Docklands’ children to share their stories

Docklands’ children to share their stories

Forget simply reading a book, a new project at the Library at the Dock will allow local children to create their very own storybooks.

The Docklands Children’s Story Trail project is an initiative of Kids’ Own Publishing and will see kids create their own eight-page books, which will then be placed around Docklands for others to enjoy.

Kids’ Own Publishing executive director Victoria Ryle said the aim of the project was to engage with the growing population of families in Docklands.

“The aim of the project is fundamentally to support children and families to have the opportunities to create and to connect with a sense of place,” she said.

“The idea of publishing is to get your message out there. By publishing these books we’re bringing the message of the children and families living in Docklands out to the broader Docklands community.”

The project includes the development of a custom-built app called WePublish, which is used to create the books, alongside traditional handmade art techniques.

According to Ms Ryle, books published through the project will give an insight into the world of a child.

“Something as simple as a saying to a child, ‘this is your book, it can be about anything you like’, is really powerful,” she said.

The Docklands Children’s Story Trail project was made possible through a $20,000 City of Melbourne Community Grant and Kids’ Own publishing has partnered with council and Playgroups Victoria for the project.

Councillor Richard Foster said the reading trail project was an opportunity for children and families to come together and build a sense of community.

“It utilises state-of-the-art technology to enable a book creating and publishing hub that can be accessed at any time,” he said.

“City of Melbourne library staff are working in collaboration with Kid’s Own Publishing to enable the Docklands community to create their own stories, in their own voices.”

Kids’ Own Publishing will be running two sessions over the upcoming school holidays.

The first session, on Friday, September 26 from 10.30am until 2pm, is suited for children aged three to eight.

Children are invited to drop-in and create a book under the guidance of a Kids’ Own Publishing artist.

The second school holiday session is on October 3 from 10.30am to 12 noon and is suitable for kids aged between four and seven and bookings are required.

Kids will use an exhibition on the history of Docklands currently on display at the library to inspire their own stories.

Books created at both sessions can be printed out, emailed and will be distributed around Docklands as part of the Docklands Children’s Story Trail.

Kids’ Own Publishing is also running make-a-book workshops for local playgroups throughout October and November, which can be booked through Eventbrite, under the title “Docklands Children’s Story Trail – Make-A-Book Workshops”.

For more information visit http://www.kidsownpublishing.com

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