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By:
Carmela Martino and 5 other authors,
on 4/3/2015
Blog:
Teaching Authors
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National Poetry Month,
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Howdy, Campers! Be sure to enter our Paul Janeczko BRAND NEW Poetry Book Give-Away (details below).
Happy Poetry Friday (today's host link is below)...and happy
!
In honor of
USA's annual poetry jubilee, I've invited someone to climb into the
TeachingAuthors' treehouse who looks a lot like my co-op roommates in the 1970's.
Who? Why
Paul B. Janeczko, that's who--magnificent
poet, poet herder,
anthologist, author,
speaker,
teacher, compassionate human and all-round cool guy. (Does this sound a little too fan-girl-ish? Full disclosure: my poems appear in five of Paul's anthologies.) Here's a previous
TeachingAuthors post about his beautiful, multi-star-reviewed collection illustrated by Melissa Sweet,
FIREFLY JULY--a Year of Very Short Poems. (And
here are all the TA posts which include the tag "Janeczko".)
Years ago, I was invited to shadow Paul when he visited schools in Southern California. Paul's a masterful and charismatic teacher, and he spreads poetry like Johnny Appleseed spread his you-know-whats. Paul's collections of poetry and his anthologies make poetry enjoyable and
do-able. (
Paul B. Janeczko and April Halprin Wayland
ha ha ha
Howdy, Paul! How did you become interested in writing?I got interested in writing when I was a 4th or 5th grader. Not by writing poems or stories, but by writing postcards and sending away for free stuff. I’d see these little ads in my mother’s Better Homes and Gardens: “Send a postcard for a free sample of tarnish remover.” I had to have it! I had nothing that was tarnished or would ever be tarnished, but I had to have it. It was the first time that I really wrote for an audience. And I knew I had an audience: I’d send off a postcard and get a free packet of zucchini seeds.
From postcards to post graduate...how did you officially become a TeachingAuthor? That is, tell us how you went from being an author to being a speaker/teacher in schools, etc, if this was your trajectory.Actually, for me in was more of a coming back to where I started. I started out as a high school English teacher. Did that for 22 years. During that time, I published 8-10 books, but I decided that I’d like to have more time to write. So, when my daughter, Emma, was born in 1990, I became a mostly-stay-at-home parent. Emma was with me a couple of days week and in child care the other days, and that’s when I did my writing and started doing author visits. So, in a lot of ways, it was a very easy transition for me.
I've seen the map, Paul--you're been to a gazillion schools. What have you noticed as you visit schools is a common problem students have these days? One of the main problems that I see is not so much a “student problem” as a “system problem,” and that is that most schools to not give writing the time it needs to have a chance to be good. The time pressure on teachers is enormous, notably when it comes to “teaching for the test.” So, teachers are, first of all, losing time to the actually testing, but they are also losing time prepping their kids for things that they do not necessarily believe in.
Can you hear our readers murmuring in agreement? But--how can you address this?Because it is a systemic problem, there’s little I can do about as a visiting writer. However, I make it clear to the teachers and the students that our goal in the workshop is not to create a finished poem. That will take time. What I do, however, is usually get the kids going on a few different poems and get the teacher to agree that he/she will spend class time working on those drafts.
You say you get the kids writing poems. Would you share one of your favorite writing exercises with our readers?More an approach than an exercise: I like to use poetry models when I work with young readers. I try to show them poems by published poets, but also poems by their peers. When you’re in the 4th grade, Emily Dickinson or Robert Frost may not impress you, but reading a poem by another 4th grader may be just the motivation that you need. And before I turn the kids loose to write, we read the poem, and I give them the chance to talk about what they notice in it. Then we do something a group rough draft so they can begin to see the writing process in action. Then it’s time for them to write. (
Readers, Paul has agreed to elaborate on this when he comes back here on Wednesday, 4/8/15 and gives us step-by-step instructions.)
You're so productive, Paul! What else is on the horizon for you?I am finishing an anthology of how-to poems, which will be published in the spring of 2016, with the illustrator to be determined. And I have 3 non-fiction books lined up for the next three years.
Little Lies: Deception in War will be a fall 2016 book. The two after that will be
Phantom Army: The Ghost Soldiers of World War II and
Heist: Art Thieves and the Detectives Who Tracked them Down. And I’m mulling a book of my own poems. Nothing definite on that project.
WOWEE Kazowee, Paul!
Since it's Poetry Friday in the Kidlitosphere, would you share with our readers?This is poem that I wrote for a
book of poems and illustrations that marked the 200th anniversary of the White House.Mary Todd Lincoln Speaks of Her Son’s Death, 1862by Paul B. Janeczko
When Willie died of the feverAbraham spoke the wordsthat I could not:“My boy is gone.He is actually gone.”
Gone.The word was a thunder clapdeafening me to my wailsas I folded over his bodyalready growing cold.
Gone.The word was a curtaincoming down on 11 years,hiding toy soldiers,circus animals,and his beloved train.
Gone.The word was poisonbut poison that would not killonly gag me with its bitternessas I choked on a prayer for my death.
Abraham spoke the wordsthat I could not:“My boy is gone.He is actually gone.”And I am left with grief when spokenshatters like my heart.
poem © Paul B. Janeczko 2015 ~ all rights reserved
Incredibly haunting, Paul. Thank you so much for climbing up to our treehouse today! And readers: remember, we're in for TWO treats:
(1) Enter below to win an autographed copy of Paul's newest anthology, his (gasp!) 50th book, Death of a Hat, illustrated by Chris Raschka. You can enter between now and 4/22/15 (which just happens to be TeachingAuthors' 5th Blogiversary!)
a Rafflecopter giveaway(2) Paul is coming back this Wednesday to this very blog to explain how he teaches on his poetry writing exercise. Thank you, Paul!
(P.S: Every April I post original poems. This year's theme is PPP--Previously Published Poems and you can find them
here.)
posted poetically by April Halprin Wayland and Monkey--who offered lots of ideas today...
One of the great parts of being an author is speaking to audiences about my books. While I enjoy every group, some are extra special. Recently I had the opportunity to travel to Miami, Florida, to share my book
In Defiance of Hitler: The Secret Mission of Varian Fry. This book is about Varian Fry, an American journalist who volunteered to go to Nazi controlled France in 1940 to order to rescue (mostly) Jewish refugees whose lives were in danger. This true story of one man who believed he could make a difference is filled with intrigue and danger. Ultimately, Varian Fry rescued more than 2000 people. Yet few Americans have ever heard his name.
I was invited by the
Holocaust Memorial Miami Beach to share the work of Varian Fry as part of Holocaust Education Week. They asked me to speak to three different audiences. The first night, I presented my program for the public at the Holocaust Memorial. It was an honor to speak about rescue during the Holocaust at a place dedicated to the memory of so many who were not rescued. Every Holocaust Memorial is different, and here the centerpiece is the massive statue of a hand reaching toward the sky with human figures huddled around the bottom. The sculpture is powerful and moving. It says so much-silently. In the audience that night, listening to my program were Holocaust survivors and the descendants of some who had been killed at Auschwitz.
The next morning I spoke to university students at Miami Dade College. Many in the audience – including one of the administrators – had come to American as refugees. As I shared about the refugees of 1940 leaving their homes, these young adults understood the concept in a much more personal way than my usual audience does.
In the afternoon, I presented my program to students at a private Jewish high school. These modern American students carrying their backpacks entered the room and chatted as they took their seats. While relating the work of Varian Fry, I told them about several people who helped him. One of them was a seventeen-year-old boy named Justus Rosenberg. He was their age and his life was in danger because he was Jewish. Rosenberg survived but countless other teens didn’t.
I shared the work of Varian Fry with three different audiences in Miami. Each one was very special.
Carla Killough McClafferty
We are currently running a giveaway for IN DEFENSE OF READ-ALOUD that ends at midnight on April 1. (CORRECTION NOTE: There was a typo in an earlier post that said the end date was April 6. The correct end date is April 1.) For more details see Esther Hershenhorn’s post:
http://www.teachingauthors.com/2015/03/a-two-for-price-of-one-interview-with.html
My path to becoming an author is . . . unusual. Like most writers, I’ve loved books all my life. Some of my earliest memories are of being bribed by the promise of a Golden Book if I would go to sleep in my own bed rather than my parent’s bed (I took the bribe). However, as I grew up, a wide variety of books were not readily available to me. Our small town didn’t have a library and neither did my elementary school. What passed as our “library” was a small collection of books sitting on the bookshelf below the wide windows that ran the whole length of the classroom.
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Peter Rabbit was my favorite book, and was also one my Mama bought to bribe me. |
Somewhere around the third grade I got a pink diary. I’d like to say my diary entries were long narratives about my hopes and dreams that show a budding writer’s flair for the dramatic. That is not the case. In reality my diary entries are so sparse that the entire text of my five year diary could fit on a napkin, a cocktail napkin. But when I look at that diary now, I do see the beginnings of an author—a nonfiction author. Each diary entry contains the facts and does not include any extraneous information or fluff. For example on one especially important day in history, July 20, 1969, I simply stated: “Dear Diary, the astronauts landed & are walking on the moon.” It is simple, to the point, and has the sense of immediacy—not a bad start for a future nonfiction author.
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My childhood diary shows an early glimpse into my future as a nonfiction author. My straightforward recording of the moon landing came just one day after my confession that I dreaded facing my piano teacher (I hadn't been practicing.) |
As an adult, my first career is as a Registered Radiologic Technologist. Next I became a wife and busy mother of three children. I read voraciously, but still had no thoughts of becoming a writer. In fact, I would never have become an author if tragedy had not entered my life. My youngest son, fourteen-month-old Corey, fell off of the backyard swing and died from a head injury. Life as I knew it ceased to exist. I was devastated, to say the least. Ultimately I wrote an inspirational book about the Spiritual battle I faced after Corey’s death and how God brought me through it and back to Him titled
Forgiving God. It was the first book I’d ever written.
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My first book, an adult inspirational book that deals with the death of my son, Corey. |
After my first book was published, I began writing nonfiction books for young readers. No classes. No journalism degree. No mentor. I just started researching and writing. Along the way I joined SCBWI, went to writer’s conferences, and learned all I could about children’s publishing. I listened to the old writer’s adage that says “write what you know” when I chose X-rays as the topic for my first book in this genre. That book, titled
The Head Bone’s Connected to the Neck Bone: The Weird, Wacky and Wonderful X-ray, was awarded the SCBWI work-in-progress grant and published by Farrar, Straus and Giroux (FSG). When that book was finished, I wondered if I could do it again. I could. The next two books,
Something Out of Nothing: Marie Curie and Radium and In Defiance of Hitler: The Secret Mission of Varian Fry were also published by FSG. Then came
The Many Faces of George Washington: Remaking a Presidential Icon published by Carolrhoda,
Tech Titans by Scholastic, and my newest book
Fourth Down and Inches: Concussion and Football’s Make-or-Break Moment also with Carolrhoda.
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My nonfiction books for young readers. |
Since libraries fill me with awe and appreciation, I’m thrilled to know that my books are in library collections all over the world. In some ways I’ve come full circle. I began as a child with no library access and I became a nonfiction author who has done research in some of the finest libraries in America including Columbia University, Harvard University, and the Boston Athenaeum.
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Doing research at the library at Harvard. |
I didn’t plan to become a writer or a public speaker. But the twists and turns of life have turned me into both, and they are a good fit for me. I love the challenge of researching a topic I know nothing about. I love to write about ordinary people who have done extraordinary things. I love to capture the imagination of a live audience and take them on a journey as I share with them the amazing things I’ve learned about the subjects of my books. And as an added bonus, researching my books has given me incredible life experiences that I will always treasure. I’ve visited Marie Curie’s office at the Radium Institute in Paris and sat in her chair, behind her desk. I’ve stayed on the grounds of George Washington’s home at Mount Vernon and watched the sunrise over the Potomac River while standing on the piazza. I’ve looked into the faces of men and women who were saved from the Nazis by Varian Fry and listened to their personal experiences. I’ve wept with the parents of teens who lost their lives as a result of concussions. I’ve presented programs in a wide variety of venues including C Span 2 Book TV, Colonial Williamsburg, the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, the U.S. Consulate in Marseilles, France, teacher conferences, workshops, and at many schools.
Now I’m honored to join this amazing group of women known as TeachingAuthors. It will be a whole new adventure and I’m looking forward to it.
Carla Killough McClafferty
www.carlamcclafferty.com
Happy October, everyone!
A few weeks ago, I posted about this being a time of transitions here on TeachingAuthors as we said farewell to the wonderful Jill Esbaum and Laura Purdie Salas, and welcomed back Mary Ann Rodman, one of the original TeachingAuthors. Today, I'm happy to announce the name of the newest member of our team (drumroll please):
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Bobbi at the wheel of the Lewis R French, an 1871 windjammer schooner and a National Historic Landmark. |
JoAnn and I met Bobbi while we were attending Vermont College, and we were struck by her vibrant personality as well as her writing talent. If you're a longtime
TeachingAuthors reader, you may recall that JoAnn shared a guest
TeachingAuthor interview with Bobbi
back in 2010. But Bobbi's been
VERY busy since then, as you can see from her official bio posted on our
About Us page. (If you haven't visited the
About Us page lately, I encourage you to check it out--I've updated the bios for several
TeachingAuthors.) Here's an excerpt from Bobbi's bio:
Bobbi Miller earned her MFA in Writing for Children from Vermont College, and was awarded honors with distinction for her Master of Arts in Children’s Literature degree from Simmons College in Boston. Her fifth book, a middle grade novel, Girls of Gettysburg (Holiday House) is recommended by Booklist as “a unique, exciting work.” School Library Journal calls the book a “riveting historical fiction.” The book is listed as a Hot Pick on Children’s Book Council for September 2014. Her first middle grade novel, Big River’s Daughter (Holiday House) comes recommended by the International Reading Association and was nominated for the Amelia Bloomer Project (American Library Association, 2013). The book is listed on A Mighty Girl’s Top 2013 Mighty Girl Books for Tweens and Teens. Bobbi has also written three picture books. Miss Sally Ann and the Panther (Holiday House) was selected to the Notable Social Studies Trade Books for Young People 2013 list, a cooperative project of the National Council for the Social Studies (NCSS) and the Children's Book Council. Her other two picture books, Davy Crockett Gets Hitched and One Fine Trade, also published by Holiday House, were listed on the Bank Street College of Education Best Books of 2010. When she isn't writing or researching, Bobbi teaches College Reading and Writing, Writing for Children, and Rhetoric and Professional Writing for local universities as well as online college courses.
So, as you can see, Bobbi comes to us with impressive credentials! We're thrilled to have her join our team.
You can read more about Bobbi and her work
at her website. Meanwhile, I hope you'll give her a hearty welcome when she posts here for the first time on Monday.
Happy Writing!
Carmela
I mentioned a few weeks ago that a new TeachingAuthor will be filling in for Mary Ann while she's gone. Today, I'm happy to welcome our newest TA (drumroll please!):
Although I've only met Laura virtually, through reading her blog posts, and via email and telephone, I can already tell she'll be a wonderful addition to our team. In case you don't know Laura or her work, here's a brief bio:
Laura Purdie Salas is the author of more than 120 books for kids and teens, including two recent books from Millbrook Press: Water Can Be ... and A Leaf Can Be ... (Bank Street Best Books, IRA Teachers' Choice, Minnesota Book Award Finalist, Riverby Award for Nature Books for Young Readers, and more), and Bookspeak! Poems About Books, published by Clarion (Minnesota Book Award, NCTE Notable, Bank Street Best Book, Eureka! Gold Medal, and more). She loves to introduce kids to poetry and help them find poems they can relate to, no matter what their age, mood, and personality, and she loves to get teachers excited about sharing poetry in their classrooms. She has also written numerous nonfiction books.
That's right, she's written over
120 books! Pretty amazing.
You can read more about Laura and her work
at her website. You can also
Like her on Facebook and/or
Follow her on Twitter @LauraPSalas or check out her writing coaching and critiquing services through
Mentors for Rent.
I hope you'll give Laura a hearty welcome when she posts here for the first time on Friday.
Also, be sure to join us again later this month when we celebrate the official release of her beautiful new book,
Water Can Be ... .
Happy Writing!
Carmela
Happy Friday! As I promised on Wednesday, today I'm bringing you an author who turned a close encounter with nature into a joyful and educational picture book. That author is Lisa Morlock.
Lisa works as a writer and educator in Urbandale, Iowa....She has taught middle school through college language arts classes, worked as a secondary administrator, and written and edited for Perfection Learning Corporation and Meredith Corporation. She has led writing workshops with TAG students and teacher workshops on the nature-literacy connection, as well as guesting for whole-school visit author programs. In addition, Lisa currently serves as the Assistant Regional Advisor for SCBWI-Iowa.
Lisa's picture book, her first, is
Track that Scat! (Sleeping Bear Press, 2012). From the publisher:
When Finn and her dog Skeeter set out on a hike to cure their restless feet, they literally take a step into nature. A big gooey step...right into scat (also known as poop). And just like the animal it comes from, scat comes in all shapes and sizes. Scat, along with foot or paw tracks, can tell a lot about the creature who produced it.
As Finn's hike takes her further into the woods, she happens along some scat and tracks from a variety of woodland creatures.
Pairing punchy rhyme with science writing, Lisa Morlock has created the perfect nature guide, providing detailed descriptions of the prints, diets, and behaviors of the animals that Finn and Skeeter encounter along their hike. Watch your step!
School Library Journal said about the book: "If the need arises to teach children how to identify wild animal scat, start with this picture book . . . The large spreads are inviting, and the dog, a basset hound, is cute, cute, cute, and the gross factor is likely to draw kids in."
IndieBound.org included the book on their
Spring 2012 Kids' Indie Next List.
Track that Scat! is like two books in one. Younger readers/listeners will giggle through the bouncy rhyming story, and older ones will enjoy the nonfiction info in Lisa's conversational sidebars. A winning combination! Speaking of winning, YOU can win a signed copy of the book! Details at the end of this post.
Lisa was kind enough to answer a few questions for us. (Added bonus: art by the book's illustrator, Carrie Anne Bradshaw)
What made you want to write a nature story, and Track that Scat! in particular?
As a family we spend a lot of time outdoors. Children love exploring and getting dirty and being free – all the things that happen outside.
I wrote Track that Scat! after my son and his friend managed to find a big flock of geese sitting on a pond. Once the geese saw two boys running their way, they took flight. Geese poop up to a third of their body weight per day, so guess what was left behind....
The boys' shoes were covered in green goose scat. That's when I realized it: kids love poop talk and aninals. There's so much to learn from tracks and scat.
Also, more and more research supports a nature-literacy-mental health connection, so I do like to see kids get outdoors.
From the book:
Finn lands upon a hollow log
And yells, "Come on!" to that old dog.
Five-toed tracks, like handprints–see?
A messy pile beneath the tree.
A den! Her hound plays show-and-smell–
dry leaves, fish bones, a walnut shell.
With one tromp-stomp
Finn's foot goes splat.
Oh no!
Right into ...
... raccoon scat!
What made you decide to write the story in rhyme?
I love rhyming stories. And good rhyming stories make great read-alouds! They're fun, kids anticipate words, and the repetition allows for participation.
As a past teacher, I look for stories that combine factual tidbits in a fun, fictional storyline. The characters pull kids in, but there's an added educational benefit that stays with them.
Where there any challenges between acceptance and publication?
After the story was accepted and edited, the publisher wanted to hear it in 3rd person rather than 1st person. At first, I didn't see how it could work, but changing the point of view made it much stronger. I'm so glad for the suggestion.
Another surprise was a character change. My son, Will, and his buddy, Jaden, were muses for the story. When the artwork came back, the main character was a girl. They were nine at the time and quiet disappointed with the pigtails.
What are you working on now?
I am working on another Finn and Skeeter story, a biography, a middle grade novel, and scads of other tales.
--------------------
Something to look forward to! Thanks for the interview, Lisa, and THANKS, too, for donating a signed copy of Track that Scat!
Jill Esbaum
To win
Track that Scat!, enter our contest below through Rafflecopter. If you aren't sure how it works, read
this. And click
here to learn the difference between signing in with Facebook vs. signing in with your e-mail address.
Choose one option for entering, or more (if you want to increase your odds of winning). The giveaway will run through Friday, September 6th. Good luck!
a Rafflecopter giveaway
By:
Aline Pereira,
on 11/5/2010
Blog:
PaperTigers
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This year the Hindu festival of Diwali is from Nov. 5-9. Today marks its beginning. I first heard about the festival from watching a National Film Board film called Lights for Gita in their Talespinners Collection (a series of short films for 5-9 year olds.) In this story, eight year old Gita, who lives in Montreal is excited about celebrating Diwali in her new country, but something unexpected happens — an ice storm knocks out power in the city. What will Gita do? Will this holiday celebrated with lights now be ruined for her? Check out the DVD by ordering it, or finding it at your local library!
PaperTigers with its focus on India this issue has a number of book suggestions about Diwali given in a revisited Personal Views article by Chad Stephenson. Pooja Makhijani also refers to Diwali in her Personal Views article entitled “A String of Bright Lights.” She mentions her Diwali book picks in a post she did for the children’s lit blog Chicken Spaghetti awhile back. In her post, she mentions how in northern India, Diwali is a celebration of the homecoming of Ram whose story can be found in her suggested picture book title Rama and the Demon King: An Ancient Tale from India by Jessica Souhami. I found Souhami’s book at my local library; it was a bilingual one in Somali and English! The story of Rama is found in the Hindu text The Ramayana which is a 24, 000 couplet poem written in Sanskrit by Valmiki around 300 B.C. My daughter’s view of this ancient story of Rama was rather quaint; she said she liked stories where the good guy (Rama) and a bad guy (Ravanna) fight it out over a woman (Sita) — although in this case, the bad guy is terrifying ten-headed demon!
Hope you have a happy Diwali this year! Poetry Friday is hosted by JoAnn at Teaching Authors.
Out and About!
Guess what? Teaching Authors are PORTABLE!
Today, five Teaching Authors gave a wildly successful workshop (I can say that, right?) at the Illinois Reading Council's 42nd annual Conference, and now we're schmoozing with teachers, attending banquets, and generally having a wild time. Woo-woo!Two magical, amazing and very smart professors from DePaul University--Roxanne Owens and Marie Donovan--introduced us and moderated our workshop, called Flabby to Fab-y: Writing Workouts to Shape Up Your Curriculum. As "personal trainers," we warmed-up, stretched, strength-trained, cardio-ed and cooled down the attendees...and then awarded them tres cool certificates of completion to hang on their walls with pride.
And yes...we really did teach them one actual physical exercise! In the break-out sessions we taught hands-on writing exercises.Spring in Springfield, IL is fabulous--wish you were here!
I lack April Halprin Wayland’s artistic skills and techy equipment, so please read my TeachingAuthors’ 2010 Writer’s Resolution below as if blinking marquis-worthy neon lights (maybe ruby red and silver?) showcase the six thoughtfully-chosen words.
“Start each day with - my - stories!”
That’s what I used to do, way back when, when writing and only writing claimed my day and heart.
I lived and breathed my characters’ stories; their words and actions consumed my waking moments.
And sleeping moments, too, actually.
I’d trained my brain to work the nightshift, assigning it a problem to solve the second sleep befell me.
More times than not, I awoke with the solution. I was off and running, soon lost in my story.
A lover of quest stories, I shouldn’t have been surprised when my writer’s journey brought me something even better than the published children's books I’d sought: namely, teaching and coaching.
Helping others find and tell their stories utilized and maximized all I had become.
How could I not embrace both treasures with heart and soul?
Except that, with but 24 hours in a day, seven days in a week, four weeks in a month, twelve months in a year, my stories soon sat (way too) comfortably off in a corner of my writing room, watching me start my day with another.
They sought my attention, those stories of mine – waving, humming, calling my name.
But oh, how delicious my students’ and clients’ successes!
Not until this past year, writing and publishing S is for Story: A Writer’s Alphabet, was I able to admit: I miss my writing!
Happily I realized, none too late, that feeding and satisfying the Writer in me first, helps me better feed and nurture my students and clients.
A Win-Win solution, thanks to the light of a brand new year.
In the beginning is your end, of course; in the end is your beginning. Or as Richard Peck advises, “Your first page holds the last; your last page the first.”
What better way to remain resolute, to ensure I honor my six-word intention, than to creatively visualize my resolution’s results?
The December 24, 2009 edition of the Chicago Tribune invited readers to sum up their year in a single 140-characters-or-less Tweet.
I invited myself to do the same, for 2010, assuming I’d honored my opening resolution.
Once again, please read the thoughtfully-chosen words below as if showcased in blinking marquis-worthy neon lights (maybe royal blue and gold?).
“Wrote and sold pb bio, board book,
re-visioned Mg novel, grew writer/teacher/
librarian workshops, helped countless
writers find and tell their stories.”
Hurrah! Hurrah!
And, Happy New Year!
Esther Hershenhorn
P.S.
Don't forget to post your six-word resolution and win a copy of April Halprin Wayland’s award-winning picture book New Year at the Pier.
(1) Provide your email address or a link to your own blog in your comment so that we can contact you.
(U.S. residents only, please.)
New Teaching Authors Blog Features Ann Whitford Paul...
Teaching Authors kicked off in April as a new resource for teachers, librarians, and writers. This blog by is maintained by six children's book authors with a wide range of experience teaching writing--April Halprin Wayland, Esther Hershenhorn, Jeanne Marie Grunwell Ford, JoAnn Early Macken, Mary Ann Rodman, and Carmela Martino--with the intent to "share our unique perspective as writing teachers who are also working writers."
"In addition to discussing what we've learned about writing and the teaching of writing, we also hope to accomplish something on the blog that we can't do on our websites: facilitate conversations between writers, teachers, and librarians about the subjects we love best--writing, teaching writing, and reading," says Carmela Martino.
To encourage that interaction, Teaching Authors is open to topic suggestions from their readers. (See the Ask the Teaching Authors section in the blog sidebar to submit writing or teaching uestions.)
Today Teaching Authors offers their first Guest Teaching Author interview featuring Ann Whitford Paul, who I had the pleasure of working with on her WD title Writing Picture Books. Visit Teaching Authors to read the terrific interview with Ann and you could win an autographed copy of WPB--readers have until 11 pm Friday (central time) to enter. (Contest rules will be posted.)
What a great interview. Thanks for introducing us to this book, Jill. And thank you, Lisa, for sharing this excerpt with us. I especially love:
"Her hound plays show-and-smell" :-)
What gorgeous illustrations, too!
You're welcome, Carmela!
Great interview Jill!! I just love how Lisa's book is both entertaining and educational!
Jill, thanks for sharing this wonderful interview. Lisa's book is definitely one that my kids and I will enjoy as we hike our forested backyard. Love the rhymes in the excerpt you shared, too.
I agree that kids are such huge fans of anything delightfully-icky and gross. I am sure this book would be a huge hit. Thanks for sharing this! Lovely interview too.
Thanks, and you're welcome! Wish you all could win. :)
This sounds like a great book and a great subject for a book! I'd love to win an autographed copy. Thank you for the opportunity!
This book, Lisa could inspire those who aren't nature lovers to give it a try! Scootin' along on a scatty adventure. :D
Learning can be fun and this lovely rhyme book proves it. Great illustrations too!
Loved hearing for Lisa! Thanks Jill!
Students at our school are out in nature lots, so this book would be a great addition to our field books for the youngest students. Thanks for telling your story, Lisa!
Good luck, everybody!
This sounds like such an awesome book...wish I was still teaching 4th grade. It is right up their alley.
This sounds like such a fun and educational book! I love the idea!
What a great idea for a book.......love the non-fictional elements and the rhyming format!