Sharon State School teachers Janette Puie and Margaret Pippia have published their first book, Cato Starts School, to make the transition to prep easier for young students.
The book, based around the Sharon State School Mascot Cato, discusses what to expect on the first day of prep at Sharon State School.
Having worked on the book for the past three years, the ladies bought their individual talents together to bring the book to life, with Janette as author and Margaret as illustrator.
Janette said, over the past 12 years, she had been giving prep students a first day gift but now they could personalise it with their own book.
“I have been giving a book and a ball to the preppies for a long time now, so for about 12 years now and it has become a tradition at our school,” Janette said.
“Marg and I decided we would like to do a book that we could give to the preppies instead of buying one that was relevant to our school.
“We decided to make Cato the main character in the story and bring him to life on his first day of school in the book.
“The book is aimed towards lower primary school as it mainly teaches prep students what to expect on their first day of school, in particular here at Sharon State School,” Janette said.
“It is aimed specifically for Sharon preppies, but it probably would be good for any student starting school in Queensland and it could be a great standalone story as well,” she said.
“It highlights the different things student may need to know as they start school including what will happen throughout the day and being a big kid at school.
“It aims to get the idea across that there are a number of things you can do yourself when you get to school, for example making new friends and if things do not work out, your friends around might be able to help you out.”
Sharon teachers book to make first day easier
Currently the book is only available at Sharon State School, forming part of the prep enrolment package, although the teachers are looking at options to see the book shared with the wider community.
Janette has been a teacher at Sharon State School for over twenty years, with Marg a teacher aide also working at the school for many years.
Both ladies love the reward that comes from helping the students, saying every day is different.
You can find out more about Sharon State School here.
Other stories: Community grant workshops for the community
