The concept of a ‘Write a Reader’ competition was initially developed and undertaken by the Border Rivers - Gwydir CMA as part of their education programme. The project involved primary school students from within the Border Rivers – Gwydir catchment area writing a student reader on a selected environmental issue in the region (A reader is a simple book that young children are encouraged to read as part of their literacy education). The winning entries were then published and distributed to the winning schools.
The Cotton CRC is working with the Education Officers from the Border Rivers – Gwydir CMA to develop a similar competition across the nine cotton growing catchments of NSW and Qld. Primary schools from these regions will be encouraged to participate and the winning entry from each catchment will be published. The topic for this competition will be “Bugs, beetles, birds and bats” and students will be asked to explore the importance of these species in an agricultural landscape and write a reader based on their studies.
The ‘Write a Reader’ competition fits within the Cotton CRC’s Education and Training program and aims to undertake activities that will promote science and agriculture in primary schools located within cotton communities and nearby regions. It will also have close links to our Communities program which aims to enable mutually beneficial interactions between industry and regional communities.
The aim of the ‘Write a Reader’ competition is
- To highlight to students the value of biodiversity in the landscape by using the competition theme.
- Encourage student interest in the sciences – in particular biology and ecology through food webs processes in the agricultural landscape and to actively engage students by offering them an interactive learning experience.
| Competition theme |
Bugs, Beetles, Bats & Birds
• Agriculture in the landscape
• Science and ecology focus
|
| Geographic range |
All Cotton Catchment areas from Fitzroy basin in north to Murrumbidgee in the south. Nine catchments in total. |
| Targeted age group |
Mid to Upper Primary – Grades 3-6 (NSW) Grade 3-7 (QLD) to produce a reader targeted at Grade 2 reading level. |
| Outcomes of project |
9 new books written by students about local biodiversity published and distributed free to schools and libraries. 1,500 copies of each book produced. |
| Time frame |
Early promotion in schools – early term 2
Teaching packs developed and launched – late term 2
Teleconference with relevant staff – late term 2
Competition closes – end Term 3
Judging to occur straight after competition closes
Design and Printing - October
Presentations and distribution - November
|
Distribution
(recommended) |
Winning schools to receive 10 copies of each reader (90 books in total).
All schools in each catchment to receive 1 copy of each book (9 books in total).
Winning school prizes to be presented to each school.
Sets of 9 readers to be posted to schools in catchment areas. |
This project is an integral component of the Education and Training sub-programme as it aims to encourage primary and secondary students into science and agriculture based fields of study. Following completion of the project it is expected that participating school children and their teachers will have a greater knowledge and understanding of the: • Ecology of
- agricultural landscapes.
- Interconnectivity of these systems.
- Identification of bugs, beetles birds and bats in their region.
For further information please contact Trudy Staines Ph 02 6799 1500 or email: trudy.staines@csiro.au
