As a creative writing organisation, developing literacy-based workshops for young people is Story Factory’s bread and butter. But it’s not often that those workshops end up being designed and delivered by young people themselves – a challenge that 15 young people from Chifley College Shalvey Campus in Mount Druitt took on with gusto in the second half of 2024.
Driven by the desire to act as leaders and mentors in their community, these young people rose to the challenge of becoming storytelling experts. Their task: to lead the creation of two unique creative writing workshops for a group of young students from two local primary schools, Noumea Public and Shalvey Public, to help both with their literacy skills and their upcoming transition to high school.
Over the course of a school term, the students worked together under the guidance of a Story Factory educator to create workshops that reflected their own interests and experiences. From exploring superheroes and villains to creating contraptions to catch and filter their dreams, the young people put thought and passion into workshops they thought younger students would enjoy.
They then delivered these workshops themselves, teaching and mentoring local primary school students to develop their own pieces of creative writing.
“I really enjoyed working with younger students. It was easy to talk to them. I feel like they really paid attention to us, and it was nice to see how motivated they were to take part in the workshops. It was great to be able to give them those experiences and those memories,” said one participant.
The opportunity to act as mentors working with younger people also made the high school students feel respected and capable of making change in their communities.
“The students selected as mentors really came into their own in those last two sessions when it came to running the workshops. I was blown away by what great mentors they were, how friendly, warm and encouraging they were with the younger students, and the creativity with which they ran those workshops. I am very, very proud of each and every one of them,” said storyteller manager Nita van den Boogaard.
All of the writing completed throughout the course of this project is due to be published at the beginning of Term 2 this year in a new book, entitled Be Someone.
The young people involved in this project not only developed their writing knowledge and skills, but also built their leadership, confidence and sense of belonging, both in their classroom and their wider local community.
One young person said: “This program was a great learning experience for everyone, as well as a bonding experience. It brought everyone together. I think each lesson that we spent with Story Factory, it not only taught us how to write and why that’s important, but it brought us all together and let us explore our ideas and talents. The biggest thing I got out of this program was a changed mindset. At the start of the program, I didn’t really like it, but I kept coming, and my mindset changed – I started getting excited to come to the workshops and that’s the thing I’m most grateful to Story Factory for.”
This project was proudly funded by the NSW Government through their Youth Opportunities Funding initiative.
“I Am” by Lyrics, an excerpt from forthcoming publication Be Someone:
I am the scarf I wear in the early mornings to keep me warm / I am a sweet, sugary donut with a warm hot chocolate // I am my mother’s fragrance that fills me with love / I am the sounds of music that blesses my ears with the lyrics of loving // I am the warm breeze welcoming me with a smile / I am the dark of night revealing the bright stars above.
