As this year's NSW Aboriginal Languages Week helps celebrate language, culture, and connection, the strength of Dharug Ngurra - an educational resource created through a partnership between Dharug-owned education organisation Wingaru and SBS Learn - is coming to the fore.

The ready-to-download classroom guide has been designed to help teachers meaningfully embed First Nations knowledge across their lessons while supporting the revitalisation and preservation of Aboriginal languages.

Wingaru CEO and founder, Lesley Woodhouse, said Dharug Ngurra is a "great opportunity" to showcase both "our language, but our country". The resource introduces students to Dharug Country, home to 29 language-speaking clans across the Sydney region.

"I live on Gadigal country, and lots of people are really surprised when they realise the local language is Dharug. And they've heard the words, and they recognise the words, but they have never connected that our language is Dharug," Ms Woodhouse told National Indigenous Times.

She said the collaboration with SBS was a chance to share Dharug history and inspire teachers to help strengthen the language.

"Part of the reason that I was keen when SBS reached out about putting some resources together, and how I would like to do that, was to share that history and that history across Sydney, and encourage teachers to support the work that my community is doing to keep our language strong and revitalise it."

While Dharug Country was among the first to experience the impacts of colonisation - with Ms Woodhouse noting "our language shows that" - she says she is "excited" to see her children learning language "both at home but also in school".

The Dharug woman from the Boorooberongal clan also reflected on the generational journey of language learning.

"I often think about when I first started learning language, Aunty Julie Webb, who shared language with me, also shared that it was actually my grandfather who taught her," she said.

"I knew he spoke language, because I could hear him muttering under his breath when he was frustrated or cranky with people. But he never taught me.

"A part of that was because he grew up in a time where he wasn't allowed to speak his language, and he didn't want me to get in trouble, and he didn't want my mum to get in trouble, and so he didn't teach us, but he was teaching other people."

Meaning "to think" in Dharug, Dharug Ngurra has been created especially for primary school classrooms, introducing both educators and students to the rich history, language, and cultural traditions of the Dharug people - one of many Aboriginal language groups along the east coast of NSW.

The resource features beautifully illustrated materials aligned with the NSW and Australian curriculum, including teacher notes, pronunciation guides, worksheets, cultural tasks, and Acknowledgement of Country tools. It encourages students to explore Dharug dhalang (language) and reflect on the role language plays in preserving identity and connection to Country.

SBS Director, First Nations, Tanya Denning-Orman, said SBS recognises that "language is at the heart of culture and identity".

"Our partnership with Wingaru to create Dharug Ngurra empowers teachers to bring First Nations language and culture into the classroom," she said.

For Ms Woodhouse, NSW Aboriginal Languages Week offers the perfect moment to pause and reflect on the strength of Aboriginal languages and the communities keeping them alive. She says teachers often want to include language learning but struggle to find the time - and that a dedicated week helps bring language to the forefront.

"So, we're seeing organisations - both Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal - sharing various words and sharing the work that people are doing in the space, and it just highlights the work that is being done, and that our languages are living," she said.

"I think, often people kind of think of, Aboriginal language as one language, and that's just not true. So it [Languages Week] highlights that and gives us the opportunity to share that."

Ms Denning-Orman agreed, describing the week as a "wonderful time to celebrate and explore Dharug language", but said learning should continue beyond the celebration.

"We thank the Dharug language speakers and all who contributed to this latest SBS Learn resource, and hope it contributes to vital work happening in communities around the country to revitalise First Nations languages, while deepening cultural understanding for students across Australia."

To explore Dharug Ngurra, and other SBS Learn resources, visit SBS Learn.