There’s a moment every parent knows — you look up from your phone, or your kids look up from a screen, and somehow the afternoon has just slipped by.
As a busy mum of school-aged kids, juggling work and home life like so many of us on the Sunshine Coast, that moment happens more often than I’d like to admit.
So when the opportunity came up to grow the Sunflower Challenge again this year, I wanted to take it into a part of our community where I felt it could have a really positive impact — our local schools and kindys.
I loved the idea of giving kids something that would get them outside, hands in the dirt, watching something grow slowly and patiently.
Something simple. A seed, some sunlight, a bit of water, nurtured with a whole lot of love and hope.
And that’s how the Sunflower Challenge — Battle of the Schools was born. 🌻
Every participating school and kindy will plant sunflower seeds with their students and, over the coming weeks, the kids will get to watch them grow — checking in, measuring them and, hopefully, having a bit of fun debating whose sunflower is winning.
It’s a simple joy, and that’s exactly the point.
In a world full of screens, notifications and technology, there’s something pretty special about a child standing in front of a flower they’ve grown themselves.
Who’s blooming so far?
We’ve already had a fantastic response from schools and kindys across our community, including:
- Pelican Waters Bush and Beach Kindy
- Green Leaves Pelican Waters
- Caloundra State School
- Our Lady of the Rosary, Moffat Beach
- Currimundi State School
- Edge Aroona Kindy
- Bella Grace Aroona Kindy
- Meridan State College
- Notre Dame College
…and more are joining the battle every week.
Why it matters to me
The Sunflower Challenge is a lovely reminder to stop and enjoy the growth — not just in a garden bed, but in life.
I know how easily a school term can become a blur of work, drop-offs, pick-ups, sport, homework and everything else we somehow squeeze in. Sometimes it’s the really simple things that slow us down.
If the Sunflower Challenge does nothing more than get kids outside, checking on their sunflowers instead of a screen and feeling proud of something they’ve grown with their own hands, then I think that’s a win — regardless of whose sunflower ends up the biggest (or smallest!).
Good luck to every school and kindy taking part, and thank you for embracing the Challenge this year. I can’t wait to see what you grow and to meet you all again in person soon. 🌻
— Rachel Okuma, MOGG Property