Enviro writers champion cause

APPLAUSE thundered through the Sebastopol Library’s meeting room earlier this week as young creatives were ushered to receive their prizes in BREAZE’s annual Children’s Writing Competition.

Held for the past six years in celebration of World Environment Day, this year saw 127 entries from grade 5 and 6 students from six Ballarat schools.

Tying into the Environment Day theme of solutions to plastic pollution, BREAZE president Mary Debrett said the contest is about bringing eco-friendly awareness to students.

“It’s to help teachers in primary schools to address issues relating to the environment,” she said. “It’s a nice opportunity for teachers to have a conversation with students.

“We put a question in the competition which is ‘What I can do to help the environment?’ so we encouraged children to take a personal perspective in their response.

“In judging, we give 65 per cent to the idea and people making connections. We give 25 per cent to writing style and 15 per cent for grammar.”

Primary schools which took part included Newington, Pleasant Street, St Alipius Parish, St Francis Xavier, Our Lady Help of Christians, and Emmaus.

Entries ranged from poems to short stories to dot-points to essays.

The event was officiated by City of Ballarat mayor Cr Des Hudson with five students crowned school winners and 17 others receiving honourable mentions.

Our Lady Help of Christians student Riley Baker won top prize, and said he was ecstatic to receive the nod.

“It was exciting to win,” he said. “I definitely feel like I learned more about the environment and how all the plastic pollution is killing wildlife in the ocean.”