Vampire Snail for PM

Evening was slowly descending around the French snail farm.

The sprinklers had turned off and most of the snails had stopped eating lettuce and had pulled up inside their shells to go to sleep.

The farmer had gone inside for a well earned rest and to watch TV.

The guard dog had settled down outside his kennel.

All that could be heard was a distant owl.'Tawoot Tawooh, Tawoot Tawooh.'

One snail had not gone to sleep however. It was hungry and it crawled over the edge of the tray, down the leg of the bench and onto the concrete.

As it slid slimely towards the sleeping guard dog, it left a shiny red trail behind it.

The snail was a vampire snail looking for its next meal of blood.

It slithered up to the dog and carefully sank its fangs into the dogs neck.

The snail was not careful enough supping on dog blood however. The dog barked and howled until its owner came outside with his torch and looked all around. All he found was a snail crawling back towards the snail farm. He picked it up and placed in the cage ready for the next day's consignment of snails to restaurants all over France.

 

Now it just so happened that in Paris that day there was an important meeting of heads of state from all around the world. At lunch they went to a famous French restaurant beside the Eifel Tower.

 

The Honorable Julia Gillard, Prime Minister of Australia, was absent mindedly eating snails fried snails from her plate. She didn't notice the snail that left a red trail behind it slide across the plate towards her hand.

 

She popped it into her mouth and ate the vampire snail. It wasn't long after that that she grew pale, swayed in her seat and fell to the floor. An ambulance was called and, with a police escort, she was hurried to hospital.

She wasn't long in hospital. Everything seemed fine with her state of health and she was released the next day. Her private secretary was briefed by the doctor. They assumed it was her busy pace of life or something she had eaten but they had taken blood samples just in case.

"Look after her well," said the doctor, "We don't want any unpleasant surprises."

Julia Gillard flew back to Australia the next day and was met by the media at the airport but she would not talk about her hospital visit. "I am extremely well. Tomorrow night I will be debating with the Leader of the Opposition, Tony Abbot,  about climate change on Q&A. I'm looking forward to it."

When Julia Gillard arrived at the television studios, Tony Abbot was already in makeup.

Her Press Secretary said, "Are you alright? You're looking a little pale."

The Prime Minister said, "I'm feeling a little hungry. I wish I had had something more to eat before I came."

The production manager came in and said, "Five minutes to start please." There wasn't any time for her to get anything to eat.

Tony Abbot was the first of course. He bounded into the studio and sat down but as Julia Gillard followed him in she seemed to be looking at Tony Abbot quite strangely.

It wasn't long before the Q&A music was playing and the compere of Q&A was introducing, "Julia Gillard, Prime Minister of Australia and Tony Abbot, the Leader of the opposition,"

And as the television camera panned over Julia Gillard the light seemed to gleam off her front teeth.

The first question asked by the Q&A presenter was, "Prime Minister Julia Gillard can you tell our studio audience why your government has cut funding to community organisations services such as the Red Cross and blood banks across Australia?"

At the mention of blood Julia Gillard turned pale, stood up, swayed and fell towards Tony Abbot. Tony Abbot attempted to stop her from falling. He grabbed and held her up and in the confusion of cameras pointing everywhere and people in the audience screaming, nobody really saw that Julia Gillard had sunk her fangs into Tony Abbots neck and had taken a sip of blood.

By the time the confusion had ended she was back sitting in her seat and saying, "Now what was that question? I'm sorry. I missed out on tea tonight."

But do you know what? Tony Abbot was scratching his neck and when he lifted up his hand he saw blood on it. He was looking at the Prime Minister strangely. He looked again at the blood on his hand. He turned pale and fainted falling to the floor with a bang.

The Q&A presenter said, "We regret this interruption to our program but we will just switch to a prerecorded interview with the Leader of the Greens, Bob Brown. We will be returning to our debate between the Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition very soon."

The TV screen switched to an old interview. Tony Abbot was taken in an ambulance to the hospital and kept overnight. He released the next day but his Private Secretary was told by the doctors, "We think  he is OK but we are a little concerned. When we analysed his blood there was something strange in it. Just be careful."

That night, the Prime Ministers Office got a phone call from Paris, France. It was a haematologist from the hospital where she was treated after eating snails in the restaurant beside the Eiffel Tower.

The Prime Minister's Secretary was told, "We have analysed what was in her blood and we've tracked it down to a snail farm where all the snails have turned into vampire snails."

"A dog that was on that farm was found at the foot of a tree that was a roosting tree for bats. We suggest you take emergency precautions."

 

The next night on the ABC there was an announcement. "We are just crossing to a news flash. Both the Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition have been taken away by ambulance to a secure hospital." 

When reporters tried to interview either Julia Gillard or Tony Abbot they were told that interviews were no longer possible. Later that night a camera crew waiting on the lawn outside the hospital saw two strange forms flying away from the hospital. One of the bats had large ears and the other had red hair.

 

(This story was created by Daryll Bellingham and years 6/7 and 7 at Belmont State School as part of the Book Week Literature Festival.)

David and the Lollipop Snake

Once upon a time some students were walking along a bike path on their way to Belmont School.


They heard a kookaburra calling from a gum tree and stopped to look.


'Hello Kookaburra!'


'Kook, kook, kook, kook, kook, kook, kook, ka, ka, kaaaaaaaaaa.'








"Watch out. Here comes David on his scooter!"


"Get out of the way slow coaches!"


"Look at the kookaburras in the gum tree!"


" I don't care about silly old kookaburras!"


David was just about to scoot off when they heard, 'Ssssssssssssssssssssssssssssss'.



 A snake slithered out of the grass and across the bike path.


"Aaaaaaaaaaaaah, a snake," yelled David.


"It's all right. It's probably looking for breakfast. Mum said to stay still and the snake will leave us alone."

 The snake slithered into the grass and came back with a frog in its mouth.


As the children watched the snake swallowed the snake and kept on slithering into the grass.

"Cool!"


"Gross!"


"Let's tell the lollipop lady at the school crossing."


When they told the lollipop lady she screamed and dropped her lollipop sign.


Mary picked it up for her and the children walked into Belmont School prep.

(Created by Daryll Bellingham and the students of Prep A and B
at Belmont State School as part of the
Book Week Belmont Literature Festival, August 2011)

Belmont Literature Festival - One World Many Stories

Wow, the Belmont Literature Festival is upon us again. Lots of stories to tell. Many stories to create and publish in our world of Book Week stories. The Children's Book Council did a good job of theme and images this year. Gregory Rogers designed their poster art below.

I wonder what will be the first story from the Festival to find its way to Austoryplace?

Fried Chicken Robber

Belmont State School is on the corner of Old Cleveland Road and Scrub Road and after school the Lollipop Ladies and Men have a busy time of it helping children to safely cross the roads on their way home.



One afternoon a group of children were waiting for the lollipop lady to blow her whistle to let them know it was safe to cross Old Cleveland Road. The kids didn't mind waiting for a while because something always happened at that intersection.

Some times they might see an ambulance come speeding along Old Cleveland Road with its siren screaming and lights flashing. Some times there might even be a screech of tires and the bang of two cars colliding. This time however they heard three loud bangs and when they looked across the intersection they saw a strange guy come running out of the KFC shop with a gun in one hand and two buckets of KFC in the other.



"Watch out! Get down you kids!" yelled the lollipop lady but the children were too excited not to watch what happened.

The manager of the KFC ran out of the shop after the robber but when the robber fired another shot in the air, the manager looked terribly worried and ran back into the KFC.





"Bet he's going to ring the police," said one of the boys.

"They'll have to be fast he's jumping over that fence."

"Maybe we could catch him and then we could eat the KFC."

"Yey! Let's go!"

"Oh no you don't," said the lollipop lady, "You're coming right back to the school with me until the police have caught that robber."

"Oh!"

"No Oh's you lot. Come with me." The lollipop lady blew her whistle and used her lollipop stick to push the children back inside the school grounds and into the car park near the Administration building.

"Right, stay here while I tell the principal what's happening," she said.

As the lollipop lady hurried into the Admin Building the children started arguing about where the robber would hide and eat his KFC.

"I bet he'll run into the bush and climb a tree."

"Nah. How's he going to climb a tree when he's holding a gun and two buckets of KFC?"

"I bet he'll run home and turn on the TV and watch the cricket."

"Nah. He jumped over that fence and you know what's on the other side of that fence don't you?"

"The storm water drain. Hey, that storm water drain goes under the road and up under this school."

"He could be eating his KFC right under our feet, right now."

"Hey, we should tell the police."

Just then the lollipop lady and the school principal came out of the Admin Building and the principal said, "Quite please. Mrs Jolly has told me about the robbery and we've organised a special school bus to drive everyone who's still here at school right to their homes but, while we're waiting for it, you had better wait in the library. You can read a book or play a game until it gets here."

"Is some student snoring while I'm speaking? Who's being so rude?"

But no one put their hand up and slowly everyone realised that the snoring was coming from right under their feet.

"That will be the robber. He jumped over the fence into the storm water drain. I bet he ran up the pipe and stopped for a rest under the school."

"Right, I'll ring the police," said the principal pulling out his mobile phone.

The children watched as three of the police cars that had been over at the KFC put on their lights and sirens and came speeding through the intersection and turned into the school car park.



"Down hear. Shhhhh. You can hear him snoring."

"Have you got a crowbar or something to lift up that inspection hatch."

"I want to volunteers to run to the school gardeners shed and ask him to bring a crowbar."

As quick as a flash to of the older boy scurried off. It wasn't long before they came back with the school gardener and a crowbar.

The gardener drove the end of the bar under the metal hatch and the hatch came spinning off the hole.

Two police jumped down with their guns drawn. "Stay where you are you're under arrest for robbery of the Belmont KFC!"





They pulled the robber up through the hole and bundled him into the police car. The students watched as the police put his gun and the two buckets of KFC into plastic evidence bags.

"Hey could we have some KFC please?"

"No way kids. We'll need them for the court case."

The 'Fried Chicken Robber' story
was created by
Daryll Bellingham and
students from 1KE and 1GR
at Belmont State School
as part of the
2010 Belmont Literature Festival.

Fly like an eagle

It was just five o'clock and the children's father poked his head into their tent and said, "Wake up sleepy heads. Today we go on our bushwalk."

A kookaburra was calling from a nearbye gum tree and Sam said, "Why are kookaburra's so noisy in the outback?"

But his sister Lucy didn't reply. She was already out of her sleeping bag and changing out of her pyjamas.

When they crawled out of the tent their parents were already sitting on their camp chairs and a billy was on the fire. The lid was rattling as puffs of steam came hissing out.

The kids grabbed their bowls of muesli and asked where they were going on their bush walk.

"Right up to the top of that mountain kids," said their dad.

"Right up to the top?" said Sam.

"Yep. There's a cave up there and I was told there's a special painting in the cave."

"Heh look at that bird flying around up there. Wish we could fly. It would be a lot quicker."

"I think it's a wedge tailed eagle. Come on if we hurry up it might still be flying around near the top of the mountain when we get up there," said their dad.


"Make sure you wash your plates and put them away," said their mum. "Dingos might come around the camp while we're away."

"Cool," said Sam.

"You wouldn't like it if a dingo licked your plate," said Lucy and she pointed her tongue at her brother.

"You wouldn't like it if a dingo bit your tongue off, ha!" said Sam.

"Mum, Sam said a dingo was going to bite my tongue off."

"Well what were you doing with your tongue at the time miss?"

"Nothing mum."

"She was. She was pointing her tongue at me."

"Come on you kids. Let's get up that mountain. Have you got your water bottles?"

They zipped up the tents, tipped some water on the fire and set off on their walk with Sam and Lucy in the lead as they jumped from rock to rock along the dry creek bed and then up the track towards the top of the mountain.

As they walked past a clump of spinifex they heard a hissing sound but it was only a blue tailed lizard.

"The track goes past those Ghost Gums kids," said their Dad.

"Ghost Gums, oooooooh, ooooooooh. I can see a ghoooooooost!" said Sam.

"No you can't," said Lucy, "but I can see something on the ground."

When they got up to it Lucy bent over and picked up a baby bird.



"Wow. What sort of bird is that Dad?"

"Mmmmm. Not sure kids. Look at it's beak though, it's bent. It could be a baby eagle."

They looked up and sure enough half way up the cliff above them was a nest of sticks.

"Oh, poor little eagle. Fell out of the nest did you? How are we going to get you back up there?" said Lucy.

"I could throw it up there," said Sam.



He took the little eagle in his two hands and threw it upwards as hard as he could. The little eagle sailed up towards the nest but only got half way there and started falling back down again.

"Catch it," called Lucy.

Their mum caught it in her hat.

"Oh, I wish we could fly we could fly up to that nest," said Lucy.

She had hardly got the words out and a wind began to blow around the mountain side, stronger and stronger it blew.



"Hold on," called their dad but before anyone could grab anything a sudden gust of wind blew them up into the air up towards the nest, so close they could drop the baby eagle into the nest as they flew past.




Higher and higher they went until as the wind slowed down they landed right on top of the mountain, right outside a cave.

"Wow! That was fun!" said Sam. "Hey, look inside this cave."

On the cave wall was a painting of a large bird, an eagle, and as they stared at it, do you know what, the eagle in the painting winked at them.







"It knew. It knew we were trying to help the baby eagle," said Lucy.

"Come on you kids, we had better walk down this mountain," said their dad.

















It took them a bit longer than it did to fly up the mountain but, as they walked past the eagle's nest, the mother eagle was perched on the edge with a dead rat in its beak. They watched as the eagle tore off bits of dead rat and fed it to the little one.


"Oh that's gross."

"No that's cool."





"Come on let's get back to the tent, I'm hungry," said their mum.

That night they had a great story to tell their grand parents when they rang them on the satellite phone.

Created by Daryll Bellingham with Years PVP / PJE as part of the 2011 Belmont State School Literary Festival.

© 24th November, 2011.

Small, bright and shiny.

It wasn't long before the Pumpkin Festival in Goomeri and one of the organisers had rung up the school and asked if some of the students could help clean up any litter that might be on Policeman's Hill. Hodge Street

So, with the permission of the school principal, all of the students in prep to year three set off with their teachers.

As they walked over the railway line and into town one of the teachers said,

"Now, because you're helping the festival organisers they said you can all have some free lollies from the Lolly Shop but you'll have to take turns."

Five at a time they walked into Mrs Toffee's Lolly Shop and made their selection. Some got jelly beans. Some asked for lollipops and some wanted Chicken Feed.

Mrs Toffee stood there with her glasses, brown hair and big, black apron and made sure they all said 'please' and 'thank you'.

"Now," said their teachers, "Let's walk up to Policeman's Hill and make sure it's really, really clean and tidy. We'll go the long way round pass the Hall of Memory and the Motel because it's not so steep."

When they got there they made a game out of who could pick up the smallest piece of litter. The teacher called it an Emu Parade.

"Hey, here's a shiny little bit on the grass," said Timothy.

He bent over to pick it up but his sticky lolly fell out of his pocket and landed on the shiny little thing.

"Oh! It's disappeared," said Timothy as he picked up his lolly and popped it into his mouth.

"Timothy, you shouldn't eat things that have fallen on the ground. There could be anything on that lolly."

And, do you know what? There was something stuck to that lolly it was the shiny little thing and it got stuck in Timothy's throat.

"Arrrrrh! Arrrrrrh! Arrrrrrh! I'm chocking!" called Timothy.

"Look he's turning blue!"

The teacher found her mobile phone and called an ambulance.

They told her to whack Timothy on the back to see if he could cough up the thing in his throat.

As the ambulance came speeding up the road with its siren wailing, Timothy gave a mighty cough and something small, round and shiny went flying out.

It bounced off the windscreen of the ambulance and went whizzing up into the sky towards the swimming pool.

Timothy was taken off to Murgon Hospital in the ambulance and the children and the teachers hurried down the hill towards the swimming pool.

When they got there, the pool was closed but they tied three long sticks together and tied a net to the end and poked it over the fence into the pool.

The teachers said, "Three tries only and then back to school."

The first time they only scooped up a dead grasshopper. "Ohhh!"

The second time they scooped up a plastic toy shark. "Ohhh!"

But the third time they scooped up something small and round and shiny.

It was a gold ring with a shiny pumpkin jewel on the top. "Ahhhh!"

"That must belong to the Pumpkin Fairy Princess," said one girl.

"I bet it's magic," said a boy.

"All right make a wish," said a teacher.

"We wish that Timothy is well again."

And do you know what? He was.

Created by Daryll Bellingham and the students from years Prep, 1 and 2 at Goomeri State School.

Want to listen to our recording of the story by teachers and students? Here it is -

Austoryplace - Goomeri - 'Small, bright and shiny'

Daryll's podcast

© 2010

Old Henry and the Pumpkin Festival

In Goomeri, we all love the Pumpkin Festival and everyone helps make sure there's something different each year.

One morning not long before the festival, three people were collecting their mail at the post office at the same time.

Mrs Toffee, the owner of the lolly shop, was picking up another parcel of new lollies and she saw the manager of the Pumpkin Festival with a big smile on his face.

'What are you so happy about Blue?' she asked him.

'This letter here is the insurance for the festival. Now the festival can go ahead. Nothing can stop it now.'

'Look. Here's old Henry. He's ridden his bicycle all the way in from Tansey to pick up his mail. I don't know how he does it.'

'What have you got there Henry,' asked Blue as Henry carried his heavy little parcel out of the Post Office.

'None of your business. It's mine,' said Old Henry as he walked back to his bicycle and started to ride back to his farm.

No one knew what Old Henry took back to his farm that day but another day he was seen to park his bicycle in front of Mrs Toffee's Lolly Shop. He came out with a parcel and a smile and he rode back to his farm.

Well on the day of the Festival everyone in town was there. There were lots of tourists buying pumpkin scones and getting ready for the pumpkin roll down Policeman's Hill.

'Hey look who's coming. It's Old Henry.' shouted some kids.

Everyone looked and, sure enough, there he was puffing up the hill on his bicycle and on the back there was a big pumpkin.

He waited till everyone had had a go rolling and then stepped forward. 'Ladies and Gentlemen. I have the best pumpkin of all. All children must hold out their hands and open their mouths.'

He put his pumpkin down on the start line, lit the fuse sticking out of the pumpkin and gave it a shove and it went rolling down the hill.

'Ahh! It's a bomb. Duck for cover!' But before anyone could move, the pumpkin went off like a giant firework.

Bang! Ziiiiii. Ziiiii. Ziiii. Zup-zup-zup-zup-zup.

Fireworks went zipping everywhere over Policeman's Hill and out of them flew lots and lots of bright colourful pumpkin shaped lollies.

'Hooray!' Kids ran here and there scooping them up and when they tasted them they fizzed and zipped in their mouths like yummy, sweet fireworks.

'That's what was in that parcel at the post office,' said Blue. 'The Pumpkin Festival will get another tourism award for sure this year. Thanks old Henry. That was the best.'

Old Henry had his photo taken with the festival committee and Mrs Toffee from the Lolly Shop and all the happy smiling children before he hopped on his bike and rode back to his farm.

Created by Daryll Bellingham and the students from years 3, 4 & 5 at Goomeri State School.

No pumpkins were hurt in the production of this story.

© 2010

Old Henry and the Pumpkin Festival

Daryll's podcast

It Never Rains but it Pours

It had been raining for weeks and all the creeks and gullies were full of swirling, muddy water. Some of the bridges and roads had been cut off and the electricity had gone out.

Still that didn't stop most kids in Goomeri from having fun. Some boys were playing in the park on the edge of the gully, throwing things in the water and pulling out the long grass and the water weed to make the water go faster.

One of their sisters was watching from the verandah and called out, 'Be careful Timmy. Don't go near that drain. Drains are dangerous.'

'Oh, I'm all right Alice. The water's not deep.'

'Don't be stupid. Get out of there!'

But it was too late. Timmy slipped and splashed into the deeper water and before any of his friends could help the current was dragging him down the drain towards the culvert.

Timmy was swimming as hard as he could but it was as if some terrible cold force was dragging him under. The last they saw of him was his bright yellow board shorts as he was sucked down the drain.

'Hold your breath Timmy!' yelled Alice as she ran across the park.

'Where is he?'

'He must be trapped.'

But Timmy wasn't trapped. Somehow he had held his breath and came up coughing and spluttering in the drain on the other side.

He managed to grab some grass on the side and pull himself out before anyone got to help him.

'Why are you so pale Timmy?'

'I saw something under the water. It looked like an old grandma ghost.'

'Was she trying to drag you under?'

'No. She looked really worried and said something to me. She was holding out something in her hand. I think her hair was on fire.'

'In all that water. You're crazy.'

'No, no. Look. There it is that's what she was holding.'

Timmy pointed at a glass jug that was been carried along on the flood water in the drain.

'I'll grab it.' and one of the boys picked up a fallen tree branch, poked it through the handle of the jug and lifted it out.

'That looks like a beer jug from the pub. How did your old grandma ghost get that?'

'What's written on the side?' said Alice.

'Goomeri Hotel,1939. Pour it on.'

'Heh, that's what she was saying to me, Pour it on! Pour it on!'

'Did you say her hair was on fire? Wasn't there a fire in the old hotel and people died.'

'Yes. There's a plaque on the wall of the hotel. People died.'

'I think she was trying to pour water on the fire with this jug.'

'What are we going to do with it?'

'Let's give it back to her.'

They walked back up the side of the drain, up above the culvert and carefully put the jug back in the water. Timmy shoved it out into the deep with the long branch and they watched it being sucked back under the swirling water.

'Now don't go swimming in that drain again. It's too dangerous.'

'No way,' said Timmy.


View austoryplace Goomeri Stories in a larger map

Created by Daryll Bellingham and the students from years 6 and 7 at Goomeri State School.

© 2010

It Never Rains but it Pours

Daryll's Austories Podcast

Belmont Stories - 'The Park'

Bedevire Park is on Bedervire Road and you can get to it on a bike path from Belmont State School. When you get there you will find an orange spide web, a rocket ship, swings and the eating area.

One day, Jack, who lives quite close to the park, was climbing the spider web.

He said, "Wow! Look at that."

There was a turtle on his back on the side of the creek and it was waving his legs frantically in the air.

Jack saw his best friend riding his BMX along the bike path. He said, "Look out for the turtle!"

But it was too late. There was a bang, a crash and a splash.

Jack said, "Lachlan. I'll help you!"

As Jack ran down to the creek, he tripped on the turtle. Jack crashed to the ground. The turtle flipped the right way up and waddled down to the creek and saved Lachlan.

Every afternoon from then on, when Jack and Lachlan come down to the park they always go to the creek look out for their friend the turtle.



Created and recorded by Years 4MC / 4RG as part of the Belmont State School Literary Festival.

Thomas Jack Park Magic Goldfish

Everyone in Dalby knows Thomas Jack Park on the main road through the town with its green grass, picnic tables and shady trees. When the Cotton Festival is held every year, great use is made of the park for events and performances.

Some families have their birthday parties there and one day Ben, a student from Our Lady of the Southern Cross College, told his family that he wanted his eighth birthday party beside the water fun feature.

The water feature has a water fall and a small stream that runs between the large rocks and under the ornamental bridge made of concrete and wood.

Ben had invited all of his friends from Our Lady of the Southern Cross College to his birthday party and that afternoon he stood beside the marquee with the food and birthday cake waiting for them to arrive. Everyone thought that Ben looked like the young Harry Potter. He had glasses, was smart, had the same smile but didn't have the lightning scar on his forehead.

'Wonder if Ben's going to do any magic at his Birthday Party,' said Rebecca.

'Yeh! He might disappear just when his mum's trying to take his photograph,' said Tom.

'No. Don't be silly he's not Harry Potter.'

Parents dropped their children off, told them to be good and to listen to Mrs Affleck and told them not to eat too much as they drove off.

The kids gave their presents to Ben wished him a happy birthday and ran over to the water feature to have a look at the gold fish.

"What will we do till everyone gets here?" asked Rebecca.

"Let's see who can count the most gold fish," said Tom as he leaned over the rail of the ornamental bridge.

Something made them look up into one of the trees instead of counting gold fish however. It was the raucous sound of one of the family of kookaburras that lived in the gum trees of Thomas Jack Park. It was laughing loudly from a branch just above the creek. The children laughed back at it but stopped and ducked for cover as the kookaburra swooped past them, splashed into the creek and then flew back up to the tree branch.

Wriggling in its beak was a gold fish. The kookaburra whacked it a couple of times on the branch, flipped it around in its beak and started to swallow it.

"Oh Yuck. Poor little gold fish," said Ben. "How would you feel like it if you turned into a goldfish, you mean kookaburra?"

The gold fish gave one last wriggle as it the Kookaburra swallowed and one of the golden scales was knocked off by the sharp end of the beak.

It floated down towards the childen. "Catch it!" said Rebecca. "I want it," said Ben but, just as he reached up to catch it, a gust of wind blew the golden scale over towards the marquee and the children couldn't find it no matter how hard they looked.

Well the usual party things happened. Games, fruit juice, more games, more fruit juice, sausages and tomato sauce, more fruit juice and then it was time to sing happy birthday to Ben and for Ben to cut the cake.

Then his mother took the electric carving knife and cut the cake up for everyone to have a slice. Ben got the slice with the number eight on it. No one noticed, not even Ben, that the gold fish scale was lying on the icing right in the middle of the number eight.

He opened his mouth wide and popped the whole piece of cake into his mouth chewed and swallowed the cake, the icing and the scale.

"I wish that Kookaburra hadn't eaten that gold fish," said Ben, "I like them."

"I reckon it would be fun being a goldfish."

Just then, every Kookaburra in Thomas Jack Park began laughing. The gold fish in the water feature started splashing and jumping out of the water.

"Hey look at that!"

All of the children ran over to the water feature staring at the gold fish, jumping and turning somersaults in the air.

"Wow!"

As they watched the jumping goldfish, no one noticed that one of them was changing colour. He was growing more and more golden. It was Ben.

Some of the kids from the party said that they think he would have turned into a gold fish and splashed into the water feature with the gold fish if his grandmother hadn't grabbed him and whacked him on his back just in time. As he coughed the gold fish scale flew out of his mouth and landed in the water. The gold fish stopped jumping, the kookaburra's stopped laughing and Ben turned and gave his grandmother a hug.

"Thanks Grandma. I didn't really want to be a goldfish."

Created by Daryll Bellingham and the students from year 3A and 3D,
Our Lady of the Southern Cross College,
Dalby, Queensland - 11th August, 2009.