relevance to NSW public school staff, students and their families.

Through acknowledgment and celebration of these days and events, NSW public schools can lead the way to social harmony by engendering positive interactions between students, staff and community members from the range of cultural, linguistic and religious traditions of Australians.

Each year, the calendar promotes a different theme relating to cultural diversity in the Australian context.

  • Explore as a class what the theme for the calendar for cultural diversity calendar for 2025 "Learning together" means.
  • Discuss what this theme means to the students considering their different school, personal and community contexts.
  • Explore the languages featured in each month including related literature.
  • Investigate significant events, features and relationships within the students’ personal, school, local or global community.
  • Reflect on the ways that artists make artworks that are then interpreted and valued differently by audiences.
  • View artworks that have been made for different reasons and consider the who, where, when, why and how of these works.
  • Identify possible symbols and techniques artists use in making their artworks to convey their message, meaning or subject matter.
  • Investigate traditions, forms, materials and techniques in artworks that are suitable for portraying this subject matter.
  • Consider the various ways in which the students, as artists, could present their work visually for possible inclusion in the calendar for cultural diversity.

Languages

A different language is featured on each month of the calendar, to reflect the linguistic diversity of NSW public school students who speak more than 240 different languages. Each year twelve languages are chosen to reflect the cultural and linguistic diversity of NSW. Each July, the calendar features an Aboriginal language.

In 2025 the calendar features the following languages:

  • Filipino
  • Serbian (српски)
  • Burmese
  • Tongan (Faka-Tongan)
  • Spanish (español/castellano)
  • Rohingya (Ruáingga / رُاَينڠَ)
  • Yorta Yorta
  • Punjabi (ਗੁਰਮੁਖੀ / پنجابی)
  • Italian
  • Mongolian (монгол)
  • Nepali (नेपाली)
  • Arabic ( اَلْعَرَبِيَّةُ)

July’s language is Yorta Yorta which belongs to the Yotayotic group of the Pama-Nyungan family of Australian languages.

Yorta Yorta is the name of the language and the people whose traditional lands cover some 20,000 square kilometres of the Murray - Goulburn region. With land on both sides of the Murray River roughly from Cohuna to Albury Wodonga it includes the present day towns of Echuca, Shepparton, Benalla, Corowa and Wangaratta and extends northwards to just south of Deniliquin.

At the time of European settlement, Yorta Yorta lifestyle and culture was based on hunting, fishing and collecting food from the rich variety of sources provided by their ancestral lands. The arrival of the Europeans had a devastating impact on the Yorta Yorta. Within the first generation the Yorta Yorta population of around 6000 was reduced by 85 per cent. In 1874 the surviving Yorta Yorta were relocated to Maloga Mission on the New South Wales side of the Murray River. When Maloga was closed in 1889 the Yorta Yorta were relocated to Cummeragunja Mission. Today’s Yorta Yorta Nation are all descendants of the 16 families who moved to Cummeragunja.

In the 2021 Australian Census 151 people identified as speaking Yorta Yorta. The Yorta Yorta Nation Aboriginal Corporation (YYNAC) is committed to the revitalisation of the language so that it continues as a strong and vibrant part of cultural identity. This is promoted through writing, books, poetry, song and other cultural activities. YYNAC also gives access to other sites celebrating Yorta Yorta Language including the WCC Language program site which features a Yorta Yorta Dictionary App, traditional stories and various classroom posters.

In common with other First Nations people Yorta Yorta people did not mark time by days and months but by seasons. July or thereabouts was winter, bupolga.


Welcome to Yorta Yorta Country

Gulpa Gaka Woka Nhurra Yawul wamadaman woka yenbena Yorta Yorta

Muma bangarra bome ina ngalan woka Galnyan wuta nhurra nhanha

Welcome Friend. You (walk) upon the land (of the) people.

Take pleasure in all our land. Respect all you see.

Welcome to Yorta Yorta Country


Sources:

Yorta Yorta Nation Aboriginal Corporation (YYNAC)External link

Welcome to Yorta Yorta CountryExternal link

Yorta Yorta Dictionary AppExternal link

Artwork

Each year, NSW public schools are invited to submit student artwork for possible inclusion in the calendar for cultural diversity around a given theme. The artwork selected for inclusion in each calendar represents the creative talents of public school students from across the state.

The theme of the 2025 calendar for cultural diversity is "Learning together"

The calendar for cultural diversity includes an inset on the relevant lunar year, and its Australian zodiac equivalent, on the inside cover. 2025 is the Lunar Year of the Snake / Goanna. Schools are invited to submit artwork on the calendar theme or the lunar year theme.

Schools may submit up to 4 entries.

Photographs should be submitted although the original artwork will need to be available for shortlisted schools.

File name of artwork should include name of school and title of artwork.

The following information should be gathered before submitting each artwork:

  • name of artist/s
  • year/s
  • title of artwork
  • name of school
  • traditional country on which school is located
  • name and email of teacher contact
  • description relating to the work on the relevant annual theme (approximately 25 – 50 words)
  • completed authority to publish form. For whole class or whole school artworks, a member of the school executive can complete the form on behalf of the school.

Submit an artwork: Submissions are currently closed.

The link entry form will be posted here when submissions are open to submit student artwork for the 2026 Calendar for Cultural Diversity.

Submissions will close on 12 September 2025

Artwork should:

  • reflect the theme
  • link to curriculum area
  • be the work of a single student or a group of students.

Possible techniques, forms and styles may include (and are not limited to):

  • drawing, cartooning or sketching – using pencils, inks, felt pens, charcoal, pastels or crayons
  • photography and digital media – using apps, computer software, digital or other cameras for photography
  • mixed media – collage, photo montage
  • 3D – sculpture, textiles, fibre, installations using found or other objects and materials
  • painting – watercolour, oil, acrylic or gouache paints, sgraffito
  • printmaking – etching, monoprinting, linocuts, collagraph, or bas relief.

Students should consider their use of artmaking practices and qualities such as:

  • line, shape and form
  • proportion, space and perspective
  • colour – light and dark and shading
  • texture
  • repetition and patterns
  • points of interest and emphasis
  • signs and symbols and so on.

For more information, or to request a calendar file for professional printing, please contact culturaldiversitycalendar@det.nsw.edu.au

Digital backgrounds

Explore and download our new digital backgrounds which can be used as desktop wallpapers and/or backgrounds in virtual meetings.

Image of digital background Image of digital background
Image: Example of digital background

Category:

  • Teaching and learning

Business Unit:

  • Teaching and Learning Support
  • Teaching, Learning and Student Wellbeing
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