Story Factory to 'stretch kids' imaginations'

23 Jul 2012, 12:24 pm   -   Source: Michelle Hanna, SBS
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Children in Sydney now have something unique to Australia: a creative writing centre to stretch their imaginations.

Children in Sydney now have something unique to Australia: a creative writing centre to stretch their imaginations.

Based on an idea by bestselling novelist and McSweeney's magazine founder Dave Eggers, the concept has spread rapidly across the United States and Britain.

The Australian interpretation is all a bit 'out of this world’ with the grand opening of the 'Martian Embassy' at the Sydney Story Factory in Redfern.

The idea - a place to ignite the creative imagination with one-on-one or small group tutoring by volunteer writers and educators.

The Story Factory is open to all children, with a focus on kids from Indigenous and non-English speaking backgrounds.

The free service was founded by two former Fairfax journalists.

“If you can take your own creativity and if you can read, it's the mother of all inventions,” says Co-Founder Tim Dick. “You've got to be literate, and you've got to be able to think of things on your own. And if you can do that, you'll be fine in whatever industry you want to go into.”

The Martian Embassy shopfront is an enticing entrance for children

“It immediately tells the kids that they have license to do weird things,” says co-founder Catherine Keenan . “They have license to be creative and to break the rules and to do things that they might otherwise have been told they can't do. So, it’s kind of leading by example, it's showing, 'Well, we tried this, what do you want to do?'

The Martian Embassy Gift Shop is full of items that will stretch the imagination of children, such as invasion sunscreen at factor 5000, crop circle starter kits and tins of gravity.

At the conclusion of their creative writing experience, the children are given an honorary Martian Passport.

The organisers are hoping that in this playful inter-galactic journey, ‘The End’ of the children’s story is not necessarily the end, but the beginning of possibilities they have not yet imagined.

Story Factory , Michelle Hanna SBS

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Your Comments

Ms

Grace McCaughey - from Castlemaine, 10 months ago

How wonderful and what a terrific initiative from ex Fairfax journalitst. Children have so much hidden talent and we need it now more than ever. A wonderful way to keep chuildren excited about life and away from souls destroying activities like accompanying their dull parents to pokie venues or spending far too much time before screens of all kinds. Congratulations!

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