Karen Foxlee - The Quiet Power of Small Stories
Year Levels 3 - 9
Karen Foxlee is one of Australia's most celebrated authors of tender, emotionally intelligent fiction. In this session, Karen talks about writing characters who feel real, the kind of characters who stay with you long after you've closed the book. She explores how small, quiet moments can carry enormous emotional weight, and why 'big' stories don't always need big plots. For students who are learning to write with depth and empathy, Karen's session is quietly transformative. With YABBA nominations closing on 2 April, this is also the final session before the shortlist is revealed, a good moment to consolidate thinking about what students are nominating and why.
If you or one of your students would like to ask Karen a questions please contact yabba.online@yabba.org.au.
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Building the Vote, Classroom Connection
- Nominations close 2 April, this is the last session before that deadline. Help students finalise their thinking.
- Class discussion: What criteria are students using to nominate? Best writing? Most exciting plot? The one they'd most recommend to a friend?
- Preview the excitement ahead: after nominations close, the shortlist will be announced when Term 2 starts on 20 April. The real reading race begins then.
- Create a class 'anticipation wall', students write one book they hope makes the shortlist, sealed in an envelope to open in Term 2.
Classroom Activities
Years 3–6
- Read a short passage from one of Karen's books. Identify the emotion the character is feeling. Can you find the exact line that shows it?
- Write a 'small moment' story: choose one thing that happened recently and describe it in precise, sensory detail. No big drama, just a real moment.
- Character close-up: draw your character and write five things they would never say and five things they always think about.
- Nominations close soon, think about the books you've read this year. Which character has stayed with you the most? Does that book deserve a YABBA nomination?
Years 7–9
- Close read a selected passage from Karen's work. Annotate for techniques: imagery, sentence rhythm, dialogue, and interiority.
- Write a 750-word short story that uses a quiet, seemingly insignificant moment to reveal something true about a character.
- Discuss: Karen writes across age groups. How does the emotional complexity of her YA differ from her middle-grade fiction?
- Final nomination push, nominations close 2 April. Write a persuasive paragraph making the case for your nominated book. Share with a partner and discuss whether they're convinced.
Victorian Curriculum Links
- Reading and Viewing: Analysing and evaluating the ways authors convey meaning (Levels 5–10)
- Writing: Using literary techniques to create character and emotional depth (Levels 3–10)
- Speaking and Listening: Presenting and responding to ideas (Levels 3–10)
FISO 2.0 Alignment
- Excellence in Teaching and Learning: Deepening student understanding of characterisation as a literary craft
- Curriculum Planning and Assessment: Formative writing tasks linked to text analysis
