Story Factory | Education

Story Factory

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24.01.2022 It's International Literacy Day and no matter where you are in the world, it's the day for all of us to be thinking about literacy, teaching and learning. This year has a focus on literacy in the COVID-19 crisis and beyond, and here at Story Factory we've been thinking about that a lot. The changes to learning this year due to COVID has hit disadvantaged students disproportionately hard, but we're doing our best to turn the tables and find new ways to celebrate literacy.... Just one of the ways we're sharing the power of writing is through free creative writing resources to help young people writing at home. These resources are available to everybody and you can access them here: https://bit.ly/3ilvqh6

24.01.2022 We're SO proud of this book, all the young writers who contributed, and our partners in getting it published. Thank you Sheargold Foundation and Bridgelane for making it possible!

23.01.2022 We witnessed first-hand the difficulties so many of our students had to get online during lockdown, how hard it was for under-resourced schools and over-stretched teachers to master new technology with little support, and now the struggle to catch up on those lost months of learning. In response we partnered with a generous donor to provide an incredible 200 refurbished computers for kids who needed them. We also established a new partnership with Optus, through their Donate... Your Data program. Over 100 students received free Optus SIM cards, with unlimited national standard talk and text and 10GB of data which will be topped up with extra data donated by Optus customers, to go with the refurbished laptops we’ve distributed. These two things allow young people to access our online after-school programs and a range of educational resources, but we all must do more to bridge this digital divide. As the @SydneyMorningHerald writes - "we owe it to our teachers and our children to embrace a new digital resourcing standard that gives them what they need." READ MORE: https://www.smh.com.au//disadvantage-and-the-digital-divid

22.01.2022 In a sometimes tough world, there is InstaHope! What's that we hear you ask? It's our latest, greatest big project where students have written poems to share love, joy and positivity with the world . We'll be sharing these Instapoems on Instagram, but you can also buy the book for a full dose of joy created by the brilliant young people of Sydney. Huge thanks to the Sheargold Foundation Foundation and BridgeLane for their support in making this project possible.... FIND OUT MORE AT: https://www.storyfactory.org.au/instahope/

22.01.2022 Screen NSW has launched a new talent incubator program for NSW emerging and mid-career Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander creatives to build their skills, meet and work closely with industry professionals, and generate new work through an intensive masterclass program. Applications close 31 August. For more details and to apply: https://www.screen.nsw.gov.au//bunya-productions-indigenou

21.01.2022 This is the best! Thank you @AjugaSchoolNSW, we love spending our Tuesdays with you.

21.01.2022 It's Bilal! Nice to see him back in our Parramatta centre, carefully following food safety procedures for a group of our young poets who have been developing a collection of poems ready for publication at the end of 2020. One thing we'll say about 2020, there's plenty to write about!

20.01.2022 Woo-hoo! Congratulations Sarah, we’re thrilled your incredible efforts to make learning fun, accessible and powerful are being recognised with an ARIA! It’s so well deserved

19.01.2022 Christine Huynh is a teacher and year advisor at Liverpool Boys High School with a passion for curriculum development and innovation. We loved working with her and it's no surprise that she just won Educator of the Year at the Western Sydney Women Awards, woohoo! Congratulations Christine! It's great to see the hard work and dedication of teachers celebrated, especially in 2020.

18.01.2022 There's still time to join the First Nations Bedtime Stories Challenge. A unique way for all people to learn from and celebrate First Nations cultures. Watch Dreaming stories, told to you by First Nations elders and knowledge custodians from Central Australia. Do it on your own, at home with your family, or at school. It’s all online!... https://www.firstnationsbedtimestories.com/

18.01.2022 The Sydney Morning Herald reports today that NSW students have been hit worse than expected by online learning during COVID-19, with tests showing they have fallen three to four months behind in key areas such as reading and numeracy. Julie Sonnemann, a fellow in school education at the Grattan Institute said "if that's the average then I would be concerned about the progress of the most disadvantaged students, who are likely to have struggled most". At Story Factory we've be...en seeing first-hand the impact this year has had on our students, who come from under-resourced schools and communities most at risk of falling behind. 2021 will be a crucial year in the lives of our young people to ensure they make up the ground lost in 2020. READ MORE: https://www.smh.com.au//simply-staggering-nsw-students-fal

18.01.2022 Our latest publication INSTAHOPE was created in partnership with some wonderful schools. Big shout out to Bass High School, Auburn Girls High School, Chifley College Shalvey Campus, Fairfield IEC, Granville Boys High School - A Great Place to Learn, St Clare's Catholic High School, Eden College, Robert Townson High School, Holroyd High School and Woniora Road School and their fabulous students. Youre all published authors now, and of some truly hopeful and inspiring writing! You can purchase INSTAHOPE at the Story Factory website: https://shop.storyfactory.org.au/book-shop/instahope

17.01.2022 Nikki, a talented young fiction writer and a Story Factory Student, has gotten together with Camp Quality to read her work aloud to share with other young lovers of fiction. Awesome work Nikki! https://www.happinesshub.org.au//story-factory-read-aloud-

17.01.2022 You may have caught Cath this week on the ABC News alongside two of our brilliant students. They were there to talk about A USER'S GUIDE TO A PANDEMIC, our compilation of writing from young people around the country written during the national lock down. Their work is truly extraordinary. Scroll to 26 minutes to see two of our young authors share their work and their perspective. Read more: https://www.storyfactory.org.au/pandemic/... https://iview.abc.net.au//abc/series/0/video/NU2001H210S00

17.01.2022 It's Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children's Day! Today is a chance to celebrate Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children, their culture and their future. We're proud to see what Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander kids create in our writing workshops and take it from us - the future is in good hands with these #EldersOfTomorrow https://aboriginalchildrensday.com.au/

17.01.2022 Looking for a gift to show you care? Need a present for the person who has everything? Want to share some positivity? Look no further than our anthology of poetry written by young people across Sydney INSTAHOPE available online now. https://shop.storyfactory.org.au/book-shop/instahope

16.01.2022 Have you seen one of these special dollar coins yet? The Royal Australian Mint are producing one for every Australian in the hopes that we'll give them away again! We're behind any scheme that encourages more giving and more people supporting each other, especially in these tough times. If you come across one you can read about what to do on the website below. And if you feel moved to pass on your donation dollars to Story Factory, please accept our thanks - every bit helps!... https://donationdollar.com.au/index.html

15.01.2022 'But miss, why think about the future for? the 13-year-old said. 'No one had ever asked me that before. 'I was visiting a class of year 7 students in Sydneys south-west with the Story Factory, a not-for-profit creative writing organisation who work with young people to draw out their skills and stories. I was there to talk about the work I do and how I think about the future, explaining the dizzying ways the world of work, communication and creativity have turned upside do...wn in the relatively short span of my life. 'These students were writing their own future-focused fiction: during quiet writing time, I imagined them flashing forward to an inspiring, sustainable world, and writing about their place in it. I thought Id done pretty well, until this kid called me over and stumped me with that startlingly simple question...' Huge thanks and congratulations to Jess Scully whose book 'Glimpses of Utopia' is an inspiring and important read. Wait until we tell our student you've written a whole book in response to their question!

15.01.2022 Beas dreams came true when her poetry collection was published as part of our Year of Poetry program. Join Bea and Camp Quality as she reads her poem "You Are Not The Sun", just for you. You are not the Sun you are so much more. https://www.happinesshub.org.au//story-factory-read-aloud-

14.01.2022 Some of our wonderful students have teamed up with Camp Quality for a fabulous project - Once Upon a Storytime. In this video Zoe (a brilliant young poet) reads her work aloud to share with the world. Check it out! https://www.happinesshub.org.au//story-factory-read-aloud-

13.01.2022 So many wonderful people, conversations and things to discover!

13.01.2022 It's Indigenous Literacy Day! Early literacy is the cornerstone of success in education" says Karen Williams, Executive Director of The Indigenous Literacy Foundation. Encouraging early literacy requires children and their parents to have access to books and that children need to see themselves in the stories they read. They need to see that their culture is cherished and their stories are celebrated by all Australians. ... We can't think of a better thing to celebrate - more stories! Check out the celebrations across the country in the virtual event! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YtrOi2Y-B8A

13.01.2022 "Almost a decade's worth of NAPLAN data shows high school students struggle with writing more than with reading or numeracy. But without those skills, they "struggle to show what they know, and their learning remains untapped or unseen", the report said." Story Factory's creative writing workshops are created to spark a love of and engagement with writing in young people. When you cannot write, you are at far greater risk of being locked out of opportunity. We work with young... people most at risk of low literacy. Our priority is young people from Indigenous, culturally and linguistically diverse and lower socio-economic backgrounds, and we provide our workshops free of charge. We also run Teacher Professional Learning Workshops to help support teachers in passing on these essential skills. Find out more at: https://bit.ly/2ZIPKSp

12.01.2022 "The revelation occurred at lunchtime. I was circling the school oval alone, trying to look for a secluded spot to throw my lunch away. My previous school had worm farms, tomato patches, cabbage beds, blue tongue lizards, and a draconian policy against wasting food. Half-eaten lasagnes were generally left alone, but anyone caught ditching an intact sandwich was fined with a hefty phone call home. This school had no such legislation, but by then my character was already formed." Read Vivian Pham's reflection on springtime (and concealing sticky rice) alongside contributions from other wonderful authors at The Sydney Morning Herald. https://www.smh.com.au//a-spring-of-optimism-writers-and-a

11.01.2022 "Our society is about to hit a literacy crisis" says The Sydney Morning Herald. 'Writing is a crucial skill, both at school and in a workforce increasingly reliant on email. Even the brightest student or most diligent worker will be hamstrung if their writing cannot be understood.' This is where we step in. Research shows that quality arts-based learning significantly improves social and emotional wellbeing. Our storytelling workshops have been designed by creative writing an...d literacy experts to build literacy, confidence, and creativity: essential skills young people need to shape their future. You can read more about the literacy crisis facing students at the link below, and what we're doing about it (and how you can support our work) here: https://www.storyfactory.org.au/ https://www.smh.com.au//writing-wrongs-our-society-is-abou

10.01.2022 Would you like to share a Tiny Story? A Tiny Story is a mini-celebration of the power of words to transport us to different places, and the people who live in them. These Tiny Stories will be considered to be part of a launch activation for Storybox Parramatta - a digital placemaking project originally designed to be experienced outdoors in Parramatta Square. You can read more and submit your Tiny Story by visiting: https://www.storybox.co/tinystories.

09.01.2022 Charge through the week like these Year Four students at Minnamurra Public School! Theyve just invented some new bugs previously unknown to science in our creative writing workshop this morning. Here theyre taking their new bug characters out for a spin, moving and making sounds like their bugs would make. Some of the bug names include Doctor Greg the Praying Toe, Harry the Honey Fly, Celine Dion the Dragon Lady. Brilliant!

08.01.2022 This is Bonnie. Bonnie ordered a stack of beautiful A USERS' GUIDE TO A PANDEMIC books to give to all her friends for Christmas. She knows supporting young writers, particularly during a global pandemic, makes a truly meaningful gift. Be like Bonnie. BUY NOW: https://bit.ly/35gShq0

07.01.2022 Some of our truly incredible students are speaking to @abcnews_au today about an exciting new publication written during isolation. Watch this space for all the details!! #creativewritingrules

07.01.2022 Backchat on FBi is looking for young journalists who are keen to get a start and make their mark in radio journalism on FBi Radio. If that sounds like you, take a look and get applying...

06.01.2022 The Sydney Morning Herald reported today that "Almost half of NSW teachers including two in five high school English teachers say they were poorly trained to teach writing, and a quarter devote less than an hour a fortnight of class time to it." Story Factory runs regular Teacher Professional Learning workshops designed to support busy teachers with a variety of tried and tested writing activities and strategies. 100% of our participants applied what they learned and 96%... felt more confident in teaching writing as a result of participation. You can read about our sessions available and register to take part through the link below. TEACHER PROFESSIONAL LEARNING WORKSHOPS: https://www.storyfactory.org.au/teacher-professional-learn/

05.01.2022 San Win Yee's circumstances meant that no matter her dedication, it was virtually impossible for her to keep up with classes and assignments is isolation. Now she's playing catch up. We know that most students would have struggled with remote learning, but students from disadvantaged backgrounds will have learnt a lot less, and some will have learnt virtually nothing over that period. Isolation was hard, but so is catching up. We're there to support kids who need it to progress their education.

05.01.2022 *STUDENT WRITER APPRECIATION POST* These year 7 students at @holroydhighschoolgreystanes are now officially published authors after their writing was included in INSTAHOPE our beautiful book of positivity written by the young people of Sydney. Congratulations legends!

05.01.2022 'The Coconut Children' is a powerful ode to modern Australia by debut novelist and Story Factory alum Vivian Pham. Sheila Ngoc Pham joins Vivian to discuss her urgent, moving and wise debut in this conversation hosted by Sydney Writers' Festival. https://player.fm//sydney/vivian-pham-the-coconut-children

04.01.2022 We publish the work of our students aged 7 - 17, but even we've never published the writing of a 4 year old - amazing! https://www.theguardian.com//four-year-old-lands-book-deal

02.01.2022 It's a little known fact that Story Factory's Board Chair Michael Gonski is a talented photographer, taking beautiful pictures of Sydney from above. Along with photographer Seb Ruiz, they've donated images of the coast of Sydney, which are available for sale as framed art prints, through Riptide Prints, and available worldwide. All proceeds will go to Story Factory, in a year that young people in under-resourced communities need support with literacy and creative thinking mor...e than ever. BUY NOW: https://bit.ly/3pRVHrQ

02.01.2022 It's Education Week and a chance to celebrate the transformational power of an education. Education opens doors, options and a world of possibility. It's the silver bullet. It's essential, and completely life changing. It's also something many young people struggle to engage with for a whole range of reasons - English could be an additional language, there could be difficulty accessing resources like a computer or data, or things might not be stable at home.... This Education Week we want to particularly celebrate the power of education for voices at risk of not being heard, or kids at risk at being left behind - especially this year. Everyone deserves an education #EdWeek20 #learningtogether

01.01.2022 You might not be able to buy a ticket to a performance but the @sydneyoperahouse is still busy! Our fabulous storyteller Russ is there today leading creative writing workshops for school students via video link. Literacy matters, ESPECIALLY in times like these. Nice one Russ! @ Sydney Opera House