In support of The National Year of Reading, the Penrith, Mt Druitt, Blacktown & Windsor Teacher Librarian Professional Learning Group is proudly hosting an exciting Literary Conference. This major professional development event will be held on Thursday 8th November Term 4, at Penrith Panthers.

The Reading Beyond 2012! Conference, which is a celebration and exploration of Australian literature, aims to:

· expose delegates to a wide range of well-known and award-winning authors

· provide delegates with practical and successful teaching strategies that will extend students’ writing skills

· provide suggestions for promoting students’ continued interest in reading, particularly in the transition to high school

· provide discussion about the current trends in reading and book publication.

Please see the program below, which provides full details of the day.

8 am Registration

8.45am Welcome & General Business

9am Judith Ridge – speaker & MC for day. CS Lewis said, “We read to know we are not alone “. Reading is not just a solitary pursuit, but has become a shared experience. How to encourage a reading community and introduce Westwords Bookclub.

9.45 am Deb Abela – The write stuff! An activity to get your kids writing their own stories

10.30 am Morning Tea

11.15 am Louise Park– Boys who love computer games and not reading, girls who like reading but want more than fairies and ponies. Engaging readers on their own terms

12pm Paul Collins – Audience participation on creating a fantasy novel outline from a 12-point structure

1pm Lunch

2pm Susanne Gervay – Australia is an immigrant nation in an immigrant world- presenting complex yet accessible visual literacy and identity through the book Ships in the field, a moving exploration of the migrant experience

2.45pm Panel Discussion (topic to be finalised): Kim Miller, Meredith Costain and Sophie Masson

3.30 pm Thanks, Evaluation & Lucky Badge Prizes

4pm Conference concludes.

Online registration through MyPL@Edu is now available. The course title is PMBW Term 4 Reading Beyond 2012! Conference and the course number is NR03812 (note 0 is zero). Please register as soon as possible, as numbers are strictly limited. When completing the online registration, please select the payment option Cheque, as there is NO DIRECT DEBIT available. Your initial registration will be listed as Tentative. Once your payment of $120 has been received, your enrolment status will be changed to Confirmed. Cheques, together with details of your name and school, should be posted to:

Attention: Lee Arundel, c/- Blacktown South Pubic School, 183 Flushcombe Road, Blacktown 2148

Please make the $120 cheque payable to Blacktown South Public School. There is NO GST involved in this registration payment. If you have any special dietary requirements, please contact teacher librarian Jenny Scheffers at Caddies Creek Public School ph: 8814-5916.

The Committee looks forward to sharing a dynamic day of Australian literature, professional learning and networking!

Jenny Scheffers
Chairperson
Penrith, Mt Druitt, Blacktown and Windsor Teacher Librarian Professional Learning Group

Instructions for registering
1. At our DET homepage click on the ‘My applications’ tab.
2. Click on the ‘M’
3. Scroll down & select ‘My PL@Edu’
4. Select ‘Search/Enrol for Event’
5. In the ‘Refine your search’ section locate the ‘course code’ box and type in NR03812 (0 is a numeral)
6. Scroll down & select ‘search’
7. You should be able to click on the course title, scroll down to ‘Event Enrol’ to register.
8. Don’t forget to select ‘cheque’ as your payment option.