ACARA Years 3-6
— A younger sister accompanies her family to drop her older sister off at college, grappling with change while finding comfort in a shared photograph from their childhood.
— An eleven-year-old meticulously plans to run away from her three younger brothers and endless family picnics, but when teenagers invade her hideout, she races home to find unexpected comfort.
— A young writer observes the creek behind her house, cataloging its life—fish, flowers, frogs—and recognizes it as her private world of peace.
— A girl befriends a mysterious beach companion with shimmering hair and strange abilities, discovering her true nature when caught in a dangerous current.
— A young observer discovers the ocean's hidden music — from crashing waves to a tiny crab's clicking claws to shells clinking in the depths.
— A boy spends his summer earning money for a BMX bike, falling just short until his best friend arrives with the final dollar he needs.
— A girl in a hammock captures the sounds of summer — breeze, splashing, insects, lawnmower — then sprints toward an ice cream truck's tinkling music.
— A twelve-year-old slave named Curtis escapes via the Underground Railroad with Harriet Tubman, reaching Canada where he reunites with his father and gains the surname Freedom.
— A boy who steals from his father's rent money jar learns the consequences when their landlord threatens eviction, prompting him to get his first job.
— A girl is swept out to sea at night, sinks to the ocean floor watching bubbles rise from her laughing mouth, then returns to shore with the tide.