Library Matters
CBCA Book Week
The big event in the library for Term 3 is always Book Week! Every year, this nation-wide event offers schools an opportunity to celebrate books and showcase the joy of reading. In our Wide Reading lessons, students went on Blind Dates with the books shortlisted for the Older Reader and Picturebook Book of the Year awards.
Staff also did an amazing job decorating their doors this year. Not only did their doors look fantastic, but they encouraged our students to talk about books and even borrow the books their doors were based on. Congratulations to the English faculty for their winning Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory decorations!
The highlight for Book Week at EHS is our annual mufti day and Cosplay Competition, where students are encouraged to dress up as their favourite book characters. All funds raised from this event went to the Indigenous Literacy Foundation, helping to provide books to remote communities, publish books in Indigenous languages, and support literacy development for young people.
CBCA Shadow Judging
Earlier this year our school was lucky enough to be one of 20 schools who were granted a Children’s Book Council of Australia Shadow Judging Scholarship. As part of this exciting program our students read the 6 books shortlisted for the CBCA Book of the Year Award and applied the official judging criteria to select their winner. They chose the horror novel This Stays Between Us by Margot McGovern as their pick, and their votes helped this book win the official Shadow Judges Award.
As part of this program our students also had to produce a creative response to show their understanding of the books they’d read. They had a great time making these Insta-worthy mood boards to capture the vibes of their books! Overall, the students had a fantastic time, with Thyan from Year 12 saying: “I think it’s a great opportunity for students to connect through books and improve their comprehension and reading skills.”
Student Book Club
Our students enjoyed their Shadow Judging experience so much they’ve decided to continue to meet regularly in the form of a Student Book Club. We meet in the library at recess every Tuesday Week A (Weeks 1, 3, 5, 7, 9). Every term we choose 3 different books to read together, but even if students aren’t reading one of our chosen books they’re still welcome!
HPGE Passion Projects
Early in Term 3 the library hosted 39 nominated High Potential and Gifted Education (HPGE) students from years 7 and 8 in the library as they completed their Passion Projects. This guided inquiry project allowed them to work on a passion of theirs for a full week, and we had some excellent projects on topics including baking, robotics and coding, creative writing, film-making, space travel, and art just to name a few. With guidance from Ms Lysaught and their regular classroom teachers, students developed their own inquiry questions, conducted research, collaborated with their peers, and transformed their ideas into creative, authentic projects. Through this program our students developed valuable skills in research, creativity, problem-solving, collaboration, resilience, and project management, while reflecting on their own strengths as learners. These students should be incredibly proud of their effort and the quality of their work in this program.
HPGE Creative Writing Workshop
Ms Mahoney and Ms Lysaught recently ran a full-day Creative Writing Workshop for our HPGE students with a passion for creative writing. This workshop guided students through the process of transforming a creative idea into an organised plan for a novel fit for publication, with a focus on strong worldbuilding, characterisation, structure, and editing. Many of our students said that the day reignited their desire to write, and they loved sharing their ideas and work with like-minded peers. Congratulations to Alicia P in Year 8 for her success in being selected for two separate poetry competitions - we wish her the best of luck with her creative pieces!
Social Clubs and Break Activities
Our library is open during the breaks for students to read, study, and socialise. We have recently restocked our shelves with a variety of new, exciting games to keep our students entertained during their breaks.
Library Loans and New Releases
The library has loaned an incredible 1879 books so far this year, and we’re on our way to beating last year’s total of 2290 loans. Our Readerboard is featured on the front door of the library and records our Top Borrowers each month. Every loan gets house points!
We’ve had a number of new books enter our library this term, with students frequently requesting new mysteries and romances to be added to our collection. Students are welcome to borrow over the school holidays, or they can check out our free ebooks and audiobooks: https://eldersliehs.eplatform.co/
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