AustLit
History
Established in 2008 and first awarded in 2012-2013, the Australian Children's Laureate is an honour awarded by the Australian Children’s Laureate Foundation.
The Laureate is appointed for a term of two years, and selected from recommendations made by 24 organisations, including: Australian Society of Authors, Australian Booksellers Association, Australian Library and Information Association, Australian Association for the Teaching of English, Australian Literacy Educators Association, Book Links QLD, Centre for Youth Literature, State Library Victoria, Children’s Book Council of Australia, Copyright Agency, Early Childhood Teachers Association, First Nations Australia Writers Network, IBBY Australia, National Library of Australia, Libraries ACT, State Library New South Wales, State Library South Australia, State Library Western Australia, State Library Queensland, Libraries Tasmania, Northern Territory Library, Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators, Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators, WA, The Literature Centre, Fremantle, and WestWords, NSW.
Notes
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The establishment of an Australian Children's Laureate to promote the importance of reading is based on the successful implementation of this idea in the UK and US.
The Children's Laureate will be an Australian author and/or illustrator of children's and/or youth literature who is making a significant contribution to the children's literature canon of this country. The Laureate will be appointed on a biennial basis and will promote the transformational power of reading, creativity and story in the lives of young Australians, while acting as a national and international ambassador for Australian children's literature.The Children's Laureate is chosen by the Australian Children's Literature Alliance (ACLA).
For further information, see the ACLA website, http://www.childrenslaureate.org.au/
Latest Winners / Recipients
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Year: 2024-2025
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Year: 2022-2023
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Year: 2020-2021
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Year: 2018-2019
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Year: 2016-2017
Leigh Hobbs Hobbs's theme for his incumbency as Australian Children's Laureate: 'to champion creative opportunities for children, and to highlight the essential role libraries play in nurturing our creative lives'.
Works About this Award
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How Can We Get Children to Read? 2024 single work column
— Appears in: The Weekend Australian , 24 February 2024; (p. 17) -
Australia's Highest-selling Female Author Sally Rippin Named New Children's Laureate, and She Has an Important Mission 2024 single work column
— Appears in: ABC News [Online] , February 2024; -
Billie B Brown’s Creator Appointed Australian Children’s Laureate 2024 single work column
— Appears in: Thoughts from an Idle Hour 2015-; 'Australia’s 2024–2025 Children’s Laureate, Sally Rippin, shares some distinguishing characteristics with her book series character, Billie B Brown: honesty, friendship and empathy.' -
Imagine a Story : Gabrielle Wang, Australian Children's Laureate 2022-23 : An Interview with Robyn Sheahan-Bright Robyn Sheahan-Bright (interviewer), 2022 single work interview
— Appears in: Magpies : Talking About Books for Children , March vol. 37 no. 1 2022; (p. 4-7) 'Gabrielle Wang is an extremely talented artist, and the gifted writer of over twenty acclaimed books. On 8 March 2022 she was announced as the seventh Australian Children's Laureate. In order to introduce her to you, I asked her some questions about her background.' (Introduction) -
Power of Storytelling 2022 single work column
— Appears in: The Weekend Australian , 26 March 2022; (p. 22)'The Australian Children’s Laureate sees reading as a vehicle to tolerance, writes Joy Lawn'