I congratulate year 4 Belair Public school student Callan Peterson on being named the best year 4 writer in New South Wales after receiving his category's highest score in the International Competitions and Assessments for Schools writing paper.

Students were given 30minutes to write a short narrative featuring a campsite, river, train or library as the setting and a bunch of flowers, a bicycle or jacket as an object. Callan's One Thingtells the story of a teenager named Dirk, who storms into a library looking for a video game and knocks over a vase of flowers, sending bookshelves toppling like dominoes throughout the room and one of Newton's physics books landing on top of him. On 2 November Callan will represent the Hunter at the Premier's Spelling Bee final. I wish him all the best.

To Callan's parents and the hardworking teachers at Belair Public School, I say well done. It is a fantastic school.