Students at Kalkie State Primary School will share their love of reading in their first-ever Bungawitta Earth Clay Sculpture Festival this Friday.
Year 2 and 3 students have been enjoying the Australian novel Bungawitta, written by Emily Rodda (aka Jennifer Rowe OA), as part of their studies and will celebrate with a festival event this week.
Students have screen printed their own shirts, made clay creatures that feature in the novel and will be coming in festival costumes for their shared barbecue lunch and clay painting celebrations.
The day is inspired by the Bungawitta novel, which takes place in a small Aussie town where “the land’s as dry as a dead galah.”
“The story is about a dry town with a population of only 12 and the television weatherman never puts a rain cloud over Bungawitta!” Year 2 student Aria Jordan said.
“No one wants to come to the town. It has closed the shops except the general store.
“One of the main characters, Jay, a young boy, thinks of an idea to attract people to the town to make money and save the town– the Bungawitta Earth Sculpture Festival.
“We are excited to do the same at school!”
Kalkie students love Bungawitta story
Year 3 student Kate Johnson said her favourite part of the story was the weatherman.
“The television weatherman plays a big role in the novel because he refuses to place a rain cloud over Bungawitta,” she said.
“It is funny because he comes to the festival and they lock him in the toilet because he wouldn’t make it rain and they really need rain in Bungawitta.”
Fellow Year 3 student Max Townson said he was excited to feel like he was in the story at the festival event on Friday. .
“I’m coming as the character Ben Wise,” he said.
“I’ve already made a beard and have a broad rimmed country-style hat!”
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