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Thank you, Myra and Vicki, for a most informative interview.

Wow. I've been wondering what this new Common Core Standard was all about. Thanks for giving us such a nice, concise summary.

Congratulations and a big thanks to Vicki and Myra for this timely and fascinating post. Here's hoping that a few teachers out there will latch onto some of Myra's teaching strategies with the Common Core Standards in mind. I especially like the way she contrasts and compares 2 or more very different nonfiction books that cover the same material because this approach helps students learn to think on their own and to realize that there's more than one monolithic way to approach a given subject. I also think it's great advice to focus on a single compelling book to teach multiple topics.

If teachers don't know nonfiction books, they should run, not walk, to the school library! Every I.N.K. author is already on the shelves in the libraries in my school district, and we're focused on adding more.

I'm sure my elementary experience is not unique. K-2 boys want to read nonfiction. A student will carefully work his way through the dinosaur books, move on to astronomy, or snakes, etc. He'll excitedly tell me all the facts he learned as he returns each book. Then a well-meaning teacher says, "You have to check out a chapter book." By 4th grade, this boy who read nonfiction avidly assumes he's not a reader, because he doesn't enjoy fiction. The emphasis on nonfiction reading in the CCSS may help us keep those boys identifying themselves as readers!

Remember, teachers, authors and librarians make a great team when transitioning to the Common Core! Your library staff should be able to make great suggestions for incorporating nonfiction into your lessons.

Vickie and Myra,thank-you.This interview is a primer for teachers as well as writers of non-fiction for young readers. We are there to inspire, as well as inform our students/readers. We also have to be aware of the changes in education in America, along with the very real problems.

Thank you so much for this timely post. I've been reading Marc Aronson's "Nonfiction Matters" as well, and between the two of you, I feel I am starting to understand the Common Core. It is truly an exciting time for nonfiction writers! Kirsten W. Larson

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