19 Oct 2023
Sista Speak wrapped up Term 3 by cooking chocolate chip and wattle seed cookies.
Wattle seeds are edible seeds from Australian acacia. They are traditionally used in Australian Indigenous food and are milled to make flour for bush bread. The ingredient is described as having a nutty savoury flavour with a tinge of spice.
While the girls appreciated the chocolate chips, the wattleseeds were a divisive addition to the cookies. Some appreciated the flavour the ingredient brought to the biscuits while some were less than impressed.
Sista Speak is an eight-week program for Aboriginal girls that covers everything from developing positive relationships, self-respect, and culture to life skills. Among other things, students learn about reacting to difficult social situations, how to be a good friend, public speaking, how to save money, budget, and how to create a resume.
The program uses the stories of proud and inspiring Aboriginal heroes like Ash Barty to facilitate discussion about the girls’ own experiences as young Aboriginal women. It also helps the students connect with their culture through traditional arts and crafts.
“Sista Speak gives the girls an opportunity to get to know each other and appreciate that everyone has their differences,” explains program mentor Khloe Favero, “It also prepares the girls for adulthood and gives them the skills to cope when they leave home.”
"We thought making wattleseed choc chip cookies would be a nice way to round out the term after the girls worked so hard," adds Khloe.
Some of the girls will spend Term 4 rehearsing hard for the Murrumbidgee performance at the School Spectacular later this term.
