For some kids, reading is a chore.
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It was a different story when Andrew Daddo rolled into nearby school halls and libraries equipped with a great sense of humour and a stack of his children’s books. Everyone left with a smile on their face, teachers included!
The accomplished Australian author and television personality went on a brief tour of the Highlands, starting with Moss Vale Primary School and then onto St Thomas Aquinas in Bowral before winding up at Mittagong Primary School in the afternoon.
Sponsored by The Friends of Wingecarribee Libraries (FOWL), the events had kids from Year 2 through to Year 6 laughing so hard they had to hold onto their stomachs.
Some even wiped away tears as Andrew narrated a story from one of his chapter books - “you know, for the slightly more grown up kids” - and brought the story to life on a whiteboard. What his stick figures lacked in artistic detail, he made up for with some impressive sound effects.
“The thing about writing stories is you’ve got to be brave and think differently,” Andrew said. “Take your time reading, give everything a chance and really enjoy the story.”
“Think about things and ask yourselves the question: ‘But what ELSE could happen?’ and when you get stuck, make something happen.”
From toy soldiers stuck in a tree to shooting a pet pug out of a two-storey window in a slingshot made from one of the character’s mother’s g-strings – Andrew’s interactive story telling at Mittagong Public School had it all.
“Maybe they could make a parachute out of a blanket!” one student shouted. “Exactly. These are the kind of great ideas you need for great stories,” Andrew said.
Wingecarribee Libraries children's and youth services librarian Trudy Eccleston accompanied Andrew to schools across the Highlands and said students had been laughing non-stop. “He’s told them how he came to write, how he tells a story and uses ideas from his own life experience,” she said. “There’s been so much student engagement.”
Mittagong Public School student Rowan Ferreira said he’d taken a lot on board from the author talk. “I’ll take a lot more time thinking about things when I write.”