Victoria’s SunSmart program has ECEC literacy pack prize draw

Cancer Council Victoria is keen to involve the early childhood education and care (ECEC) sector in its free SunSmart Early Childhood Program and is giving any Victorian early childhood service (childcare, preschool, family day care) who completes a new SunSmart membership application, or any current SunSmart early childhood member who completes a membership renewal by Friday 22 July 2022, an opportunity to go into the draw to win one of 10 literacy packs for their service.

The SunSmart program is a voluntary membership program aimed at early childhood services to promote sun protection measures (clothing, hats, sunscreen, shade, and if practical, sunglasses) that reduce UV radiation exposure and skin cancer risk. Approximately 90 per cent of Victoria’s early years services are registered SunSmart members.

Each literacy pack includes 10 beautiful children’s picture books with themes that help services to explore the sun, sun protection (hats, sunglasses, shade), caring for skin and the environment.

The ten books are:

• I Want My Hat Back by Jon Klassen
• Why Does the Sun Shine? by Katie Daynes and Christine Pym
• The Skin You Live In by Michael Tyler and David Lee Csicsko
• Today’s Sun by Gregg Dreise
• The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein
• Hooray for Hat! by Brian Won
• Bush Tracks by Ros Moriarty
• The Colors of Us by Karen Katz
• Pete the Cat and His Magic Sunglasses by Eric Litwin
• Welcome to Country by Aunty Joy Murphy and Lisa Kennedy

The winners will be drawn and notified on Friday 29 July. Book packs will be posted out and winning services will have their new book collection ready for the SunSmart season from mid-August.

As SunSmart membership is registered via each individual service, Cancer Council asks that services complete their own online application or renewal checklist so they can review the membership criteria and their responsibilities.

• If you are NOT a registered SunSmart member and would like to join, please complete the application checklist here
• If you are already a SunSmart member and are due to complete a membership renewal, please complete the renewal checklist 
• Please remember to attach your current sun protection policy to your application or membership renewal. SunSmart has a sample policy and procedures that can be used or you may already have your own policy pack or one from your early years manager.

Any early childhood service who has joined SunSmart or renewed their SunSmart membership since January 2019 will be automatically entered into the draw.