Details
The Threatened Species Art and Writing Competition (TSAC) is a regional environmental education program, involving Campbelltown City Council, Camden Council and Wollondilly Shire Council. The competition celebrates Biodiversity Month (September) and Threatened Species Day on Wednesday 7 September.
The Macarthur region, our backyard, is home to a wide diversity of native plants and animals. Many of these plants and animals are affected by a range of impacts such as habitat loss, competition and predation from non-native species and foreign diseases. There are a range of species occurring within the local region that are at risk of extinction and have been listed as ‘Threatened Species.’
The competition targets all stages of primary school and is open to young people aged 5-12. TSAC encourages students to learn about a local threatened species and represent it in an artwork or creative writing piece. Winners will have the opportunity to be featured in the video to describe their artwork and inspiration.
The competition is now in its 16th year and through its cross-curricular nature has been successfully engaging primary schools in Geography, Science, Visual Arts and English throughout the Macarthur region.
How to enter
Whether you’re creating an artwork or writing piece, entering is easy.
Simply complete the online entry form and attach your artwork or creative writing piece.
Entering an artwork
All you need to do is ensure your entry:
- Is of a threatened plant or animal species(PDF, 3MB) that occurs in the Macarthur region and on any sized paper
- Be as creative as possible – you could use pens, pencils, crayons, or even stick things on, like leaves, twigs or cellophane
- Includes your name, age and contact details on the artwork.
If you are entering as a school, please ensure that each student’s name, age, school and class is identified on the artwork.
Entering a creative writing story
We want you to write a short story that celebrates the beauty and uniqueness of our threatened plants and animals(PDF, 3MB) .
You can get as creative as you like, however the story must include facts about one or more of the following:
- The plant or animal’s habitat
- The plant or animal’s diet
- The threats to the plant or animal
- How you think we can save the plant or animal from extinction.
Entry is open to writers aged 8 to 12 years. All you need to do is:
- Write a creative story that could be read to someone aged 5-6 years old
- Make sure your story is no longer than one A4 page.
Waste to Art
Waste and plastic pollution has an enormous impact on the local and global environment.
The Waste to Art category:
- Aims to get students to consider how we might be contributing to the problem, and what we can do to move to a more sustainable future.
- Presents a reminder to practice the ‘5 Rs’ of waste minimisation: Refuse, Reduce, Repair, Reuse, and Recycle.
If your artwork qualifies for the Waste to Art category, remember to tick/check this box when submitting your entry.
For artwork inspiration and information about some of our local threatened species, and threats to their survival, check out our page on Biodiversity in Campbelltown or read our Threatened Species Fact Sheet.(PDF, 3MB)
Teacher resources
We have created a teachers resource kit(PDF, 5MB) to assist with the delivering the competition in classrooms.
You can promote the competition in your school community with our Threatened Species Art and Writing Competition Poster,Hard Copy Entry Form(PDF, 1MB) and Flyer(PDF, 390KB) .
To learn more about our threatened plants and animals and what threats they face read our Threatened Species List.(PDF, 3MB)
Submit your entry
Entries open Monday 10 July 2023
Entries close Friday 4 August 2023.
Judging of creative writing entries
Each year we receive some inspiring reasons as to why students are inspired to create an artwork of their chosen species, and we want to capture these wonderful written words in the form of creative short stories.
To determine the best competition entries, Council’s library and environment staff have developed creative writing criteria and will be judging the stories against this.
Creative writing criteria:
- 50% for three or more accurate facts about your chosen species
- 20% creativity
- 10% grammar
- 10% structure. Beginning-middle-end.
Prizes
Artwork entries will be judged across the following age groups:
5-6 years, 7-9 years, 10-12 years.
- 1st Prize: Threatened Species Eco pack valued up to $120
- 2nd Prize: Threatened Species Eco pack valued up to $100
- 3rd Prize: Threatened Species Eco pack valued up to $80.
Terms and Conditions
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For more information please contact Council’s Environmental Education Officer open.space@campbelltown.nsw.gov.au