ACARA v9 Year 6 lesson (Age 11): Untitled Goose Game dialogue — Mother Nature (City of God) vs City of Man — Ontological-style argument for sustainability

A Year 6 ACARA v9 mapped lesson (age 11) using a playful Untitled Goose Game scene and an ontological-style thought experiment to teach sustainability. Includes a short script, teacher notes, discussion questions and activities in a lively, Ally McBeal cadence.

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Quick lesson snapshot

Age: 11 (Year 6). Subjects: English (creating texts, speaking & listening), Humanities & Social Sciences (sustainability ideas). Style: a short, playful scene set in the Untitled Goose Game where a goose eavesdrops on a debate between Mother Nature (City of God) and the City of Man. We use a simple, kid-friendly version of an ontological-style argument as a thought experiment to spark thinking about what sustainable means.

ACARA v9 mapping (plain language)

  • English (Year 6): create imaginative spoken and written texts, use dialogue to present viewpoints, listen and respond to others.
  • Humanities & Social Sciences — Sustainability (Year 6): explore how people can act responsibly to protect environments, consider how decisions affect future generations.

Learning intentions

  • Students will create a short dialogue that compares nature (City of God) and human towns (City of Man).
  • Students will explain a simple ontological-style thought experiment about why a perfectly sustainable place is worth imagining and working toward.
  • Students will discuss choices that make a town more sustainable.

Materials

Whiteboard or paper, pencils, optional screen to show a short clip or image from Untitled Goose Game (safe screenshot only).

Lesson flow — Ally McBeal cadence (short lines, a little comedic, a little dramatic)

1. Warm-up (5 minutes)

Teacher: "Imagine a town. Quiet. Birds. People. Bins. Bikes. Now imagine a goose. Honk. Trouble. Stay with me."

2. Read the short scene aloud (5–8 minutes)

Explain: "We will read a short dialogue. One side is Mother Nature — the City of God (very calm, wise). The other side is the City of Man (busy, noisy). A goose from Untitled Goose Game listens and sometimes honks. Playful, but with questions about how we live."

Scene: "The Goose in the Square" (script — teacher or students read roles)

  [Stage: A small town square from Untitled Goose Game. A bench. A bicycle. A rubbish bin. A goose waddles center stage, inspecting everything. The sun is bright. A gentle voice floats in — Mother Nature. A door slams — City of Man speaks in quick bursts.]

  Mother Nature (soft, slow): "Welcome. They call me the City of God — not a kingdom, a living city. Trees for streets. Rivers for roads. Birds for traffic checks."

  City of Man (quick, busy): "We build. We fix. We hustle. Roads, timers, bins with lids. Progress. Faster. Cleaner? Maybe. Cheaper? Often."

  Goose (honking, interrupting): "Honk! Why lids? Why bins? Why not more grass?"

  Mother Nature: "Because when a place breathes, it can last. Plants hold water. Roots keep soil. Shade cools, so houses need less energy. A city that thinks like a forest—steady, shared, alive—is what I mean."

  City of Man: "We have rules. We have schedules. We plant trees sometimes. But people want convenience: speedy trips, cheap stuff. I worry about tomorrow when I only plan for today."

  Goose (to the audience, a tilt of the head): "Honk. If we can imagine the perfect place that lasts, does it mean we should try to make it?"

  Mother Nature (calm): "Think of 'perfect' as a helpful idea — a model. If we can picture a truly sustainable city, it shows what to aim for. The picture doesn't magically build the city, but it tells us the things we must change."

  City of Man (pausing, softer): "So imagining helps design. But who chooses which parts of the picture are real? People. We do."

  Goose (final honk, mischief and wisdom): "Honk! So we imagine, we argue, we change. Also, steal someone's sandwich?" (goose runs off.)

3. Explain the ontological-style thought experiment (5 minutes)

Keep it simple and age-appropriate:

An ontological argument is usually a way people think about big ideas by using definitions. Here we use that idea to help think about sustainability.

  1. Step 1: Define the idea we want — "a perfectly sustainable town". What does that mean? (Clean water, safe homes, plants and animals, fair rules for people.)
  2. Step 2: If we can imagine it clearly — not magical, but real steps — then imagining it helps us list what needs to change. (More trees, less waste, better transport.)
  3. Step 3: Imagining doesn’t make it exist by itself. But the idea helps us make plans. So the argument becomes: if a perfectly sustainable town is something we can describe and value, then it is worth trying to build parts of it now.

So: the thought experiment helps us move from imagination to action.

4. Class activity (15 minutes)

Divide into small groups. Each group:

  • Chooses a role: Mother Nature, City of Man, or Goose.
  • Writes two extra lines for their character that suggest one change to make the town more sustainable (e.g., more trees, bike lanes, community garden).

Perform the new lines, then as a class list the top 5 ideas and write them on the board.

5. Discussion questions (5–10 minutes)

  • What did Mother Nature mean by a city that 'breathes'?
  • Which things from our imagined perfectly sustainable town can we start doing at school or home?
  • Who should decide what a sustainable town looks like? Why?
  • Why is the goose important as a character? (Hint: it asks simple questions and makes us laugh, but also points out small problems.)

6. Short reflective writing (homework or exit ticket)

Write 3–5 sentences answering: "Name one thing our town could change to be more like Mother Nature's City of God. How could you help?"

Assessment ideas

  • Listen to the dialogue performances — students use clear voice, show understanding of roles.
  • Check group lists for realistic sustainability actions (trees, bins, water saving, community gardens, safer walking routes).
  • Read the short writing piece to see if the student connects imagination to action.

Extension or challenge

Older or advanced students can try a short persuasive paragraph: "Argue for one policy the City of Man should adopt to be more like the City of God." Use reasons and examples.

Teacher tips (Ally McBeal cadence reminder)

  • Keep lines short. Let the class hear the rhythm: pause, comedic beat, then the wise line. Think of a courtroom monologue, but friendly.
  • Use the goose for humor and to let shy students ask simple, brave questions aloud.
  • Focus on practical, local actions so ideas feel real and possible, not magical.

Final note (soft, like Mother Nature): "If we can picture a kinder city, we can start building pieces of it. Sometimes a honk is all you need to wake everyone up."

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