House of Assembly Fifty-First Parliament, Second Session (51-2) 51 2 Parliament of South Australia House of Assembly published Question Time Children's Literature CHILDREN'S LITERATURE Ms CICCARELLO House of Assembly Norwood CHILDREN'S LITERATURE Ms CICCARELLO (Norwood) (14:58): My question is to the Minister Assisting in Early Childhood Development. Will the minister advise the house of the contribution of Mem Fox, the author of Possum Magic, in promoting the importance of literature and reading in the early years? The Hon. J.M. RANKINE House of Assembly Wright Minister for State/Local Government Relations Minister for the Status of Women Minister for Volunteers Minister for Consumer Affairs Minister Assisting in Early Childhood Development CHILDREN'S LITERATURE The Hon. J.M. RANKINE (Wright—Minister for State/Local Government Relations, Minister for the Status of Women, Minister for Volunteers, Minister for Consumer Affairs, Minister Assisting in Early Childhood Development) (14:58): This week is a particularly significant week for children's literature. Today we celebrate International Children's Book Day and it is Hans Christian Andersen's birthday, and yesterday was the 25^th anniversary of Possum Magic. The member for Norwood mentioned to me yesterday that, when she started work at the State Library, one of the first children's book she read was Possum Magic. So, that was 25 years ago. Mem Fox is arguably Australia's most highly regarded children's picture book author and Possum Magic is the best selling children's book published in Australia, with sales reaching well over the three million mark and still selling. Impressively, Mem has a book Time for Bed on Oprah's list of the 20 best children's books of all time. Mr Koutsantonis interjecting: The Hon. J.M. RANKINE House of Assembly The Hon. J.M. RANKINE: She made Oprah's list. She has written about 30 picture books for children and five non-fiction books for adults, including Reading magic: how your child can learn to read before school—and other read-aloud miracles, which is aimed at parents of very young children. This focus is very much supported by the Rann government. This government is very passionate about the importance of early years literacy, and it has a number of valuable and effective programs in place to support these endeavours. The Premier's Reading Challenge (which continues to grow) saw over 100,000 students complete the challenge in 2007 by reading 12 books. Mem Fox has also played a crucial role in promoting the Premier's Reading Challenge. She has been an ambassador for the challenge since 2004, spreading the word whenever and wherever she can about the importance that books and stories play in the development of our young children. Further evidence of this government's commitment to literature in the early years has been through the Rann government's million dollar book program, with more than 83,000 books, including Mem's books, being distributed across the state to over 700 children's centres and kindergartens. This program complements the $35 million early year literacy program in our schools. The government believes that a strong beginning for children in their early years lays the foundation for their learning ability, employment prospects, whether or not they might enter the justice system and their long-term health outcomes. It is an economic and social issue. On Friday, along with my colleague the member for Chaffey, I will be opening the Renmark Children's Centre, which is the first to be established in a regional city through the state government's $28.8 million program to develop 20 children's centres across South Australia by 2010. Renmark Children's Centre, like other children's centres currently operating at Keithcot Farm, Hackham West, Elizabeth Grove, Angle Vale and Café Enfield, will provide a range of services focused on the needs of children and their families. Like Mem Fox, we are committed to getting out the message that reading books with young children in a caring environment contributes to not only their intellectual development but also their social and emotional development. Today I offer our sincere best wishes to Mem on another important milestone in her career