LIBRARY NEWS

What a busy couple of weeks in the library! We’ve had National Simultaneous Storytime Day, commemorated Sorry Day and Reconciliation Week, and also celebrated Catholic Schools Week with K-10 Buddy Reading. Plus, we've read some other great books, too.

National Simultaneous Storytime Day

The school was a hive of excited readers on May 21st for National Simultaneous Storytime Day. This fantastic event saw students from Kindergarten to Year 10, along with 2,204,658 otherregistered participants, from over 16,632locations, all reading Deborah Frenkel and Danny Snell's beautiful story, "The Truck Cat," simultaneously.

Across the school, students listened to the story and jumped into fun activities inspired by the book. 1M designed their very own dream trucks, just like the one in the story. 2M worked together to craft a fantastic Truck Cat mural in the library. I was also lucky enough to have Year 4L join us for the reading; they had a blast building a 3D model of a truck and adding some colour to their creations. It was a great story and a lot of fun.

1M and their amazing trucks, inspired by The Truck Cat.

Sorry Day & Reconciliation Week

Last week in the library, we dedicated time to understanding the significance of Sorry Day and Reconciliation Week. We explored a range of stories that shed light on the impact of past government policies on the Stolen Generations and the importance of storytelling and family within Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures.

I'm always impressed by the level of discussion and empathy shown by students across all year levels during these sessions. These stories help our students develop a deeper appreciation for Aboriginal history and culture. We also watched an excellent video about Reconciliation Week from Behind the News, which you can view here.

Check out some of the great work students completed during Reconciliation Week in the library.

Book Club

A huge thank you to all the families who were able to support the Term 2 Book Club. All orders were sent home yesterday. The credits the library receives from your purchases are incredibly valuable, allowing us to buy even more new books for everyone in our school community to enjoy. Your support directly helps us grow our collection and foster a love of reading. We can't wait to see what amazing stories we can add next!

PRC Update

A huge congratulations to our dedicated readers who have already completed the 2025 Premier's Reading Challenge. We're incredibly proud of Phoebe and Annabelle Hollingworth, Charlotte Kemp, and Sree Gadde for their fantastic effort. What great reading! Remember, once you've finished the Challenge, print off your reading record and return it to the library for verification. And for those still keen to join, it's not too late – the Challenge doesn't close until Friday, 5th September! Keep up the excellent reading, everyone!

Buddy Reading - Catholic Schools Week

Last Thursday, our school was filled with the wonderful sight of students participating in our Kindergarten to Year 10 Buddy Reading sessions during Catholic Schools Week. It's always a special experience when our older and younger students have the opportunity to spend quality time together, while sharing stories and fostering a love for reading. A massive thank you also goes out to 9M and Mrs McLachlan for their help in putting away over 500 books after the session – your assistance was very much appreciated!

SORA Books of the Week

Our digital library, SORA, has curated another great collection of books for us to explore this week. The theme is all things information, featuring some terrific non-fiction titles just waiting to be discovered. Whether you're curious about science, history, or fascinating facts, there's something in this collection for everyone. You can access SORA by following the instructions available here.

Bag Tales

Meet Charlotte, who came to HTS this year. She loves to borrow books each week and has a great library bag to keep them safe. Thanks, Charlotte!

Kids' Lit Quiz Prizes

Earlier in the term, four HTS teams competed in the Virtual Heat of the Kids Lit Quiz. One of our secondary teams finished third overall, and two other teams won individual rounds. We recently received the books they won as prizes. More great books to enjoy!

I will be on leave from Week 7 until the end of term, and I look forward to welcoming Mrs Monica D into the library in my absence. If you have any queries about the library while I'm away, please get in touch with her at school.

Happy reading,

Mrs Toni Fraser