It’s the last day of October, and that means it’s time for some recommendations from members of our Top Reads Team.*
You’ll find a recommended list from our Top Reads Team on the last day of every month (February to November). If you’d like even more recommendations, browse all through all our Top Reads ever!
*All our Top Readers are kids aged 13 and under. No grownups allowed!
INTO THE MIST
by Maya, 11, Bowral Public School, NSW
I always wondered what the mist could do, I wonder if it could fly high or create images, too. Could it be a theme park or could it be an adventure to a brand new world? Today was a really misty day in Bugs-worth. You couldn’t see the foot path, nor could you see our plain sky. The day was very different to our wonderful sunny days.
The birds weren’t coming out of the trees and everyone’s furry little friends didn’t want to come and play. None of the children wanted to come outside. It was very unusual, all the children would play in their front yards.
I decided to go and have a look to see what was going on and then I realised I was walking on water. I didn’t know who or what created the mist but they would pay. I kept on walking and I finally found what was creating the mist. It was a giant mist monster.
I wonder what will destroy the mist monster, probably not bird droppings, not water but maybe a sweet lullaby? Nothing will work, I might have to try something different. I decided to shine a light on the monster.
It finally decided to disappear and go put some more mist on another place or country. When I eventually got back to my home the whole place was covered in filthy bugs and rubbish. It looks like the next hour of the day will be cleaning up. After a while all the children and animals in Bugs-worth were all out and playing around.
The world will never know the name of the person who saved the whole world from the beast. I am the saviour of the world and no one can do it ever again.
We’ve been sharing writing from students at Bowral Public School over the past few days. If you’d like to send us YOUR book review, story, poem or artwork, check out our submission guidelines.
TOBY
by Meg, Year 5/6, Bowral Public School, NSW
It was such a miserable day. If you add up all of the miserableness in the world and then times it by the weight of the world, the day was still more miserable. It was rainy, but at the same time, it was hot and humid so it was worse being inside than out. Toby was trapped inside The Great Tree of Woof. He had all of his other doggy friends, of course, but Toby had cabin fever and he wanted to go outside, desperately.
The problem was though, The Great Tree of Woof was being rather inconvenient. It had this terrible habit of making all of the doors too small when it was raining. Yes, to you and me this seems like a good idea because if all of those dogs went outside into the rain then they would come back muddy and disgusting. But for Toby, it was unbearable.
Toby was starting to hallucinate. He was certain that he saw Felix, the smallest dog at The Great Tree of Woof, waltzing upside down on the ceiling. This was getting ridiculous. Toby HAD to get out.
Toby had to just make do for now and only stick out his snout. It was better than nothing.
Rain splattered down on Toby’s nose. It was nice and refreshing. The memories of when he was a puppy came back to him. How he could sneak out because he was so small. Toby wished that he was still that small. The rain drops became bigger and Toby started to feel drowsy.
As he lay down thunder rumbled up ahead. He wasn’t going to be able to sleep for long. When the thunder started he, being the oldest and wisest dog there, had to calm all of the puppies down.
Toby wriggled to get comfy and drifted off to sleep.
We will be sharing writing from students at Bowral Public School over the next few days. If you’d like to send us YOUR book review, story, poem or artwork, check out our submission guidelines.
LIFE OF A ROTTEN POTATO
by Angus, 10, Bowral Public School
Hello there, I’m a potato. Today I’m going to tell you how the life of a rotten potato works. At the start of my life I was stuck under this icky brown stuff, I was under there for weeks until a human finally pulled me out. That was the first time I met my family. My brother’s name was Spud, my mum’s name was Beryl and my dad’s name was Mark. My brother always teased me and said that I was rotten. I felt left out all the time because all my friends ditched me when they found out I was rotten. I asked Mum and Dad if I was rotten. They said I wasn’t, but I knew they were saying that to be nice.
The next stage of my life was being cleaned. It was one of the most horrible things that had happened to me ever. My second cousin drowned. His name was Fred, it was really quite sad. When I had to be washed I was exited I thought the mould and stuff would come off but it didn’t, it was horrible.
The third stage was being cut up, this was usually the end of a potato’s life — but I was rotten so they didn’t cut me up into little bits, they just threw me in the trash. I was super sad for the next few days because my mum, dad and brother got cooked and eaten. I was lonely in the garbage. The only thing to talk to was a mouldy banana named Rick. He said the same sort of thing happened to his family except they just got eaten not cooked. The next day the evil humans put all the garbage into one big metal bin with all the dead foods that nobody had eaten.
There was a mandarin that nobody had eaten. I said he was lucky he was alive, but then he said he was inhabited by worms. Sadly Rick the banana didn’t make it, he fell out of the bin and got stepped on and he got splattered everywhere it was disgusting. When we were first put into the metal bin we got put on a truck and got driven to a place called the tip. There were so many other foods that were still alive. My best friend became a brussels sprout named Rick, just like my friend Rick the banana but we do not speak of Rick the banana any more. After six months in the tip at night, I was laying looking up at the stars thinking about my family and friends, how they died. I thought that I should stop thinking about them and think about how I made new friends and how I’m still alive today instead of thinking about all the bad things in life like being rotten. That night I went to sleep a happy potato and I lived out the rest of my life as one. And that is the life of a rotten potato.
We will be sharing writing from students at Bowral Public School over the next few days. If you’d like to send us YOUR book review, story, poem or artwork, check out our submission guidelines.
Another month has zoomed by and it’s time to post the Top Reads recommendations for September. Add these books to your holiday reading pile …
You’ll find a recommended list from our Top Reads Team on the last day of every month (February to November). If you’d like even more recommendations, browse all through all our Top Reads ever!
*All our Top Readers are kids aged 13 and under. No grownups allowed!
Here we are again on the last day of the month … on the last day of the month our Top Reads Team members nominate their favourite reads from the past four weeks. Here they are!
You’ll find a recommended list from our Top Reads Team on the last day of every month (February to November). If you’d like even more recommendations, browse all through all our Top Reads ever!
*All our Top Readers are kids aged 13 and under. No grownups allowed!
STARS IN THE SKY
by Gabriella, 9, Virginia USA
Stars shining,It’s the last day of the month, and that means it’s time for our Top Reads Team* to recommend some good books. These are their favourite books read during the past month:
You’ll find a recommended list from our Top Reads Team on the last day of every month (February to November). If you’d like even more recommendations, browse all through all our Top Reads ever!
*All our Top Readers are kids aged 13 and under. No grownups allowed!
It’s the last day of the month, and that means it’s time for members of our Top Reads Team to recommend some good books (just in time for the school holidays!). Add these to your beside table …
You’ll find a recommended list from our Top Reads Team on the last day of every month (February to November). If you’d like even more recommendations, browse all through all our Top Reads ever!
*All our Top Readers are kids aged 13 and under. No grownups allowed!
My Coonawarra Farm Resort Camp Experience (May 2019)
by Jessie, 11, VIC
This was my first camp experience and I will never forget it!
The lead up to camp made me both excited and a little bit nervous. I got to buy some new items for camp, which was great and our teddies were also invited to come. I brought my pink bear, who wore her handmade colourful scarf and my friends brought their stuffed toys too.
It was a cold start to our first day, but only the adults noticed that. The kids were all too excited to care and just wanted to get on the bus and go. The weather soon warmed up and the bus trip there and back was heaps of fun and we stopped for lunch at a park. I was very lucky to get to sit with Sarah on the way up, who was my designated bus buddy and then on the way back I got to sit in the prestigious back row with Bianca, Milly and Emma. On the bus there was lots of talking, laughing and singing and on the way back many of the boys sang ‘Let It Go’, redefining how NOT to sing in tune and why not everyone should try to reach the high notes.
The camp I went to (Coonawarra Farm Resort) is located in East Gippsland on approximately 140 ha. It is surrounded by bush, with a huge lake and beautiful views and home to a variety of wildlife, including kangaroos.
Our rooms were terrific, warm and had bunk beds. I shared a room with Milly, Emma, Sarah, Jemima and Lila. We all took turns getting the top bunks, as they were the most sought-after location, with the best views. We had a lot of crazy fun in our rooms including singing, dancing and way too much laughing and not a lot of sleeping.
The food was great, all cooked and prepared for us and the only jobs the kids had to do was help with setting the tables. The only thing that I didn’t really like about camp was that I couldn’t get the shower water temperature as warm as I liked.
We got to do lots of activities such as red faces, trivia night, movie night, night walk, high ropes, hut building, rock climbing, damper making, visiting Den of Nargun, etc, but my favourites were horse riding, the flying fox and the big swing.
I got to go horse riding in a large group, luckily which included my friends Emma, Bianca and Sarah. My horse was called Buzz. He was white and patchy and was a really nice, calm horse. The only thing is that he did those things no one wants to talk about, as he walked along, not even trying to wait until he got back to the paddock.
The Big Swing, what a rush! The adrenaline you get just as you pull the rope was great. Your life flashes before your eyes. Then you just have to do it again and again. I chose the very top level both times, but I would have gone even higher if I could and I could have done it all day.
The Flying Fox was so much fun, though the hill we had to walk up to get there was very steep. The Flying Fox was very high, with incredible views and you could hear the air rushing past as you travelled along the line.
Archery was another of our activities. I didn’t find it that much fun, as the target just kept moving and the ground kept jumping in front of my arrow. I think Mrs Harvey had the same problem.
In groups we all had to attempt to make waterproof huts out of branches, logs, bark etc. Then the adults got to throw large buckets of water over the huts, drenching us. Mr Bennett seemed a little bit too happy doing this job. He had a big smile on his face seeing us all wet and listening to us scream. We then got to warm ourselves by the fire and make and eat damper. The damper had the best fruit in it, that made it especially yummy.
I will also give a special mention and thank you to Monty, who we met while building our huts. Only a small group of kids will know who I’m talking about, but he was very special to us and though only with us for a short time, he touched our lives, gave us a huge amount of laughter and will forever be in our hearts.
We also went on a trip to Den Of Nargun which was the best. I really enjoyed the aboriginal stories and the beautiful views on the way.
Overall I think this was a terrific camp. I had the best fun, I got to have so many new experiences and I left with fantastic memories that will last a lifetime.
alphabetsoup.net.au 