Category: Subjects & themes
Stellarphant has won Picture Book of the Year in the inaugural Children’s Book Council of Australia Sun Project Shadowers’ Choice Awards. A week to the day from being named a CBCA Honour Book, the little elephant that could has rocketed into the top spot as voted by young readers. James Foley thanked the CBCA for […]
At the 2022 Great Big Book Club held at Success Library with Fremantle Press, historical fiction authors David Whish-Wilson, Sharron Booth and Portland Jones made the writing process sound equal parts challenging and rewarding. Moderator and author Brooke Dunnell kicked off the discussion by having each author introduce their book. Despite their vastly different plots […]
Fremantle Press is proud to announce that we’ve committed to becoming carbon neutral. Over the last few months, I’ve had the pleasure of working with Carbon Neutral on behalf of The Press to take the steps to becoming Green. Taking action to help the environment is one of the most important things humans can do […]
Co-curated with Get YA Words Out and edited by Seth Malacari, Fremantle Press is seeking stories from the LGBTIQA+ community for an anthology of YA literature to be published in 2023. This is a chance for around 20 new and emerging LGBTIQA+ writers, who have not yet had a full-length novel traditionally published, to share […]
Synchronicity – it’s a ‘thing’ for many authors. During the research and writing of each story in my historical ‘Light’ series I’ve experienced delightfully unnerving coincidences, making me wonder how books come about. Do I choose the story or does the story choose me? In the case of The Last Light Horse, perhaps it’s the […]
Citizen science is about scientists and volunteers working together on real-life, hands-on research. You and your students can contribute to some amazing projects and discoveries, all from the comfort of your computer. The Australian Citizen Science Project Finder lists more than 500 projects to get involved with. Here are seven of my favourite: PlatypusSPOT Okay, […]
Born in 1927, Gladys Milroy was taken to the Parkerville Orphanage at two years old and spent the next 14 years separated from her mother, Daisy. Gladys say, ‘I think the thing is about growing up in an orphanage is that you live in a story all the time because that’s the way you survive.’
Three Fremantle Press titles are in the running for major awards and another has been highly commended, plus the life’s work of a Fremantle Press writer has been remembered and recognised. Stellarphant is shortlisted for the 2022 Children’s Book Council of Australia’s Picture Book of the Year and the 2021 Aurealis Award for Best Children’s […]
Ethics of Representation panellist Rashida Murphy.
nlimited Futures: Visionary, Speculative Blak and Black Fiction is now available and we’re over the moon for all the contributors, editors, designers and publishers involved. A week past the release, we asked editors Rafeif Ismail and Ellen van Neerven to reflect on the journey thus far.
Kyle Hughes-Odgers captures children’s attention and gets their imagination racing in his new board book, Everything You Want to See. Spark kids creativity by asking them what they imagine an alien or monster looking like and getting them to create their own in these fun activity sheets.
Activity Sheet
'Create your own alien'Download activity sheet
The Light series by Dianne Wolfer and illustrated by Brian Simmonds includes The Last Light Horse, In the Lamplight, Light Horse Boy and Lighthouse Girl. These four books each look at some of the historical figures who played a part in World War I and are suitable for children to read as they learn about […]
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'The Light series activity sheets'Download activity sheet
Kyle Hughes-Odgers is the creator of a new board book Everything You Want to See. The artist and father takes us through how he gets his ideas and the collaborative process of translating them onto the page. Everything You Want to See started as an idea in March 2020 at the start of the pandemic. […]
The Perth Festival Writers Weekend provided West Australian readers and writers with the opportunity to hear from a diverse range of authors, creators and professionals in the industry. I attended the Fremantle Press event ‘The Business of Being a Writer’ on a lovely Friday afternoon at the Fremantle Arts Centre. With the ever-evolving nature of […]
Lion, is that you? by Moira Court is a gorgeous multi-layered new picture book that plays on myths about big cats stalking through the Australian bush. We asked Moira to share with us five books featuring big cats that she loved reading to her daughter. We think you’ll agree her choices, would make wonderful, purring […]
In The Last Light Horse we meet Sandy, one of the 136,000 horses that was sent to fight during the First World War, and the only horse that came home. Learn about Sandy and his experiences in this activity sheet designed to test children’s research skills. For more teaching activities, download the free teaching notes […]
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'The Last Light Horse Activity'Download activity sheet
Written by Kathryn Lefroy, Alex and the Alpacas Save the World, has it all a magical prophecy, talking alpacas and evil spirits. Alex must use all her brains, brawn and bravery in order to survive and save her family and friends. The Create Your Own Prophecy Maker activity sheet is a fun way to predict […]
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Chickensaurus is the fourth children’s graphic novel in the S.Tinker Inc. series. The series follows Sally Tinker and her brother as they navigate through all of Sally’s inventions. The Escape the Hedge Maze activity sheet is a great resource for improving cognitive skills, sharpening their memory, building focus and boosts their problem solving skills. For […]
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'Chickensaurus Maze Activity'Download activity sheet
Backyard Birds by Helen Milroy is a children’s picture book which celebrates the birds in our backyards. The Backyard Birds activity sheet is designed to creatively improve identification skills, fine motor skills and visual and written literacy. For more teaching activities, download the free teaching notes here.
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'Backyard Birds'Download activity sheet
In Beneath the Trees, Cam and Sophie are on an adventure to see a platypus in the wild. But what is a platypus? Author Cristy Burne is passionate about learning through doing and loves to inspire creativity, daring and resilience in her readers. This activity sheet incorporates biological science, English and visual art using research, […]
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At the fan convention, Maisie can’t wait to meet her favourite character – an amputee superhero! But being a queer, disabled teenager with chronic pain comes with challenges. Can Maisie make it through the day without falling over or falling in love? Author Jessica Walton and illustrator Aśka created Stars in Their Eyes to represent […]
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Where Do The Stars Go? is a children’s picture book about Possum who asks his friends where the stars go during the day. Katie Stewart wanted this book to stimulate curiosity and imaginative thinking while highlighting Australian flora and fauna. This activity is designed to encourage critical thinking, research skills, creativity, and written and visual […]
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'Where do the stars go? Activity'Download activity sheet
Goldfields Girl by Elaine Forrestal is a fictional account of the coming of age of fourteen-year-old Clara Saunders, a pioneer woman on the Coolgardie Goldfields in the 1890s. Elaine Forrestal wrote this book for children to learn about the history of the Western Australian gold rush from a younger person’s perspective. The Gold Search activity […]
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'Goldfields Girl Activity'Download activity sheet
Little Jiang is a children’s fiction novel inspired by Chinese folklore. Shirley Marr wrote this book to teach Chinese mythology and folklore and to encourage children to learn about other cultures. The Design Your Own Menu activity sheet encourages children to foster imagination, creativity and improve written and visual literacy. For more teaching activities, download […]
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'Little Jiang Activity'Download activity sheet