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Monday, 5 May 2008
Hi Everyone,

Welcome to the Junior Judges Project for 2008. Registration is now open!

Last year was a huge success with over 52,000 students from around Australia participating in our very first Junior Judges' Project (JJP).

Our new theme for this year is 'Fuel your Mind', with artwork generously provided by award winning illustrator, Shaun Tan. Junior Judges' is going to be even bigger and better with more content, a new improved voting system and thanks to our sponsors, Faber-Castell, competitions with lots of fabulous prizes.

To participate in the JJP you will need to register your school then create an account in order to Log In. Last year's passwords will not work so registration will be required by all schools and project Coordinators/Teacher/Librarians.

There's a lot happening this year so keep track of events with the Junior Judges' calendar

If you have any comments or suggestions we'd love to hear from you.

Happy Reading...

Tina Price
Project Coordinator



Tuesday, 6 May 2008
Hi Junior Judges

Have you registered yet? Lots of schools already have!

We're into our second month now and registrations are coming in every day from schools all over Australia.

There's a lot happening this year, so make sure you spend a bit of time to browse around the site. We've added lots of new Teacher Resources to help you get started with your own Junior Judges projects and competitions. To keep track of events, check out the Junior Judges' calendar

As of the beginning of this month, the Faber-Castell Fun Stuff competitions are open for entries. We think you'll find them lots of fun and there are some great prizes on offer. You must be Registered and create Class Groups in order to participate.

Also new for this year is the Junior Judges Forum. It's a great place to share your thoughts and ideas with others on any aspect of the Junior Judges' Project including the web site, this year's CBCA Short List books or just reading in general.

Happy Reading

Tina Price
Project Coordinator
Friday, 6 June 2008
Hi Junior Judges

How are you enjoying the winter weather? (This applies to all of you in the southern states)

It's a great opportunity to find a nice warm comfortable spot and get reading. You could also get the Faber pencils out and do a drawing of your favourite Short Listed book cover.

Have you thought of a name for the Critter? We've had some really interesting suggestions so far. You can suggest as many different names as you like. Don't leave it to long as entries close at the end of this month. Just remeber that you have to be registered to access the competitions as well as the other resources.

Teachers, help us spread the word. Tell your colleagues at other schools about the Junior Judges' Project. Or if you have any suggestions for content on the site, then let us know.

The forum also provides a place for both students and educators to discuss all aspects of children's literature and the CBCA Short List books.

Tip of the Day: If a menu items is not working, either grey or black and can't be clicked, then that page is restricted to registered users. The links will be active when you log on

Happy Reading

Tina Price
Project Coordinator
Friday, 27 June 2008
Hi Junior Judges

As mid year school holidays start in most parts of the country, it's time to get ready for the next phase of Junior Judges.

Voting will be available soon and the ‘Name the Critter’ suggestions will closed off, then reviewed and shortlisted. Then you’ll have a chance to vote for your favourite.

If you're hanging around and heading to warmer parts, there's a great opportunity to relax with a good book.

We've had an amazing response to the 'Name the Critter' competition. Of course we don't want to pre-empt the decision of the judges, but here are some of the names that have been suggested.
Readsaurus
Reading Dragon
Crittersaurus Rex
Libris Thingus
Yackatoon
Magic Book Dragon
Shaun's Crazy Critter
Cosmo Bookosaurus
Kollamoolitoomarellipawkyrollo (Rollo)
Kee Preading
We sent out an email newsletter a few weeks ago and got an immediate response resulting in lots of registrations. But there's still room for more. Teachers, help us spread the word. Tell your colleagues at other schools about the Junior Judges' Project. Or if you have any suggestions for content on the site, then let us know.

The forum also provides a place for both students and educators to discuss all aspects of children's literature and the CBCA Short List books.

Tip of the Day: The 'Class Group' is the entity that votes. A Class Group can be a group of students or an individual. Once you've created the Class Groups, each can have a password so they can log on separately.

Happy Reading

Tina Price
Project Coordinator

Friday, 4 July 2008

Hi Junior Judges

How are the holidays going? Are you doing lots of reading?

The Junior Judges' Project is moving into the next phase with Voting now open and the 'Name the Critter' voting also open.

Congratulations to everyone who suggested a name for the Critter. You came up with some truly amazing names. We've selected only three for the shortlist and now you get a chance to vote for your favourite. There are some great Faber-Castell prizes on offer.

You should be well on your way to reading and discussing the Book of the Year Shortlisted books. When you're ready you can vote for your favourite book in each category.

If you want to discuss any of the books or express a view on children's literature, then why not use the Junior Judges Forum.

Good luck, and happy reading.

Tian Price
Project Coordinator


Monday, 21 July 2008
Hi Junior Judges

Now that we're back from school holidays it's time to get your Class Groups organised, discuss the books and cast your votes.

Voting closes on the 14th of August. Don't wait till the last minute though. We wouldn't want you to miss the deadline. You can vote more that once but any previous votes will be overwritten.

Congratulations to everyone who suggested a name for the Critter. You came up with some truly amazing names. We've selected only five for the shortlist and now you get a chance to vote for your favourite. There are some great Faber-Castell prizes on offer.

Make sure you have at least one Class Group. The count is shown at the top right of the home page. A Class Group is the entity that votes. It's the way you organise your students. The Group can be the entire school or just one person. You can optionally assign a password to a Class Group which will allow the Group to log on using their Class Group ID and password.

We'd love to get your feedback. What do you like, or dislike about the Junior Judges' Project. Do you have any suggestions on content, competitions or resources. You can use the feedback page or the Forum.

Keep reading

Tina Price
Project Coordinator
Tuesday, 5 August 2008

Hi Junior Judges

Do you believe it's August already! So by now you should have read, discussed and decided on your favourite books.

Voting closes on the 14th of August at 8pm AEST. Don't wait till the last minute though. We wouldn't want you to miss the deadline. You can vote more that once but any previous votes will be overwritten.

Congratulations to everyone who suggested a name for the Critter and then cast a vote for their favourite from the shortlist. Voting has closed and the winner will be announced very soon.

You'll now see a button at the top right of this news section. Click on the button to take you straight to the voting pages, but you must be logged in first. If you've already voted, you can review your votes

We'd love to get your feedback. What do you like, or dislike about the Junior Judges' Project. Do you have any suggestions on content, competitions or resources. You can use the feedback page or the Forum.

Keep reading... and don't forget to cast you votes with plenty of time to spare.

Tina Price
Project Coordinator


Monday, 18 August 2008

2008 Voting has now closed.

Congratulations to the 30,423 Junior Judges participants and teachers.

As a record of your involvement in the Project, you can download the Participants Certificate in pdf format.

Here are the Results

Book of the Year Awards - Your Votes
Design your own Book Cover
Name the Book Week Critter

Things To Do

Look up the official results of the CBCA Book of the Year Awards on the CBCA web site and compare the results with the Junior Judges' choices.

Thankyou to our sponsors, Faber-Castell and the Australian Federal Government.

We'd love to get your feedback. Do you have any suggestions for content, competitions or resources? You can use the Feedback form or share your thoughts with others on our Forum.

As always... keep reading.

Tina Price
Project Coordinator