Some of the chook musterers at Katandra West (from left) Leah van Roosmalen, Chelsea Perret-Mann, Jack Newby and Layla Tyrrell. They are holding the ribbons they won at the Melbourne Royal Show.
Katandra West Primary School is boasting “the best eggs” in Victoria, after a successful exhibition at the Melbourne Royal Show.
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The school won the top prize in the schools’ poultry section for their hens’ eggs and took out a second prize for a school project entry.
Visitors to the school may have noticed the five chooks running free-range in the school grounds between recesses.
The school has had an egg laying flock for years but this year they took up an opportunity offered by the Royal Agricultural Society of Victoria to enter into the schools competition.
Katandra West Primary School student Jack Newby with a sample of the prize winning eggs produced by the school’s flock.
“We’ve had chooks here for years so when we heard about the school competition we thought we would give it a go,” school principal Marcia Waters said.
So Eggo, Piper and Hen-solo were off to the Melbourne Royal Show for a week, and pulled off a third prize in the hen section.
“When you are a chook monitor, you have to unlock the shed and let the chooks out, and collect the eggs,” student Chelsea Perret-Mann said.
“At afternoon recess you get the scraps from the other classes in a bucket and take them to the chooks.
“We get the chook pellets, too.
“We get them from the Hunters store in a trolley”
Ms Waters said the school had visitors from the Royal Agricultural Society of Victoria who talked to the students about poultry, and the society later sent five hens so the school could participate in the show competition.
“Our kids have looked after chooks for a number of years, so we thought this was an opportunity to show what they could do.”
The school community was delighted when the results were announced — a first in the eggs category, a second for the school poultry project and a third for the birds exhibited.
Ms Waters said from a learning perspective the project taught the students responsibility, independent thinking skills and the care and management of animals.
Asked what happens to the award-winning eggs produced by their flock, one of the students cheekily remarked “for the teachers to have bacon and eggs”.
Ms Waters added the eggs were also used in baking products for community projects.
Leah van Roosmalen with one of the school’s flock.
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