Last week, our Year 5M and 5/6J classes went to the Gold Rush Eureka Excursion at Beenleigh. Judging by the slideshow below, the day was thoroughly enjoyed by students and teachers alike and will no doubt become a fixture in the History curriculum in the coming years. The following feedback was given by students:
"The activities we did were exciting and interesting. It was fun to put up tents which is how the people in the gold fields used to live. We had a gold hunt. It was fun to find pieces of gold to bring back and trade for money. Some children were sent to jail for running and not having a gold licence. Some children were caught by the bushranger and either had to give him their gold or go to gaol. We panned for gold and used all the gold mining tools. We also role played in the general store and made damper. All in all, it was a great day!"
It
was a very excited group of year 4M students who boarded the bus
yesterday for a trip into the Cultural Precinct at South Bank to attend
Word Play sessions conducted by well-known Australian authors. The class
had won a competition run by The Courier Mail, which gave this group of
children free entry into the festival for the day. To start the day,
children were treated to a puppet show and reading of Hatched, the
first book in the 'The Grimstones' series by author Asphyxia - a hearing
impaired circus performer, puppeteer and author. Following morning tea,
the children had a hilarious half-hour with Andy Griffiths, author of
the very popular 'Just...' series and 'The 26 Storey Tree House', his latest
work. The children then had lunch out on the grass, entertained by street
performers from QUT. Finally, the children attended Alison Lester's
session and learnt lots about the publishing process. Alison is a
prolific and much-loved author and we have many of her titles in our
library. The children were extremely engaged all day and asked some
great questions of the authors. The highlight may well have been Book
Signing, when the children were able to get autographs from their
favourite authors. Thanks to Mrs Griffiths who organised the day and the
parent helpers who came along to help. It was a memorable day!
This what a couple of the children who attended had to say:
Wordplay
Our names are Indiah and Keely and we are in Class 4M at St Anthony's Catholic Primary School, Alexandra Hills. We thoroughly enjoyed our time at the Writers' Festival at Wordplay. We loved meeting Andy Griffiths, Alison Lester and Asphyxia. Andy Griffiths talked to us about his new book called 'The 26 Storey Treehouse' and another good book called 'Just Doomed!'. His books are very funny and interesting and we recommend you read them. Alison Lester spoke about her life and the books that have influenced her writing. We also spoke to Asphyxia and we learnt a lot about her as she has had some tough times throughout her life. Asphyxia is deaf which has made her writing career harder than usual. Her book 'Grimstones' is extraordinary, considering her troubles.
We would like to thank 'The Courier Mail' for this wonderful and creative opportunity. Our class had so much fun learning about the authors and their lives!
