St Joseph's Nudgee College

September 6, 2011

Some of the world’s best known characters visited St Joseph’s Nudgee College recently when Year 5-7 students dressed up as part of Book Week celebrations.

“Book Week is an international event and there is a theme for each year. 2011 was One world, Many stories,” said Director of Learning and Teaching (Years 5-9) Ms Britt Gurnett.

“Book Week is very heavily promoted in the Years 5-7 area with different classes covering it to varying degrees. All classes though participate in the dress up day which is done to promote reading. Students must come as a character, ideally from a book they have read, which really puts a fun spin on reading,” she said.

Book Week has become an annual event on the Nudgee College calendar with the library hosting visiting animators or authors and conducting a book sale. All profits from the book sale go back into buying additional library resources.

“With traditional book stores closing, in two or three years the book sale will be like attending an old fashioned bookshop. Students will be able to pick the books up and flick through them which is something they can’t do buying electronically,” said Head of Information Services Dr Martin Kerby.

During the week, Year 6 students received advice about the writing process from Henry Hoey Hobson author Christine Bongers. Henry Hoey Hobson is Christine’s second novel and has been shortlisted for the 2011 Children’s Book Council of Australia Book of the Year for Younger Readers and the WA Premier’s Book Awards. Her first novel, Dust, was a CBCA Notable Book for 2010 and was Highly Commended in the Prime Minister’s Literary Awards for Children’s Fiction.

In addition to the dress up day, the Year 5-7 students also spent time reading and talking about their favourite book with their father or other significant male at the Father’s Day breakfast and conducted a book drive with books being sent to schools in Papua New Guinea.

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