They say it takes a village to raise a child and at Narrogin Primary School, Aboriginal and Islander Education Officer (AIEO) Basil Kickett is integral to our village. Pop Basil is a wealth of knowledge and generous in sharing his expertise on local Noongar culture. He is an incredible role model and support person to both Indigenous and Non Indigenous children in the school.
During NAIDOC week 2020 he was generous enough to share his stories about his life growing up and the children were absolutely enthralled. All students produced artworks and recounts from his stories and 44 images were chosen and used in a book that we produced and called, 'When Pop was a Boy'. We hope to share Pop's story with community and students now and into the future.
On Wednesday 1 September 2021 we held a book launch for the book “When Pop Was a Boy”. We put together an eBook and uploaded it onto YouTube, it was set to premier at 11:00am and the whole school watched it together on the day.
It is also Indigenous Literacy Day and the Indigenous Literacy Foundation have asked to include the book as a part of their online forum that will happen on the same day which is very exciting.
We also had a visit around this time from the Regional Executive Director for the Wheatbelt, Mr Doug Cook, he was very impressed with the book and granted us some funding towards publishing a copy for each school in the Wheatbelt region. We have also ordered a copy to be given to each child with an artwork in the book.
Please enjoy a reading of the book on Youtube by scanning the QR code below, the story is in Standard English and translated into Noongar.
Scan the QR code for a reading of the book on You Tube.
Link to the video -
https://youtu.be/LynNCJQHzKA?si=UkT2UEoGWnM5jIp2
Pop Basil received his award at the annual breakfast for WA Education Awards in Perth on Monday 29 November 2021.Basil's personal experiences provide a unique perpective to the children and staff of Narrogin Primary School. His strong career-based background and life experiences make him a essential part in supporting and mentoring Aboriginal children. He is a key driver for school improvement and an advocate for the implementation of the Aboriginal Cultural Standards Framework.