A marvellous morning at St Mary’s College
May 26, 2017 at 6:35 pm | Posted in Australian schools, children's literacy, Hobart, St Mary's College, Story Readings | Leave a commentTags: Chinese Calendar Tales, Chinese culture, The Tale of Chester Choi, The Tale of Pin Yin Panda
What a fun morning I had today at St Mary’s College here in Hobart, introducing my Chinese Calendar Tales! My lonely dragon Chester Choi and I met all the lovely girls and boys of Prep to Year 1, and vain but loveable Pin Yin Panda and I met all the kids in Years 2 and 3! It was a joy to work with such a lovely lot of kids and their dedicated teachers. Warm thanks to lovely Deputy Director of Junior School, Glynis Devereux, who was my host for the day, and to librarian Marylouise Jones, who invited me! I hope to see you all again soon!
A funny and fabulous day at Kingston International School!
May 22, 2017 at 6:09 pm | Posted in Being an Author, Books about Chinese Zodiac, Hong Kong Schools, Kingston International School Hong Kong, Story Readings | Leave a commentTags: The Chinese Calendar Tales, The Tale of Chester Choi, The Tale of Pin Yin Panda, The Tale of Rickshaw Rooster
I’ve just had the BEST day at one of my favourite Hong Kong schools, Kingston International School, today! I met ALL the kids in primary school, as well as their lovely teachers, in some fun, very educational story readings from my Chinese Calendar Tales! The littlest kids in P1 met my hungry dragon with a lonely heart, Chester Choi, and learned all about dragons in Chinese mythology. The P2s met my vain but loveable panda, Pin Yin Panda, and found out how all the animals got into the Chinese Zodiac. And the P3s, P4s, P5s and P6s met my proud, cocky but promise-keeping rooster in this years Tale of Rickshaw Rooster, and learned some fascinating facts about the end of the Chinese Empire and the rise of the ordinary man in China! Huge thanks to my lovely hosts, Jennifer Shaw from Upper Primary above left, and Melissa Preisig from Lower Primary, above right! More fabulous photos to come!
A fabulous photo shoot!
April 15, 2017 at 6:17 pm | Posted in Being an Author, Photoshoots, Uncategorized | Leave a commentTags: Chinese Calendar Tales, Green Minibus 22;, The Tale of Pin Yin Panda
Huge thanks to Hong Kong photographer Ellen Claire Taylor for a fun photoshoot on Wednesday this week at my home in Tai Po, in beautiful Tai Po Kau Park, and at the Pok Fu Lam Gardens terminus of Green Minibus 22 on Hong Kong Island! Here I am above left at home with my beautiful new book Storm Whale, launching in Melbourne on 1st June; at my favourite local park in Tai Po Kau (above right) and catching up with the Chinese Calendar Tales characters on Green Minibus 22 at the Pok Fu Lam Gardens terminus in the rain! Pandora, my toy panda, loved it!
A Happy Hangzhou Visit!
March 21, 2017 at 4:51 pm | Posted in Hangzhou Schools, HIS Hangzhou, School visits | Leave a commentTags: children's literacy, Chinese Calendar Tales, Parent workshops, The Tale of Chester Choi, The Tale of Pin Yin Panda, The Tale of Rickshaw Rooster
A big HELLO to all my new friends at Hangzhou International School! I had such a fantastic time there on Friday, with the wonderful Paul Wong, librarian and host-with-the-most who organised my transport and my day with great precision! I worked with all the primary years, with the Kindies and Pre-Ks meeting my hungry dragon Chester Choi, the Grade 1s and 2s meeting Pin Yin Panda, and the Grade 3s, 4s and 5s meeting my noisy Rickshaw Rooster, in three funny and fabulous story readings! Then it was time to meet the lovely parents of HIS, with my Creating Literate, Literary Kids in the Digital Age presentation – leaving them with a summary of recommended reading! It was great to meet you all, as well as Primary Principal Russell O’Neill. I feel I’ve made some firm new friends in Hangzhou :).
A warm return to NAIS Pudong!
March 21, 2017 at 4:21 pm | Posted in China photos, NAIS Pudong, Shanghai schools | Leave a commentTags: Chinese Calendar Tales, Chinese history, Chinese Zodiac, Poetry workshops, Story Readings, The Tale of Pin Yin Panda, The Tale of Rickshaw Rooster
My Shanghai adventure started with a full-on, fun day at Nord Anglia International School, Pudong, where I was expertly hosted by the lovely Kym McCullough, librarian and fellow-Aussie! Here we are in the beautiful lobby of this outstanding school! The Year 2s met my feisty Pin Yin Panda and revised the order of all the animals in the Chinese Zodiac; the Year 3s heard my fabulous new Chinese Calendar Tale, The Tale of Rickshaw Rooster, and learned some fascinating modern Chinese history, while the Year 4s and Year 5s both did my fun Poetry Workshop! We all had a ball!
Two fabulous days at the Discovery College Cultural Festival!
December 2, 2016 at 3:14 pm | Posted in Being an Author, Children's Chinese Zodiac Books, Chinese Calendar Tales, Chinese Zodiac, Monkey story, School visits, Story Readings, Uncategorized | Leave a commentTags: The Tale of a Dark Horse, The Tale of Chester Choi, The Tale of Ming Kee Monkey, The Tale of Pin Yin Panda, The Tale of Rodney Ram
A big THANK YOU to all my fabulous friends at Discovery College for inviting me for two wonderful days this week as part of their fantastic annual Cultural Festival! We had six funny and educational story readings from my Chinese Calendar Tales series, with the Grade Ones meeting Chester Choi, the Grade Twos laughing along with Pin Yin Panda, the Grade Threes having a frolic with Rodney Ram, the Grade Fours falling in love with my noble Dark Horse, and the Grade Fives and Sixes saying a fond farewell to Ming Kee Monkey in my last Ming Kee Monkey story readings for the Year of the Monkey! Huge thanks to my dear friend and talented teacher librarian host Leanne Sercombe for looking after me so well! See you all next year!
Thank you NACIS for a fabulous day!
November 9, 2016 at 12:21 pm | Posted in Chinese Calendar Tales, Shanghai schools, Story Readings, workshops | Leave a commentTags: NACIS Shanghai, The Tale of Ming Kee Monkey, The Tale of Pin Yin Panda
Big thanks to librarian Julie Zhu (pictured with me above top right), Head of Primary Charlotte Moore, and all the other wonderful staff and students of Nord Anglia Chinese International School in Shanghai, for a great day yesterday! I hugely enjoyed meeting you all, and introducing you to my Chinese Calendar Tales and my Dirty Stories! We had story readings of The Tale of Pin Yin Panda and The Tale of Ming Kee Monkey, then two fabulous workshops with Grade 5 and Grade 6, discovering How to Write a Riveting Story. And then I met lots of lovely students to sign their books – with over 400 books sold!! A very warm thank you to the staff who helped to make the visit such a success. I look forward to meeting you all again next year!
Four funny and fabulous sessions at BISS Puxi!
November 1, 2016 at 8:12 pm | Posted in Books about Chinese Zodiac, Chinese Calendar Tales, Shanghai schools, Uncategorized | Leave a commentTags: BISS Puxi, The Tale of a Dark Horse, The Tale of Chester Choi, The Tale of Pin Yin Panda
Warm thanks to my friend Liz Wood at BISS Puxi who hosted me today in four fun Chinese Calendar Tales sessions with the Grade Ones, Grade Twos, Grade Fours and Grade Fives! The Grade Ones met my hungry Chinese dragon in The Tale of Chester Choi; the Grade Twos learned all about the Legend of Lord Buddha’s Race and why pandas aren’t in the Chinese Zodiac when I read them The Tale of Pin Yin Panda; and the Grade Fours and Fives took an exciting trip along the Silk Road with The Tale of A Dark Horse! We all had a lot of fun, and learned some fantastic Chinese history and folklore along the way! See you all again soon!
A mischievous Monkey Monday at Glenealy School!
March 22, 2016 at 6:52 pm | Posted in Children's Chinese Zodiac Books, Chinese New Year, School visits | Leave a commentTags: Glenealy School, The Tale of Ming Kee Monkey, The Tale of Pin Yin Panda
That mischievous Monkey of mine cut a dash through Glenealy School yesterday in three funny and fabulous story reading sessions with the Grade 3s to Grade 6s, and then Pin Yin Panda decided to join the fun with the Grade 1s and 2s! We all had a lot of fun! Warm thanks to the lovely Trish Oliver, librarian, enthusiast and friend, for a memorable day!
A great day at Goodwood Primary School!
March 3, 2016 at 5:52 pm | Posted in Being an Author, Chinese Calendar Tales, Chinese New Year, Chinese Zodiac, Hobart, Uncategorized | Leave a commentTags: Chinese Calendar Tales, Chinese Zodiac, Story Readings, The Tale of a Dark Horse, The Tale of Pin Yin Panda
What a fantastic time I had with the fabulous kids of Goodwood Primary School today! The Year 1 to Year 3s met my feisty, vain Pin Yin Panda, then the Year 4 to Year 6s learned all about the origins of the Silk Road, the Emperor Han Wudi, and my beautiful, proud Dark Horse! It was great to meet you all, and to introduce you to my books about the Chinese Zodiac animals! I look forward to getting entries from lots of Goodwood kids in my Clever Competition! A big thank you to my beautiful cousin and literacy teacher Susie Eades, who invited me in to the school today! Here we are above with a backdrop of my beloved Mount Wellington, and you can see my soft toy Monkey Monkey hiding inside the yellow box, about to start sky-diving!
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