Drum roll please!!! Strike up the band!!! It’s time to post some wonderful stories written by children!!!
When I do school visits and story hour events, there’s one thing I notice. The kids love telling their OWN stories. And that’s what #50PreciousWordsforKids is all about!
These young kids have definitely discovered the storyteller that lives in them.
MAGIC HAPPENS WHEN YOU MAKE EVERY WORD COUNT Continue reading
Happy Perfect Picture Book Friday, my friends! I had a fabulous time at the NESCBWI conference in Springfield, Massachusetts last weekend. The keynotes were amazing…Jane Yolen, Patricia MacLachlan and Lynda Mullaly Hunt. My presentations went really well…I think folks walked away feeling they had gotten something of value. And getting to hug lots of kidlit friends was so much fun!
Today’s book is so much fun also and it’s from one of my fellow #Newin19 teammates, Mia Wenjen who hosts the fabulous Pragmatic Mom blog.
But, before we get to the review, we owe someone a book. Two weeks ago, Jodi McKay offered a copy of her newest picture book, PENCIL’S PERFECT PICTURE, and the winner is: Continue reading
Logo by Vicky Fang
When I do school visits and story hour events, there’s one thing I notice. The kids LOVE listening to me read. But even more, they love telling their OWN stories. And that’s what #50PreciousWordsforKids is all about!
We want to encourage young kids to discover the storyteller that lives in them. Continue reading
Happy Perfect Picture Book Friday, my friends! I’m still in Chicago, but I wanted to make sure I shared this lovely new book by Jodi McKay. Think THE DOT meets THE DAY THE CRAYONS QUIT. It’s a story that will encourage kids to draw for pleasure, do their best, and have fun…and it launches in just a few days. And author McKay is donating a copy of the book as a GIVEAWAY…YAY! Please make sure you leave a comment to be entered for a chance to win.
PENCIL’S PERFECT PICTURE
Written by Jodi McKay
Illustrated by Juliana Motzko
Published by Albert Whitman (2019)
Ages: 3-5
Themes: Do your best; art; believe in yourself
Synopsis: From Amazon:
Pencil is trying to draw the perfect picture for his dad. So, he asks his friends Brush, Pastel, Marker, Crayon, and Chalk what makes their art perfect. But they each have a different answer. How will Pencil be able to create his own perfect picture?
Why I love this book:
RELATED ACTIVITIES:
Deocrated Pencils
Photo courtesy: https://thediydreamer.com/crafts/decorative-pencils-family-craft/
How about making the perfect pencil? For detailed instructions: https://thediydreamer.com/crafts/decorative-pencils-family-craft/
And remember, the greatest gift we can give an author is to buy their book, review their book, tell a friend about their book, and ask our local library to add the book to their colloection.
Don’t forget to leave a comment for a chance to win a copy of PENCIL’S PERFECT PICTURE. We’d love to hear how you felt about your art when you were a kid.
For more wonderful picture book reviews, please visit Susanna Leonard Hill’s Perfect Picture Book Friday post.
I hope you all have a wonderful weekend. Please stay tuned for the #50PreciousWordsforKids International Writing Challenge: April 29-May 6…if you know any teachers or parents who might want their children to participate, please pass along the information.
Happy EARTH DAY 2019. I can hardly believe that next year will mark the 50th Anniversary. Where were you on that day in 1970? I think Stuart and I were collecting litter at one of our favorite fly-fishing spots on the Shepaug River in Washington, Connecticut.
It was a place like that which inspired me to write FOUR OTTERS TOBOGGAN: An Animal Counting Book. And I was fortunate to have the amazing talent of Mirka Hokkanen to bring the story to life with her modern woodcuts. For more thoughts about how we can protect endangered animals, please hop over to Ronna Mandel’s blog, Goodreads with Ronna, and say hello – I’m chatting about Earth Day and the environment and why I wrote FOUR OTTERS TOBOGGAN in the hopes that it would encourage children to cherish their world and its wildlife.
We are all storytellers. One of the things that fills me with wonder and joy is when I interact with kids at schools, libraries, and bookstore events. They love listening to the story I read. But even more than that, they want to tell me THEIR stories.
And that is what #50PreciousWordsforKids International Writing Challenge is all about.
We want to encourage young kids to discover the storyteller that lives in them.
And we also want them to understand the value of each word. Continue reading
Hold on to your seats, everyone! We are ready to blast off! Our Perfect Picture Book Friday story is the obvious choice for such a momentous blog post that will also contain the WINNERS of #50PreciousWords.
Most of you know that I left home on February 19 and didn’t get back until April 8. That time was spent in Sydney at the Australia/NZ SCBWI conference (which rocked!) and sightseeing through the beautiful city and its lovely beach areas. Maria Marshall and I walked EVERYWHERE! Below is a photo of Maria and me at a beach where they had the most amazing poster art graffiti – since my slogan is Nothing is Impossible if You Can Imagine It…we had to take a pic with the bottle of dreams and me holding the little heart pillow my six-year old granddaughter had sewed for me to take on my trip as a little lovey.
Hurray! I’m back home…and it’s Friday…and you know what that means. A review of a wonderful picture book!
Before I share the review, I need to celebrate my return from an incredible round-the-world journey by announcing the winners of several giveaways (and hopefully, by Sunday, I will be able to announce the winners of the #50PreciousWords and give everyone a heads-up regarding the #50PreciousWordsforKids International Writing Challenge).
A big thank you to all of the generous authors and illustrators who Continue reading
