National Literacy and Numeracy Week 2009 >

Key National events

To help celebrate National Literacy and Numeracy Week (NLNW), there will be a number of key national events as well as local activities held in each state and territory.

Key national events occurring during NLNW from 31 August - 6 September include:

Reach for the Stars, a numeracy event for primary and middle school students;
National Reading Day, a literacy event bringing the nation together to enjoy reading;
Dorothea Mackellar Poetry Awards, a national poetry competition for school-aged students.

Reach for the Stars

Reach for the Stars is a national innovative numeracy activity that has been part of National Literacy and Numeracy Week since 2003. The activity aimed at pre-school to junior secondary school students (Kindergarten to Year 9) is developed and managed by the Australian Association of Mathematics Teachers (AAMT), with funding from the Australian Government.

The activity provides an opportunity for students across Australia to get involved in a single event with a numeracy focus.

The Reach for the Stars website is currently under development. This website will be available shortly.

National Reading Day

National Reading Day is a mass participation literacy event for primary and secondary school students. This national activity encourages schools to select their own texts and to become involved in activities where they share their reading.

The activity is developed and managed by the Australian Association for the Teaching of English (AATE) and the Australian Literacy Educators' Association (ALEA) with funding from the Australian Government.

The National Reading Day website is currently under development. This website will be available shortly.

Dorothea Mackellar Poetry Awards

The Dorothea Mackellar Poetry Awards is the largest national poetry competition for school-aged students in Australia. It is managed by the Dorothea Mackellar Memorial Society, based in Gunnedah, north-west NSW and was initiated in honour of Dorothea Mackellar and her famous poem My Country. The Awards attract up to 15,000 entries from more than 800 schools across the country. In 2008, there are more than $5,000 worth of cash and prizes to be won for students and schools.

The Awards provide an opportunity for students to discover poetry, express themselves creatively and improve literacy skills.

The winners of the awards are announced at a National Presentation Ceremony in Gunnedah during National Literacy and Numeracy Week.

To find out more about these national events and other opportunities, visit the National Literacy and Numeracy Week national website.

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