Some cats are house cats.
Some are apartment cats.
But Tinka is a truck cat.
Tinka lives everywhere.
The Truck Cat by Australian author Deborah Frenkel was chosen as this year’s National Simultaneous Storytime book and is beautifully illustrated by Danny Snell.
In the 17th year of celebrating the event in the High Country, the Swifts Creek P-12 School year seven students held up the wonderful tradition of producing an entertaining play to perform to local schools, kindergartens and families across the High Country.
Delivering the story with the clever use of props and costumes, the older students delighted the younger ones in a wonderful story to inspire kindness and compassion everywhere.
Many joined in listening to the story about humans and cats, immigration and identity and homes lost and found. It is a story about belonging and family, with Tinka the truck cat and his human Yacoub, travelling the roads wide and narrow, near and distant. No matter where they travelled, home always felt very far away for both of them.
Yacoub drives his truck to make a living through different landscapes along the way, but is always longing for connection.
When Tinker and Yacoub are unexpectedly separated, they are determined to find their way back to each other. In doing so they find contentment and a sense of belonging in their new home with friend Mari.
Omeo Primary School, Omeo High Country United Early Learning Centre, Swifts Creek P-12 School, Swifts Creek Kindergarten and families took the opportunity to head along and enjoy the story and it was great to see such a wide range of ages involved, from babies and toddlers, kindergarten students and prep through to older students, as well as parents.
Participating families were given a copy of The Truck Cat to take away and re-live the story in their own home.
Schools as Hubs coordinators Rowena Turner and Allison McLeod acknowledged the efforts of the year seven class who worked well as a team to produce the play to deliver to their younger peers.
“They were engaged and used skill and imagination to make colourful props and costumes, which looked amazing on the day,” they said.
“A huge thank you to the year sevens and their teacher Gavin Fraser for all of their hard work and effort in helping us celebrate our 17th successful National Simultaneous
Story time.
“Literacy is such an important foundation for life and learning, and events like National Simultaneous Storytime are all part of that development for children. Getting the community and families involved is a great way to share enthusiasm for reading and to make it a special and enjoyable activity.
“We hope that activities such as these will translate into more and more children developing a lifelong love of reading.
“National Simultaneous Story time is one of the many events that Schools as Hubs, which is funded by Communities for Children Uniting, supports throughout the year.”
