All Story Factory programs align closely with the syllabus to support teachers achieving their goals.
We work with schools in many ways:
- One-off workshops: bring a class to visit us for a two-hour blast of creative writing inspiration at our beautifully-designed creative writing centres in Redfern or Parramatta.
- Term Programs: book us to come to your school. We can work with you to deliver a writing program once a week for a term, or multiple terms.
- Residency Programs: once you’ve tried the above, apply to become a Story Factory Residency School. We’ll commit to working with your students for at least a year, working with multiple classes, to create a culture of writing throughout the school.
All programs, whether they run for two hours or a term, end with the publication of students’ writing in a handsomely bound book which they can take home to share with their family and community.
Enquire for a free writing workshop series via: info@storyfactory.org.au
One-off workshops
Robot Bird
- Stage 2 and 3
- In person
At Story Factory we’ve wrestled (in a totally gentle and bird friendly way of course) birds and writing into the mechanised, robotic 21st century. In this workshop students will begin by creating their own fantastical Robot Bird, a creature that represents some special aspect of their own personality, then write a story sharing the tale of their first meeting with the Robot Bird.
Freedom Machines
- Stage 3 and 4
- In person
What is freedom to you? It means different things to different people at different times. What if you could build your very own freedom machine? What would it look like? How would it move? Where would it take you? In this two hour workshop students will explore Kirli Saunders and Matt Ottley’s beautiful picture book, The Incredible Freedom Machines. They will use this as an inspiration to design their own freedom machine. Students will then write a 1 to 2 stanza narrative poem describing their machine and where they would use it to go to feel free.
An Ounce of Joy
- Stage 4 and 5
- In person
Looking for an opportunity to promote student wellbeing through positive, achievable and supported writing experiences? In this workshop students will ideate and reflect on the things in life that bring them joy and happiness. The mentor text and inspiration for their own short and personal piece of writing will be an Instapoem by acclaimed British-Indian writer and illustrator Nikita Gill This workshop is ideal for reluctant writers.
Mama’s Onions
- Stage 4 and 5
- In person
In this positive and affirming workshop, students will reflect on the people that act as guides and mentors in their lives, sharing practical skills and valued advice. They will discuss how these small moments of sharing can be metaphors for BIG life lessons. Inspired by the poem “Mama’s Onions” by Wiradjuri artist and poet, Jazz Money, students will then draft, edit and share their own poem celebrating moments of mentorship.
Reading To Write
- Stage 6
- In person
Looking for practical and engaging ways to enrich your students’ understanding of the relationship between reading and writing? In this two hour workshop students will be exposed to diverse and appealing mentor texts (including contemporary poetry, multimodal and digital texts) and engage in short and achievable activities that build their knowledge of imaginative, discursive and informative writing. This workshop is designed to engage reluctant writers and readers.
Craft of Writing (Discursive Focus)
- Stage 6
- In person
Looking for a way to inspire and motivate your Year 12 students as they tackle Module C? In this two hour workshop students will engage with a rich mentor short story by African-American author Alice Walker and draft short and achievable responses that accumulate to build an HSC style response for Module C. Students will actively engage in the craft of writing as they learn about and apply the form and language features that empower them to create their own imaginative piece with all elements of narrative within the space an exam response. They will respond to unseen stimuli and develop effective strategies for reflecting on their own writing.
Craft of Writing (Imaginative Focus)
- Stage 6
- In person
Looking for a way to inspire and motivate your Year 12 students as they tackle Module C? In this two hour workshop students will engage with a rich mentor text by a contemporary Afro-American music writer and draft short and achievable responses that accumulate to build a personal and HSC style response for Module C. Students will actively engage in the craft of writing as they learn about and apply the form and language features that empower them to create hybrid pieces of personal writing that utilise elements of informative, persuasive, imaginative and discursive writing. They will respond to unseen stimuli, ideate and reflect on the significance of the past calendar year for them and develop effective strategies for reflecting on their own writing.
Term-long workshops
Art Alive
- Stage 2
- Term 3 (term-long)
- In person
In this workshop students will explore paintings and sculptures by contemporary Australian artists including Ramesh Mario Nithiyendran, Thea Anamara Perkins and Kaylene Whiskey. These personal, engaging and quirky artworks will inspire students to write poetry, first person narratives and informative writing. Students use close viewing strategies, drama and discussion to describe the colour, shape and movement in these artworks. As they reimagine the stories and characters behind these artworks, students will expand their vocabulary and bring art to life.
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Meet My Monster
- Stage 2
- Term 3 (term-long)
- In person
There’s rustling under your bed, a noise coming from the cupboard, a shadow behind the doorway… Don’t worry, it’s just your monster! In this workshop series, students will reflect on the emotions and personality traits that are usually deemed negative (for example laziness, sadness, worrying, grumpiness) but are also just a normal part of being human. They’ll design monster characters that are inspired by these emotions before writing multiple chapters in a journey narrative. Students will imagine the monster is in-fact a lost, scared and homesick monster, who has accidentally ended up at their house, and needs their help to be returned to its home! On the way, their monster keeps acting up (dragging their feet, having a tantrum, getting panicky) and students write about ways they help the monster overcome these pesky feelings and become a little more resilient.
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Art Attack
- Stage 3
- Term 3 (term-long)
- In person
In this eight-week workshop series, students will engage with visual artworks by contemporary makers – including Australian and First Nations artists – from around the world. They will be challenged and excited by contemporary art practice and experiment with how such representations can create opportunities and provide strategies for writing that is personal, inventive and engaging. Students will create a portfolio of varied pieces of writing may include short narratives, poetry and multimodal texts that are inspired by exceptional artists of the twenty first century.
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Video Vortex
- Stage 3
- Term 3 (term-long)
- In person
In this workshop series students imagine they have travelled through a vortex and are now trapped inside the world of a retro video game called (you guessed it!) Video Vortex. They create their own avatar who progresses through the strange and different levels of this game (think Creepy Castle, Digital Desert and an Enchanted Forest) as they overcome obstacles to “level up” and return home. Students develop skills in sensory writing and focus on world building and narrative structure as they create short episodes/chapters that describe their experiences moving through Video Vortex.
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It’s our Turn: I Talk, It Echoes
- Stage 4
- Term 3 (term-long)
- In person
In this term long series participants will craft the character of an “alien buddy” who seeks to share students’ expert knowledge of their local communities. The catch is that these recently arrived aliens, known as the Caesura, only communicate through poetry. Students will describe and transform their lived experience through different poetic forms including riddle haikus, list poems, landays, kennings and odes. Students craft and share their expert opinions as they explore themes of identity, culture, and community.
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My Life On A Plate
- Stage 4
- Term 3 (term-long)
- In person
You are what you eat! In this workshop series students develop and share their personal voice as they build their skills as writers of memoir, short narratives and poetry. Over eight workshops students engage with a delicious and diverse range of mentor texts from around the world and create a portfolio that celebrates their love of food, their life experience and identity.
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Sonderful
- Stage 5
- Term 3 (term-long)
- In person
SONDER: (noun) The realisation that each random passer-by is the main character in their own story, living a life just as complex and vivid as your own.
Sonder is the underlying concept of this series of workshops in which students will create a unique central character of their own, going beyond mere description and drilling down into their motivations, vulnerabilities, idiosyncrasies and relationships. They will play with narrative voice, description, setting and dialogue to create complex and vivid scenarios in which their unique character interacts with their environment and others. You and your students will find this program “character-building” – Literarily!
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