Today Jackie French, Australian Children’s Laureate and Senior Australian of the Year, launches the 2015 Share a Story Calendar. The best-selling author has published over 140 books and in her role as Laureate strives to enrich the lives of young Australians through the power of story and develop a culture of reading.
‘Stories tell us who we are. They teach us empathy so we understand who others are. They give us the power to imagine and create the future.’ – Jackie French
This fun calendar, with a different theme each month, encourages children to share, enjoy and create stories together. Children, parents, avid readers, booksellers, teachers and librarians can interpret each theme in many different ways:
Readings, projects, murals, book swaps, book trailers, snap chats … other ideas can be found on our website, along with monthly newsletters and blog posts from Jackie. The first Share a Story newsletter will be released on Monday 2nd February with the theme ‘Hunt a Story’ to tie in with Library Lovers’ Day on the 14th of February. March’s theme ‘Navigate a Story’ invites children to seek out adventure stories and will follow Jackie’s trip to the 2015 Bologna Children’s Book Fair in Italy where she will participate in the second International Children’s Laureate Summit.
The Share a Story Calendar can be downloaded, along with other free literacy resources, from the Laureate website: http://www.childrenslaureate.org.au/project/share-a-story/
‘There are a million ways to share a story. To read to a child on your lap; to have a child read to you while you cook dinner; to read to the dog; to join a storytelling session at your library.’ – Jackie French
Share your story ideas, favourite authors, paintings, or whatever this project has inspired you to create on our: the Australian Children’s Laureate's Facebook page or on Twitter: @Ozlaureate
