In Western Australia, children who live in the City of Nedlands, or attend a school within the City of Nedlands can enter the I Imagine 2030 art competition. Children are asked to imagine how their community will look in 2030 and create a picture to enter the competition.
There is a first prize of $100 in two age categories, plus other prizes.
Entries close 4pm, Friday 19 November. For more information, email Tarn Reynolds at the City of Nedlands or phone (08) 9273 3579.
The website issues have now been fixed and our website is up and running again. See you over there! 🙂
We’ve just been notified that our website is down due to a glitch on the hosting server. It should be up again in an hour or so.
Apologies for any inconvenience.
Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy, by Sue Whiting, illustrated by Sarah Davis.
CD (included)* narrated by Antonia Kidman. Published by New Frontier Publishing.
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REVIEWED BY OLIVIA, 7, NSW
It’s a fairy tale book with a CD, about two adults that work as candy makers, their names were Marcus and Mary.
The King comes and tastes the lollies, he loves them so much he says he’ll take fifty jars.
Marcus was worried how they would make them in time and a fairy overheard.
But will the fairy come to save the day?
I liked the book because I liked the happy ending and the colourful pictures.
[If you’d like to take a peek at a few pages of Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy, then visit the illustrator’s website. *CD includes the music of Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy, from The Nutcracker Ballet by Tchaikovsky. ]
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Olivia is a member of our Undercover Readers Club, a book reviewers’ club for kids. (The book was provided by the publisher, New Frontier Publishing.) If you or your class would like to join the club, you can download an information pack (PDF) from the magazine’s website. Membership is free!
All Saints’ College runs a Literary Festival every year and has announced the 2011 Lit Fest Writers’ Competition. This comp is open to students in Western Australian schools, years 1 – 12. There is a prose section, a poetry section, and an illustration section. Winners will receive a book prize package to the value of $250.
The competition commences on 8 November 2010 and ends on Friday 8 April 2011. More details and an entry form can be found on the All Saints’ College website.
Get writing! And illustrating! (Or both!)
Our spring writing competition for 2010 closes on Friday 22 October 2010.
The bad news is that we haven’t had as many entries as we usually find in our PO Box. The good news is, there’s still time to enter! (And we can’t guarantee that you’ll win, but with fewer entries you have a slightly better chance of winning. But shhhh, we didn’t tell you that.)
For this competition, you have to write a funny story about a musician—maybe that scared off a few writers but we’re sure you can write something funny about a crazy conductor or a brass player who likes blowing bubbles out of his tuba, or … a dog howling whenever his neighbour practises the recorder … or … ___________________<– enter your own idea here.
The competition is judged in 3 age categories: under 7s, under 9s and under 12s and there are $20 book vouchers to be won.
Here are the details:
SPRING 2010 WRITING COMPETITION
Entries close 22 October 2010
Write a funny story about a musician. Length: up to 350 words—shorter is fine. Your entry can be handwritten or typed.
Include a competition entry form. This may be printed from the website, photocopied, or contact us to have one emailed or posted to you.
We accept emailed entries (if you include a scan of the entry form) and entries postmarked 22 October.
Good luck!
Wendy Orr has a new book coming out in February 2011, Raven’s Mountain. You can read a post about the book on her Author Journal.
Here’s a bit about it (from Allen & Unwin’s website):
A gripping wilderness-adventure by the author of Nim’s Island. Raven’s sister and step-father are trapped under rocks on the mountain top, and their lives depend on Raven making it down the mountain to get help. But can she find the way?
Description
When Raven woke up by the lake she just knew this day would be one she would remember forever. And as they climbed the mountain they saw bears—a Mama bear and two cubs. Not just ordinary black bears—two were white, like the Spirit Bears in the north who are said to help people in trouble. Raven is first to make it to the top of the mountain and she’s doing a top-of-the-mountain dance before her sister Lily and stepfather Scott catch up. But suddenly the rock under her feet cracks and she is falling, tumbling, crashing down over the edge of the cliff.
When she finally comes to, no one answers her calls. The rockfall is covering the trail where she last saw Lily and Scott. Eventually she hears her sister through a tiny crack in the rocks, but Scott is lying twisted and unconscious. Raven must find help. But can she find her way down through the forest? And what if she meets the bears they saw on the way up? Or wolves? She has no food, little water, no phone and no compass. And it’s late in the day. Still, Raven will do anything to save her family.
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We can’t wait to read it!
Hanging Out, by Catherine Bateson, illustrated by Adam Carruthers, Omnibus Books for Scholastic Australia, 2010
Weston is coming for a visit while his parents are on holiday, and Ben is worried. Last time Ben saw Weston, Ben made up lots of stories about his life in Melbourne, and now Weston will find out he wasn’t telling the truth. Ben tries to make his mum change her mind.
I remembered everything I had said.
“Mum, he really can’t come here.”
The only true thing I’d told Weston was that we lived near Puffing Billy. We can hear its whistle blow from our house.
As soon as Weston arrives, he’ll start asking about all the activities Ben bragged about. What will Ben do?
This is an early chapter book in the ‘Mates’ series. The colour illustrations by Adam Carruthers are fun. My favourite is a drawing of Miss Phillips on page 35, but I can’t tell you why because it will spoil the story. 🙂
Do you think Ben should tell Weston that he made up most of the stories about his life in Melbourne?
Totally Twins is a new series for girls. The first book in the series, Musical Mayhem, was released in September 2010. The author, Aleesah Darlison, is taking Musical Mayhem on a blog tour to celebrate the launch of the book, and she arranged for us to interview a character from the series—Portia. You can get to know Portia’s twin, Persephone, on another stop on the tour.
But now, let’s meet Portia.
Your twin sister, Persephone, keeps a diary. Do you keep a diary too?
No. Not yet, but seeing Perse have so much fun with her diary sure makes me want one too! I’m usually kept pretty busy with school and ballet practice but maybe I’ll ask Mum to splurge on a new diary for me. I can’t let Perse have all the fun!
What’s the best thing about having a twin sister?
Having someone you can always, always rely on.
What’s the worst thing about having a twin sister?
Having to share a birthday—every year. But at least Mum lets us have our own cakes.
Describe yourself in 5 words.
Fun, friendly, fabulous, fashionable and … FUNKY!
Perse is a sensible, sensitive, shy, serious and super sister! But don’t tell her I said that, it might go to her head.
If you found $20 lying on the ground, how would you spend it?
I’d buy some pink-iced cupcakes for Perse and me (chocolate for her, vanilla for me)—but don’t tell Mum because she’s dead against high sugar food. I’d also buy some new jewellery and magazines.
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You can find out more about Aleesah Darlison at: www.aleesahdarlison.com. (There are some Totally Twins colouring-in pages you can download from her website.)
Persephone (Portia’s twin sister) also has her own blog where you can send her messages and download Totally Twins material. Visit Perse at: http://totally-twins.blogspot.com.
Graeme Base will give a talk and sign books at this free kids’ event.
When: Thursday 14 October 2010, 4 for 4.30 pm.
Where: St John’s Church, cnr Glebe Point Rd and St John’s Rd, Glebe NSW
RSVP: to gleebooks (Phone 9660 2333 or 9552 2526. Website www.gleebooks.com.au)
RSVP is essential.
alphabetsoup.net.au 