Josephine Laretive, Junior School Teacher Librarian K-2, Pymble Ladies’ College
Introduction
This paper provides insight to how Year 2 students participated and contributed to the Shadow Judging program of the Children’s Book Council of Australia (CBCA). As a teacher librarian of young learners, I aspire to foster literacy development and promote reading through literature-based activities that inspire both engagement and enjoyment of books and reading. The Shadow Judging program, launched in 2022, is a valuable initiative that allows children to act as critical readers and provides a unique opportunity to engage with quality texts. The program encourages a sense of ownership and agency, as children’s voices are given opportunities to provide opinions and contribute to judging literature traditionally dominated by adults. Participation in the program empowers children to review, reflect and express informed judgments. Shadow Judging promotes collaboration and community, connecting young readers across schools and libraries. The contribution of Year 2 students not only enables them to collaborate and connect with one another but also positions them within a national program that fosters deeper involvement with reading.
The CBCA Book Awards
The CBCA was established in 1945 and is celebrating its eightieth anniversary this year. The CBCA’s purpose is to enrich young lives through Australian stories. Each year, they hold the Book of the Year Awards to promote children’s and young adult books of “high literary and artistic quality” (CBCA, 2025a). The major annual event of the CBCA is Children’s Book Week. During this week the Honour books and Book of the Year announcements are made and children around Australia celebrate children’s books through a variety of literature-based activities and events that connect books with creativity and imagination. Book Week holds a unique place in Australian schools and libraries as it promotes and celebrates Australian authors and illustrators, ensuring young readers encounter stories that reflect and enrich their lives.
The CBCA Book of the Year Awards comprise six categories that capture the interests of children from early childhood to the senior years of school. Within each category there are the Notables, the Shortlist, the Honour books and the Book of the Year. In 2025, a total of 730 books were entered into the CBCA Book of the Year Awards, all of which were assessed by the judging panel before 122 titles were selected as Notables. The CBCA reported that this collection represented 31 Australian publishers, 114 Australian writers and 79 Australian children’s book illustrators (CBCA, 2025b). From the Notables list, six books in each category are then shortlisted, from which the Honour Books and the overall Book of the Year are chosen.
Each year this impressive collection provides insight into historical, social, and cultural (McDonald, 2023) aspects of life in Australia at the time of publication. As Simpson and Cremin (2022, p.10) outline, “all children deserve opportunities to connect, to escape from reality, to imagine alternative worlds and to expand their cultural understanding through life-resonant and life-expanding literature.” Owing to the extent of the Notables categories, children from the early years through to senior levels of schooling are exposed to award winning texts and afforded opportunities to engage with quality literature across a wide range of genres.
Shadow Judging
In 2022, the CBCA launched the Sun Project Shadow Judging program to provide young readers a voice and to develop and honour reading (Erskine, 2023). Since its launch, Year 2 at Pymble Ladies’ College have participated as Shadow Judges and have focused on the six Early Childhood Shortlist picture books. Year 2 closely follow the CBCA judging criteria which incorporates elements such as examination of the setting and characterisation, the pace and flow of the story, engagement of the plot, how images extend meaning, and the overall book design (CBCA, 2025c).
Picture books integrate visual and written modes of communication that support comprehension and engagement. As outlined by McDonald (2023), picture books allow children to make meaning through both the text and visuals. The text is read in order and comprehended, whereas the visuals allow the reader to gain additional meaning. When text and image work together, they invite prediction, inference, and interpretation, helping readers achieve a deeper understanding of the story. As Year 2 have commenced reading and visual literacy skills to “interpret meaning from both print and images” (Lowien & Thomas, 2025), they are encouraged to closely view the illustrations to extend and enhance the text.
A picture book read aloud offers children a shared space for connection, emotional exploration, and collaborative interpretation. Merga (2023) implies that reading aloud to children and allowing for opportunities to ask questions and share experiences related to the story inspires and engages reading. Additionally, reading aloud has a positive impact on social connections, strengthens literacy skills, and increases motivation to read. As highlighted by Simpson and Cremin (2022), reading and discussing high quality literature with children develops new knowledge and broadens their awareness of the world. “The ability to identify, analyse and critique construction of meaning” (Simpson and Cremin, 2022, p.6) through reading picture books encourages critical thinking, collaboration, empathy and imagination. The Shadow Judging program encourages such abilities and contributes to children’s identity and allows them to make personal connections with texts.
In 2025, the Shadow Judging program had approximately 400 groups registered. We are proud to have been part of this initiative and contributed to the Shadow Judges book awards. As Shadow Judges, Year 2 expressed opinions in literary conversations, and were empowered to think critically and express their own judgments. In submitting their vote to the program, Year 2 collaborated and connected to a national community of young readers.
Year 2 Shadow Judging Process
In the lead-up to Book Week, I design lessons and complete registration to position Year 2 students as official Shadow Judges. They are introduced to the program and informed that they will be judging the Early Childhood category, although recommended for readers aged 0–6 years, their experience with picture books places them in a strong position to identify titles likely to appeal to younger audiences. Given that Year 2 also participate in a Buddy program with Kindergarten, they are encouraged to consider their Buddies’ interests and the appeal of the story when evaluating each book.
During a series of library lessons, the Early Childhood shortlist books are read aloud to the whole class. The evaluation criteria I designed for Year 2 was modelled on the official judges’ guide and incorporated consideration of character, setting, plot, illustrations, and overall book design. See Figure 2 for an example. This adaptation of the formal criteria enabled Year 2 students to engage authentically with the evaluative process, fostering both an appreciation of literary quality and an understanding of the principles framing professional literary judgment.
In reflecting on character, students were encouraged to consider whether the description felt authentic and to assess the extent to which a younger reader might be able to understand or relate to the characters. The setting of each story was examined through illustrations, with attention given to the degree to which the visual representation aligned with the text and depicted a meaningful sense of place. Discussion of the plot centred on the level of engagement students experienced as the story was read aloud, while the conclusion was evaluated according to the level of satisfaction one had at the end of the story.
In relation to the illustrations, I modelled how they might be examined for the ways in which they enrich the narrative and contribute additional layers of meaning. One dimension of this analysis was connected to “aspects of emotional literacy” (Farrar, 2024, p. 996), with particular focus on how a character’s feelings can be interpreted through their actions, expressions, and posture. As students evaluate whether characters appear authentic and consider how younger readers might relate to them, Year 2 practise recognising and articulating emotions within literary contexts. This process not only strengthens their comprehension but also fosters empathy as they consider viewpoints other than their own.
When considering the overall design and quality of each book, I introduced the potential for a book to be valued by readers over time. We also discussed how effectively a book might capture readers’ attention and provide an enjoyable experience to hold and read. Students then reflected on the messages or lessons within each story. The discussion further involved identifying a symbol to represent the story and articulating the ideas or reflections the text inspired enabling them to connect personally with the story.
Outcomes of the Shadow Judging process
Engaging with the Shadow Judging program had a positive effect on reading enjoyment and provided opportunities for students to contribute to discussions about books. Such book discussion, as noted by Oxley and McGeown (2023), encourage communities of readers as students collaborate, discuss, and negotiate responses to literature which has a positive impact on reading motivation. In addition, the shared reading of the shortlist books not only introduced new authors and genres, but it also encouraged a calming experience which is supportive of student wellbeing (Oxley and McGeown, 2023).
Once Year 2 submitted their Shadow Judging vote, each student added a star to a voting chart in the K-2 library. This chart encouraged a wide range of discussion by K-2 students as they could clearly see what book Year 2 enjoyed most. As both Kindergarten and Year 1 were also reading the Early Childhood shortlist books during their library lessons and responding with a variety of creative compositions, the discussion around the six shortlist books continued over several weeks. Fortunately, Kindergarten and Year 1 were able to add their vote to the library voting chart which provided a Shadow Judges shadow and revealed an overall favourite Shortlist book for K-2 students. An extension of the Shadow Judging project enabled Year 2 students to engage more deeply and respond creatively to the shortlist books. Each class was divided into teams and assigned one of the shortlisted titles to represent through a diorama (see Figure 1). In revisiting their allocated texts, students re-examined the narrative and collaboratively designed a scene to bring it to life. As they constructed their dioramas, I observed how their choices revealed what they understood and valued most in the stories. The process prompted close attention to detail, encouraged consideration of characters’ feelings, and supported representation of setting. As a result, this creative task allowed students to connect more deeply with the texts while expressing personal interpretation and imagination.
Reflecting on the project
Year 2 students’ involvement in the CBCA Shadow Judging program demonstrates the value of engaging young learners as active and thoughtful readers. Through collaborative discussion, close evaluation, and creative responses, students developed literacy skills while also deepening their enjoyment of literature. The program empowered them to see themselves not only as readers, but as participants in the wider literary community, with voices that matter in judging and celebrating books.
For teacher librarians and primary educators, Shadow Judging offers a meaningful framework to foster reflection, critical thinking, creativity, and connection through literature. The Shadow Judging program highlights the transformative potential of inviting young readers to read, review, and reflect in authentic and purposeful ways.
