WIN BOOKS & PAPER FOR OUR SCHOOL

Simply visit http://books4schools.com.au/  and register as our student, teacher or community member to increase ur chances of winning. Winners will be announced in September. We have to be in it to win it!

Displays

So much has happened this term already. We started Term 3 off with a display about sustainability. Very quickly we celebrated NAIDOC week using indigenous picture books by Percy Trezise and Dick Roughsey for an interactive competition.  Kate Parker, Caraline Simank, Zach Galletly & Nathan Black all won a dip in our prize box for taking part.   In NAIDOC week we kicked off a Book Swap Box as a literacy week initiative and we’ve collected a few donated books. Contribute a gold coin to choose a book during literacy week, July 29 – Aug4.  We’re hopeful of donating the funds raised to buy literacy resources to remote communities.

Trinity Bay Writer’s Festival

Students from Smithfield High attended the annual festival.  Both Joshua Pelach and Teagan Mapstone, who attended the 2 days of writing and illustrating workshops, share their impressions below.

Providing the opportunity to learn about and talk to famous authors and illustrators as well as workshop our own writing and drawing talents, the Trinity Bay Writer’s Festival was a huge success and provided all those that went with heaps of fresh new ideas and motivation. The two day event took place on the 24^th and 25^th of July, providing students with the opportunity to meet three authors and an illustrator. This included Boori Monty Prior, inspirational Aboriginal storyteller and winner of six major literary awards; John Heffernan, author of more than forty six successful books and multi-award winner; Prue Mason, best-selling author and winner of the Queensland Premier’s Award in 2005; and Kim Gamble, illustrator of more than 52 books for countless successful authors. As well as this, a small group called “Poetry In Action” performed for the entire group as a finale, highlighting the different types of poetry and its history in Australian culture. Overall, the writer’s festival was extremely successful and I definitely encourage anyone who has a passion for literature or art to take part next year. It is a great opportunity and should not be missed.  By Joshua Pelach.

 The Writers Festival held at Trinity Bay High School on the 24^th and 25^th of July was a beneficial experience for all future writers. It was a fulfilling and captivating two days. During the two days, students had the chance to meet and work with famous, well-known writers.

Boori Monty Prior was a cheerful and animated author. During his workshop he had the students interested about the topic as he engaged and captivated us all. He was also very funny as he wrote about experiences and memoires from his own life. John Heffernan was the author of books such as Spud; he spoke about writing from the heart. He was also very helpful with telling us some good tips on becoming better writers. Prue Mason was a fantastic author to work with as she taught us how to develop characters in stories. She gave us items that we then used to develop our own character and story during her workshop. Kim Gamble the illustrator of the Tashi series and other books demonstrated how to draw his own drawings and taught us how to draw an underwater scene.

The Writers Festival was a fantastic opportunity for all writers. It was an exhilarating experience and a must for all keen and interested writers.  By Teagan Mapstone

Digital Citizenship

Click on the poster to enlarge and download the .PDF   Use this flow chart to be aware of your rights and responsiblities online and make the right choices about the use of images online. For more information about Digital Citizenship, scan our diigo subject list of copyright websites. A particularly useful site with entertaining podcasts to teach you everything you need to know about the internet, is  Let’s Talk Net.