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Author friends… Many of you have donated to the Red Cross and/or donated signed books for our KidLitCares for Oklahoma donation drive, so first of all…thanks!  Some of you also wanted to know about sending books to Oklahoma to help libraries and schools affectd by the recent EF5 tornado. Here’s an update on that.

Aerial view of damage – photo via OK National Guard

The Moore Public Library was very close to the storm’s path but was not damaged, which means the library is an amazing resource and sanctuary for displaced families right now. They say they do not need books for the library at this point, but they would LOVE to have some signed books to give away to kids enrolled in their summer reading program. There is not a need for used books or large-scale donations  but if any author/illustrator friends would like to send a signed book or two, perhaps with a quick message of hope and support, that would be welcome and wonderful. I’m sending along signed copies of HIDE AND SEEK and SUGAR AND ICE.

The Pioneer Library System will collect the books & drive them to Moore to be put directly into kids’ hands. Any extra books will be shared with teachers who need to replenish their classroom libraries.

Here’s the address:

Pioneer Library System

Attn: Kate Lyon

1210 McGee Drive

Norman, OK 73072

 

Again – this is an invitation for authors & illustrators to send signed books that you’d like to see distributed to kids in the Summer Reading Program. Please do NOT send boxes of used books or other large-scale donations at this time. If there’s a need for that down the road (and there may well be as schools prepare to rebuild), that will be a separate effort.

Yesterday, while I was talking about books and writing with an amazing group of 4th and 5th graders in Western New York, another group of elementary school students took shelter in their school, clinging to walls, huddling in the protective arms of their teachers as a tornado swept through their city. Later on, I saw the rescue crews on the news, and my heart ached for all of those families.

I spent time in the Oklahoma City area when I was researching my weather thriller, Eye of the Storm, and the people were so welcoming and wonderful. Those of us who weren’t in the storm’s path may be in a position to help now. So here’s a chance to do that.

Instead of pulling together an auction like we did to benefit the SuperStorm Sandy KidLitCares relief effort, I thought we’d try something faster, because Oklahoma needs help right now, given the magnitude of damage from this week’s EF5 tornado. Please consider making a donation to the American Red Cross Disaster Relief Effort now. If you donate at least $10, I’ll enter you in a drawing to win a signed book.

I’m donating some of my books, and some other authors are doing the same – not because a book giveaway is the real reason to make this donation but because it’s a way for the children’s literature community to promote the effort and say thanks to those who decide to donate. I’m hoping that we can also donate signed books to the library system that serves families affected by the tornado, either to add to their collections or to distribute to displaced families. More on that when things settle down some…but here’s the KidLitCares Donation Drive information.

To be entered in the KidLitCares for Oklahoma Book Giveaway:

Click here and make a donation of at least $10 for  American Red Cross Disaster Relief. Ideally, you’ll do this now. Like, right now. But if you want to be entered for the book drawing, be sure to do it before 12pm EST on June 7th.  I’ll enter your name in the drawing once for each $10 you donate. So a $50 donation equals five chances to win.

You’ll receive an email receipt from the Red Cross.  Forward that receipt to kidlitcares@gmail.com, and you’ll automatically be entered in the drawing for one of our donated signed books!  You can see an ever-updating list of donated signed books below!

On June 7th, I’ll draw names for as many books as we have donated. I’ll contact you via email if you win so that you can provide a mailing address for the author to mail your signed book. Because our authors are donating postage, books can be mailed to US addresses only. (Sorry!) Again – the deadline is 12pm EST on June 7th.

 

***NEWSFLASH 5/22 2pm : We’ve just had a MEGA-DONATION FOR A GRAND-PRIZE GIVEAWAY!!

One of my amazing publishers, Chronicle Books, has just donated TWO great big prize packages for KidLitCares for Oklahoma Red Cross donors. One is a collection of great Chronicle YA titles, and the other is a spectacular picture book package. So here’s what we’re going to do…

Whoever makes the LARGEST Red Cross donation via KidLitCares before noon EST on June 7th will get to choose one of these two packages as a thank you gift.  The other package will be given to one of our $10 or more donors, chosen in a random drawing. That way, there’s incentive to give BIG if you can – as well as incentive to give whatever you can, even if your heart is bigger than your wallet. 🙂  Check out these great titles…

Chronicle Books YA Books KidLitCares Thank You Package

PRISONERS IN THE PALACE by Michaela MacColl

GIRL MEETS BOY by Kelly Milner Halls

THE SPACE BETWEEN TREES by Katie Williams

THE ORPHAN OF AWKWARD FALLS by Keith Graves

 

Chronicle Books PICTURE BOOKS KidLit Cares Thank You Package

HIS SHOES WERE FAR TOO TIGHT by Daniel Pinkwater and Calef Brown

WUMBERS by Amy Krouse Rosenthal and Tom Lichtenheld

BEARS! BEARS! BEARS!  by Bob Barner

IT’S A TIGER by David LaRochelle and Jeremy Tankard

AN EGG IS QUIET by Dianna Aston and Sylvia Long

DUCK! RABBIT! by Amy Krouse Rosenthal and Tom Lichtenheld

FLORA AND THE FLAMINGO by Molly Idle

CHLOE INSTEAD by Micah Player

 

Update: 5/24 – Another Mega-Donation from Boyds Mills Press – this will be given away as another grand prize in our drawing!

 

WORDSONG Book Basket from Boyds Mills Press

 

Cowboys by David L. Harrison

Bug Off by Jane Yolen

Running with Trains by Michael J. Rosen

If You Were a Chocolate Mustache by J. Patrick Lewis

Grumbles from the Forest by Rebecca Kai Dotlich and Jane Yolen

Face Bug by J. Patrick Lewis

 

Please donate – and  help us spread the word about KidLitCares for Oklahoma by sharing this link on Twitter, Facebook and wherever else you have friends!

http://katemessner.com/lets-help-kidlitcares-for-oklahoma/

 

Here’s the list of books that have already been donated and will be given away on June 7th…

(It will grow…and I will try my best to keep up with it…please be patient! New books will be added daily.)

HIDE AND SEEK by Kate Messner

WAKE UP MISSING by Kate Messner

THE REINVENTION OF EDISON THOMAS by Jacqueline Houtman

SIRENS by Janet Fox

BIGGER THAN A BREADBOX by Laurel Snyder

PASSING THE MUSIC DOWN by Sarah Sullivan

SMALL MEDIUM AT LARGE by Joanne Levy

1 ZANY ZOO by Lori Degman

THE GENTLEMAN BUG by Julian Hector

TRADING FACES by Julie DeVillers and Jennifer Roy

BEDEVILED: DADDY’S LITTLE ANGEL by Shani Petroff

HOUNDS: LOYAL HUNTING COMPANIONS by Becky Levine

THE SINISTER SWEETNESS OF SPLENDID ACADEMY by Nikki Loftin

SPLISH SPLASH! by Naomi Davis

COUNTING ON GRACE by Elizabeth Winthrop

THE GOLLYWHOPPER GAMES by Jody Feldman

PRINCESS OF THE WILD SWANS by Diane Zahler

FLUTTER by Gina Linko

WHERE DO DIGGERS SLEEP AT NIGHT by Brianna Caplan Sayres

THE WIG IN THE WINDOW by Kristen Kittscher

I DARE YOU NOT TO YAWN! by Helene Boudreau

THE CENTER OF EVERYTHING by Linda Urban

SEE YOU AT HARRY’S by Jo Knowles

CANARY IN THE COAL MINE by Madelyn Rosenberg

NO SAFETY IN NUMBERS by Dayna Lorentz

HOPE IN PATIENCE by Beth Fehlbaum

COWBOY CAMP by Tammi Sauer

THE 12 DAYS OF CHRISTMAS IN OKLAHOMA by Tammi Sauer

NUGGET AND FANG by Tammi Sauer

THE WATER CASTLE by Megan Frazer Blakemore

ONE FOR THE MURPHYS by Linda Mullaly Hunt

WANT TO GO PRIVATE by Sarah Darer Littman

LIFE, AFTER by Sarah Darer Littman

CHICKEN SOUP FOR THE SOUL: THE POWER OF POSITIVE by Sarah Darer Littman

THE UNQUIET by Jeannine Garsee

SAY THE WORD by Jeannine Garsee

BEYOND LUCKY by Sarah Aronson

I’M BORED by Debbie Ridpath Ohi

THOUSAND WORDS by Jennifer Brown

MADHATTAN MYSTERY by John J. Bonk

THE FLINT HEART by Katherine Paterson (signed by Katherine Paterson & John Rocco, donated by Anne Moore)

TEACH YOUR BUFFALO TO PLAY DRUMS by Audrey Vernick

THE UNIVERSE OF FAIR by Leslie Bulion

BROTHERS AT BAT: THE TRUE STORY OF AN AMAZING ALL-BROTHER BASEBALL TEAM  by Audrey Vernick

SCARS by Cheryl Rainfield

STAINED (ARC) by Cheryl Rainfield

PHANTOM STALLION: THE WILD ONE by Terri Farley

THE CAMPING TRIP THAT CHANGED AMERICA by Barb Rosenstock

FEARLESS by Barb Rosenstock

THE SWEETEST THING by Christina Mandelski

BOY + BOT by Ame Dyckman

THE MAPMAKER AND THE GHOST by Sarvenaz Tash

NEVER EIGHTEEN by Megan Bostic

MELONHEAD AND THE BIG STINK by Katy Kelly

FOREST HAS A SONG by Amy Ludwig Vanderwater

COMPLETE set of CHARLIE JOE JACKSON book!! by Tommy Greenwald

THE SMALL ADVENTURES OF POPEYE AND ELVIS by Barbara O’Connor

ETERNAL by Cynthia Leitich Smith

CHRONAL ENGINE by Greg Leitich Smith

THE TEMPLETON TWINS HAVE AN IDEA by Ellis Weiner

IF IT’S NO TROUBLE…A BIG POLAR BEAR by Lisa Dalrymple

GLORY BE by Augusta Scattergood

WHY KIMBA SAVED THE WORLD by Meg Dendler

MY COLD PLUM LEMON PIE BLUESY MOOD by Tameka Fryer Brown

HOW MARTHA SAVED HER PARENTS FROM GREEN BEANS by David LaRochelle

ME AND MEOW by Adam Gudeon

NOBODY’S SECRET by Michaela MacColl

DOUBLE VISION by F.T. Bradley

BOOKS 1-3 in the JAGUAR STONES series by J and P Voelkel

THESE SEAS COUNT by Alison Formento

MERELY DEE by Marian Cheatham

AUDITION AND SUBTRACTION by Amy Fellner Dominy

BIG SLICK by Eric Luper

WILD THINGS by Clay Carmichael

BROTHER, BROTHER (ARC) by Clay Carmichael

GONE FISHING: A NOVEL IN VERSE by Tamera Will Wissinger

WHEN A DRAGON MOVES IN by Jodi Moore

GOOD NEWS NELSON by Jodi Moore

ABSENT by Katie Williams

THE REVENANT by Sonia Gensler

OUT OF NOWHERE by Maria Padian

ISABELLA, STAR OF THE STORY by Jennifer Fosberry

WRITE A POEM STEP BY STEP by JoAnn Early Macken

WAITING OUT THE STORM by JoAnn Early Macken

KEEPER by Kathi Appelt

TRUE BLUE SCOUTS OF SUGAR MAN SWAMP by Kathi Appelt

MISS LADY BIRD’S WILDFLOWERS by Kathi Appelt

PICKLE by Kim Baker

THE 13TH SIGN by Kristin O’Donnell Tubb

SELLING HOPE by Kristin O’Donnell Tubb

AUTUMN WINIFRED OLIVER DOES THINGS DIFFERENT by Kristin O’Donnell Tubb

FREEDOM’S FIRE by Elizabeth Falk

THE RED UMBRELLA by Christina Diaz Gonzalez

A THUNDEROUS WHISPER by Christina Diaz Gonzalez

THE BARFTASTIC LIFE OF LOUIE BURGER by Jenny Meyerhoff

SAMI’S SLEEPAWAY SUMMER by Jenny  Meyerhoff

GIVE UP THE GHOST by Megan Crewe

THE WAY WE FALL by Megan Crewe

AFTER ELI by Rebecca Rupp

THE DRAGON OF LONELY ISLAND by Rebecca Rupp

POOP HAPPENED by Sarah Albee

SECRETS AND SHADOWS by Shannon Delany

WEATHER WITCH (ARC w/ author notations & hand-crafted bookmark!) by Shannon Delany

OPEN THIS LITTLE BOOK by Jesse Klausmeier

FAIRY BELL SISTERS 1 & 2 by Julia Denos

CALL ME OKLAHOMA by Miriam Glassman

DO PRINCESSES WEAR HIKING BOOTS? by Carmela LaVigna Coyle

DO PRINCESSES REALLY KISS FROGS? by Carmela LaVigna Coyle

DO PRINCESSES SCRAPE THEIR KNEES by Carmela LaVigna Coyle

DO PRINCESSES HAVE BEST FRIENDS FOREVER? by Carmela LaVigna Coyle

THANK YOU, AUNT TALLULAH! by Carmela LaVigna Coyle

DO SUPER HEROES HAVE TEDDY BEARS? by Carmela LaVigna Coyle

THE THING ABOUT GEORGIE by Lisa Graff

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, BUNNY! by Liz Garton Scanlon

THE HUMMING ROOM by Ellen Potter

THE KNEEBONE BOY by Ellen Potter

MUSTACHE BABY by Bridget Heos

BEASTLY FEASTS by Robert L. Forbes

LET’S HAVE A BITE! by Robert L. Forbes

BEAST FRIENDS FOREVER by Robert L. Forbes

HEAVENLY by Jennifer Laurens

OVERPROTECTED by Jennifer Laurens

MAGIC HANDS by Jennifer Laurens

ONCE UPON A TOAD by Heather Vogel Frederick

GOLDIE LOCKS HAS CHICKEN POX and LITTLE BO PEEP CAN’T GET TO SLEEP by Erin Dealey

CANTA, RANA, CANTA/SING, FROGGIE, SING by Carolyn Flores

DEVIANTS and COMPLIANCE (Dust Chronicles 1 & 2) by Maureen McGowan

Dear Ms. Creech,

This is a thank you note mixed with a confession. Read on, and you’ll understand.

First, I have to say that I loved your talk at the New England SCBWI Conference and was thrilled to finally meet you in person.

So thank you for that. But that’s only part of the thank you.  Before I get to the rest, I have to do the confession part.

So…you know that poem you have on your website? The one that explains to teachers why you can’t accept any more invitations for school visits this year?  It starts like this:

My phone is ringing

and the fax is going
and sometimes I am sick

(I hope you are not sick!)
and my car needs fixing

and I have to go
to the grocery store
and do the laundry

and clean up messes
and I am supposed to be
writing a new book
which takes a lot of time
to think about and
to write all those little words…

 

(The rest of Sharon’s why-I-can’t-visit poem  is here,  for those of you who are not Sharon and don’t know how it goes.)

You might not remember this, but a whole bunch of years ago – maybe nine or ten – you got an email from a teacher begging you to requesting that you consider making an exception to your no-more-school-visits-this-year policy.  It was written as a poem, too, because she thought you might like that, and she figured it was worth a try.  She doesn’t have that exact poem any more, but it went something like this.

We know that you are busy

Answering your phone

And buying food

and doing laundry

and sneezing

(Bless you)

And writing books we adore..

But we love-love-love those books so much

And wondered if you might sneak away

To visit us anyway.

It would just be for a day,

And then you could go back

To your grocery-shopping

Laundry-doing, phone answering, sneezing life

(Bless you)

To write more magical stories

For us all to love.

 

That teacher figured it was a long shot. (She used to be a reporter and understood all about deadlines.) But your poem inspired her poem, just like that, and before she knew it, she’d gone and hit the send button.

Your schedule was too busy to visit.  (She figured it would be.) But you made time to write back. You told her you loved her poem, that it made you smile.

And that made her whole teacher-day.

That teacher was me.

And that explains why I had to sit down when you tweeted this picture last week, saying you found your book in good company at the bookstore.  There’s your book on the left, and beside it, Grace Lin’s book, and then mine. Roald Dahl and Karen Cushman are there, too, just for good measure.

 

Thanks for making my day.   Again.

Last Friday, I was lucky enough to be one of the two keynote speakers for Vermont’s annual Dorothy Canfield Fisher Conference, a full day celebration of books and reading.  When this invitation landed in my email a while back, I have to admit that I did a little happy-dance. First, because Vermont teachers and librarians are some of the nicest, funniest, most dedicated people you’ll ever meet.  And second, because the other keynote speaker was Barbara O’Connor.  I left home at the crack of dawn so I’d arrive in time for Barbara’s morning talk, and it was so worth it. She talked about realistic fiction for kids. How real should it be?  Barbara’s keynote was funny and thoughtful and got me thinking about my own writing, too.

Barbara and I have chatted back and forth on Twitter and Facebook for years, but this was the first time we’d ever met in person, unless you count 20 seconds on an escalator once.  I was at a big conference –NCTE or IRA or something like that — and heading up the escalator to one of my sessions, when I saw Barbara on the other side of the railing on the down escalator. “Barbara, hi!” I called and waved wildly in the way that only true author-stalkers wave.  Barbara waved back and said hi but now claims to have no recollection of this. So we’ve decided to call this our first meeting.

One of my favorite things about this conference is the number of kids who are invited to present sessions alongside their teachers and librarians.  I was sad that I didn’t get to sit in on all their sessions, but I did catch a glimpse of some Camels Hump Middle School students giving book talks to tables full of teachers and librarians. They all handled themselves so beautifully, and it was clear that when you love books, there really are no age boundaries. We’re all just book people.

Another happy conference moment came when I had time to look through the books on next year’s DCF List. That’s Vermont’s Children’s Choice Award, and the nominations this year include many of my favorite titles from 2013.  Seeing friends’ books on display at a conference is always fun — like spotting the actual friends through a crowd of people — so I couldn’t resist snapping a photo.

Many thanks, Vermont teachers and librarians, for such a wonderful, warm welcome at this year’s DCF conference. I loved spending the day celebrating stories with all of you!

I’m not a big recipe-sharing person online, but today is one of those days…  In a little while, I’m giving a Skype historical fiction writing workshop for a school in Vermont, and later I have a virtual author visit with 2nd graders in Ohio. I’m on deadline for a new book that I’ll be working on, and the kids have after-school activities that will have them eating dinner at all hours. It’s a Busy-Day Crockpot Turkey Stew kind of day.

This is one of my go-to recipes when I’m busy at home or heading out of town for an author visit in the morning and want to have dinner ready for the family later on. It’s hearty and super-quick — about ten minutes prep time — and makes a big batch.

I know a lot of my blog readers are also busy writers, teachers, librarians, and moms, so I thought I’d share.  The directions are simple:

THROW ALL OF THESE THINGS INTO YOUR BIG CROCK POT:

5 or 6 turkey breast cutlets, cut into chunks

2 packages of potato gnocchi (I use this kind…but you can use whatever you like)

64 ounces of chicken broth (I use two of these, but again…whatever)

A bunch of chopped garlic (2 tablespoons or more if you love garlic)

About a cup of chopped onions

Half a package of frozen corn

Half a package of frozen peas

Half a package of those matchsticks-cut carrots

A couple good handfuls of dried cranberries

Give it all a good stir. It will look kind of like this…

Set your crock pot for 7.5 – 8 hours on low. Go write your books or teach your students or whatever else you need to do.  The starch in the gnocchi will make a lovely, thick stew while you’re off doing interesting things. Serve it with some salad and a crusty loaf of bread, and dinner’s good to go.  This is my big, mom’s-probably-out-of-town-for-two-days batch.  If you have a smaller crock pot or don’t want leftovers, just split everything on the ingredients list in half.

I spent this weekend at the New England SCBWI Conference, which is always an amazing opportunity to talk writing and learn about craft as well as a chance to see so many friends. This was the first regional SCBWI Conference I attended back in 2007, and I so remember working up the courage to say hello to Jo Knowles and Loree Griffin Burns, both of whom I recognized from their blogs. Now, I’m lucky enough to count both as friends, along with so many other amazing writers whose company I enjoyed this weekend. If you’ve never been to a writing conference but want to give one a try, I highly recommend this one.

A highlight this year was getting to clap for Jo when she accepted her 2012 Crystal Kite Award for PEARL.  I was sitting in the back, so Jo is tiny in this photo, but I promise you, she’s there, and she’s smiling.

 

I presented two workshops at this year’s conference – one on revision and one on mystery writing. Here are the fantastic writers who attended my revision workshop, hard at work…

And here are a couple of them in a more active writing activity, an emotional role-play that we used to replace cliched body language.

We talked about using maps, timelines, and charts as revision tools. After the session, Michelle Cusolito came by my signing table to show me the timeline she was using to keep track of events in her novel-in-progress.  Michelle and I share a deep and abiding love for really big paper…

 I had a few people waiting with books when I arrived for the author signing, so I dug out my pens and got right to work. I kept wanting to say hello to Dawn Metcalf and Hazel Mitchell and see what they were doodling on their tablecloth at the next table over.  But every time I started to get up, someone else came with a book. Finally, I got to see their masterpiece — a fantastical interpretation of…my signing line, complete with a wild array of characters holding books!

 

Above: Hazel & Dawn with their masterpiece!

I promised to share my workshop slideshows here so attendees could reference them later on. (If you weren’t at my sessions but want to check these out, feel free. You’ll just have to make up my words and imagine me next to the screen, talking and waving my hands around enthusiastically.)  Here’s REAL REVISION, and here’s WHODUNNIT…AND HOW TO DO IT WHEN IT COMES TO WRITING MYSTERIES FOR KIDS.

Many thanks to the organizers of this year’s amazing conference and to everyone who came to my workshops or took the time to say hello in the lobby or a busy hallway. Being part of this community of writers is truly one of the great gifts of writing for kids!

I loved working on the KidLit Cares Sandy Relief Effort for so many reasons — mostly because we raised more than $60,000 for American Red Cross Disaster Relief. But an added bonus has been the books I’ve discovered through my own KidLit Cares auction offering, the School and Library Planning & Publicity Package. Author Dayna Lorentz was one of the generous donors who won that item, and I’ve spent the past few weeks immersed in her DOGS OF THE DROWNED CITY series with Scholastic. 

The first book in the series, THE STORM, follows a German Shepherd named Shep as his owners are forced to evacuate their home during a hurricane, leaving Shep behind.  Here’s the publisher’s summary:

When a hurricane forces his family to evacuate without him, Shep the German Shepard is confused. Where is his boy? Will he ever return? And what will Shep do in the meantime, now that the extra bowls of food — not to mention all those tasty things he found in the big cold box — are gone?

Then another dog shows up at Shep’s window and convinces him to escape. There’s food outside, and a whole empty city to explore. Shep just wants to go home . . . but the adventure of a lifetime is just beginning.

Shep is a great character with a troubled past (he used to be a fight dog and has flashbacks to those days), and kids will relate to his struggles to deal with the other dogs he encounters in a city that seems to have been abandoned by most of its human residents.

I know that this book has been a beloved read-aloud in some classrooms, but I’m surprised it’s not used in more — especially because of the natural text-to-text connections kids can make reading THE STORM along with some truly riveting nonfiction accounts of pets’ ordeals during Hurricane Katrina. In fact, Dayna says on her blog that she was inspired to write this series after a friend went down to New Orleans to rescue trapped pets after Katrina, and after she viewed a documentary called MINE, about people trying to track down lost pets after the storm.

There have been a number of great articles written on this topic, too, and that’s a natural opportunity for teachers to create a fiction/nonfiction pairing for their readers.  Here’s an excerpt from the discussion and resource guide I created for THE STORM that gives an example of how that might work:

Nonfiction Connections:  Write a persuasive letter to pet owners and emergency preparedness crews, explaining what you think should happen to pets when people need to evacuate an area due to severe weather.  Use details and examples from THE STORM as well as information from the articles “Saving Pets from Another Katrina” and “Will Your Animal Companions Be Protected in a Disaster?” and to make your points and lay out what you think is a solid plan for pets in the case of an emergency.

Saving Pets from Another Katrina

http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1629962,00.html

 Will Your Animal Companions Be Protected in a Disaster?”

http://www.peta.org/living/companion-animals/animals-in-emergencies.aspx

Common Core Connections:

• CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.7.9 Compare and contrast a fictional portrayal of a time, place, or character and a historical account of the same period as a means of understanding how authors of fiction use or alter history.
• CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.4.1 Refer to details and examples in a text when explaining what the text says explicitly and when drawing inferences from the text.
• CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.5.1 Quote accurately from a text when explaining what the text says explicitly and when drawing inferences from the text.
• CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.6.1 Cite textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.
• CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.7.1 Cite several pieces of textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.
• CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.8.1 Cite the textual evidence that most strongly supports an analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.

For further reading:

“Katrina survivors upset over pets left behind” from NBC News http://www.nbcnews.com/id/9207628/ns/health-pet_health/t/katrina-survivors-upset-over-pets-left-behind/#.UXBc4OA-I9Q

“7 Years After Katrina, New Orleans Is Overrun by Wild Dogs” from The Atlantic http://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2012/08/7-years-after-katrina-new-orleans-is-overrun-by-wild-dogs/261530/

“The Dogs of Hurricane Katrina” from Modern Dog http://www.moderndogmagazine.com/articles/dogs-hurricane-katrina/151

And of course, you’ll want to visit Dayna’s website to read a lot more about THE STORM and the rest of the Dogs of the Drowned City series, along with her YA thriller series on the topic of bioterrorism, NO SAFETY IN NUMBERS.  If you’re a Vermont teacher or librarian, Dayna is a neighbor and would love to talk with you about visiting your school or library — and if you’re a far-away friend, she’s available for Skype visits.  If you’re on Twitter, you can follow Dayna here – especially if you’re a teacher or librarian, since she frequently tweets & blogs about research and writing and has giveaways, too!

 I spent the past few days at the International Reading Association Convention in San Antonio, and after some travel troubles on the way there, it was a wonderful weekend full of great book-talk with amazing teachers and librarians.

I spoke on two panels – a fun Saturday session about mysteries with fellow author April Henry, and a Sunday morning workshop on research in nonfiction, biographies, and fiction. Here’s the SlideShare link for my mysteries presentation. Here’s the link for the research in fiction presentation.

And here’s a photo of our research panel!

From left to right: Mike Wolfe from the History Channel show American Pickers and the co-author of KID PICKERS; Georgia Bragg, author of HOW THEY CROAKED; tireless educator and fantastic facilitator Donna Knoell; Steve Sheinkin, author of BOMB; me; and Andrea Davis Pinkney, author of SIT-IN: HOW FOUR FRIENDS STOOD UP BY SITTING DOWN. 

Saturday night, I attended a truly lovely dinner with the amazing Scholastic Book Clubs team. We were seated outside, and the restaurant passed out blankets when it got a little chilly. I wasn’t all that cold, but I accepted one anyway. How often do you get offered a blanket when you’re out to eat?

I’ve had the opportunity to spend time with the Book Clubs people on a number of occasions now, and you simply won’t find a group of people who love reading, books, and kids more. I love being around people who are passionate about what they do.  And they know how to laugh, too. Here I am with Liz Kokot, who works with Book Clubs…

I met Liz at last year’s Scholastic Book Clubs IRA dinner and was so happy to talk books with her again over our key lime pie.

I also got to sit next to Frances Graham, who directs national fundraising for Book Trust, an amazing organization that provides books for kids from low-income families. 

Book Trust kids get to make their own selections from Scholastic Book Club flyers each month — something I remember doing as an elementary school student. I still remember the way the magic marker would bleed through the pages when I circled the books I liked, so it makes me smile to think of so many more students having that opportunity.

The IRA Convention Center itself was a whirlwind of activity. While I failed in my attempts to track down MARTY MCGUIRE illustrator Brian Floca in the exhibit hall, I did find some Nerdy Book Club friends…including Colby Sharp…

 …and Erica Perl, who only had time for a quick wave because she was signing WHEN LIFE GIVES YOU O.J. at the Follett booth and had a line seven million miles long. Seriously. I’m lucky she looked up to pose.

 

Other friends attended the conference vicariously, through their new and upcoming books.  I can’t seem to stop myself from bouncing a little when I spot one of those, and inevitably, I get funny looks from the people running the publisher booths. I always point and say, “My friend wrote that book!” and then they understand.  Here’s Linda Urban’s new book, THE CENTER OF EVERYTHING, on the banner at HMH…

…and Erin Dionne’s upcoming mystery, MOXIE AND THE ART OF RULE BREAKING.

Erin and I share an affinity for mysteries and art, and both of our upcoming mysteries have ties to the Isabella Stewart Gardner Heist, so we occasionally geek out over news stories like this one.

And of course, I signed copies of my own books at the convention, too.  Scholastic had the new book in my Silver Jaguar Society Mysteries, HIDE AND SEEK. Quite a few teachers came by the Walker/Bloomsbury booth and told me they were sharing EYE OF THE STORM with the science teachers in their schools, which made me a very happy author. I also signed advance copies of my upcoming thriller WAKE UP MISSING (Sept. ’13) and the first copies of my August picture book, SEA MONSTER AND THE BOSSY FISH.  It’s always exciting – and a little scary, too – seeing copies of those brand new books disappear into tote bags and taken back to hotel rooms.  The dwindling piles are such a visual reminder that a book that was just my story for so long belongs to readers now.

Many thanks to everyone who made IRA 2013 such a magical weekend – the organizers, the publishers who invited me to sign and worked out the details when my travel plans went astray (I’m looking at you, Emily Heddleson!), and most of all, the teachers and librarians working so hard to keep sharing stories with young readers.

I’m at the International Reading Association Convention in San Antonio this weekend, which is a lovely, lovely place to be. I’m looking forward to lots of book talk with teacher-librarian-reader friends, and I hope if you’re here, too, you’ll try to catch up with me. Here’s where I’ll be…

Saturday:

10:30-11:00 Signing EYE OF THE STORM and ARCs of WAKE UP MISSING at Walker/Bloomsbury – Booth 2830

11:00-12:00 Signing HIDE AND SEEK at Scholastic – Booth 2491

1:00-2:00 Signing CAPTURE THE FLAG at Follett – Booth 1527

3:00   WORKSHOP: Mystery Reading and Writing: I’ll be presenting with fellow mystery author April Henry, along with Deanna Day, Lettie Albright, and Janelle Mathis – talking about the value of reading (and writing!) mysteries with kids. Come ready to do some sleuthing!

Evening: Scholastic Book Clubs Dinner

Sunday:

9:00-11:45  SYMPOSIUM: Making a Difference: Presenting Authors Whose Nonfiction Books and Biographies Inform, Engage, and Inspire Students for a Lifetime of Reading and Learning.  (But wait….I haven’t published any nonfiction books yet…how could this be?  Actually, I’m the session’s fiction representative and will be talking about how research is also essential in fiction, when it comes to authentic settings, characters, and plots. I promise to share lots of fun stories behind the stories of my books and upcoming books!)  The nonfiction folks on this panel are Georgia Bragg, Andrea Pinkney, Steve Sheinkin, and Mike Wolfe, and it’s facilitated by Donna Knoell.

12:00-1:00   Signing SEA MONTER’S FIRST DAY and my Fall ’13 release, SEA MONSTER AND THE BOSSY FISH at Chronicle – Booth 1326

If you’re around any of these times, I hope you’ll stop by and say hello!

Dear kids,

By the time you read this, your school may already be well into the ten hours of state assessments you’ll take in ELA and Math this month if you live in New York State.  People will be reading you all kinds of directions and things, giving you tips for test taking, telling you to have protein for breakfast and all that. But here’s something else you should know…

If you are taking the tests this week, be brave. Do your best, but don’t worry too much about it. And know that you are unique and full of gifts that no test can measure.  This test may tell you you’re good at some things, and you may very well be. But I’ll be that you’re even better at other things. You can probably solve problems by considering lots of different solutions and then trying one to see if it works.  When it doesn’t – when it fails – I’ll bet you go back to the drawing board to figure out why and try again.  I’ll bet you are determined and creative and a hard worker.  I’ll bet you are fair to people and do all you can to learn about ideas before you make up your mind. I’ll bet you’re kind and funny, too. And I’ll bet you show empathy for people who are hurting. Our world needs that, so very much.  All of these things will take you far, and however you do on that test, you are so much more than the number attached to it.

If you are refusing to take the tests this week, be brave. Know that you are unique and full of gifts that no test can measure.  I’m sure that you are all of those things I talked about above. And you should also know that many people admire you for standing up for what you believe in, even some people who are not allowed to tell you so.

Whether you take the test or not, whether you pass it or fail it, you are so much more than a number. And I admire you for that.

There are so many reasons to work hard, to read voraciously, and to learn at every opportunity. So many reasons that go beyond those bubbles the state asks you to fill in every year. I wrote a poem about some of them a while back…

Revolution for the Tested

by Kate Messner (Copyright 2010)

 

Write.

But don’t write what they tell you to.
Don’t write formulaic paragraphs
Counting sentences as you go
Three-four-five-Done.
Put your pencil down.

Don’t write to fill in lines.
For a weary scorer earning minimum wage
Handing out points for main ideas
Supported by examples
From the carefully selected text.

Write for yourself.
Write because until you do,
You will never understand
What it is you mean to say
Or who you want to be.
Write because it makes you whole.

And write for the world.
Because your voice is important.
Write because people are hurting
Because animals are dying
Because there is injustice
That will never change if you don’t.
Write because it matters.

And know this.
They’ll tell you it won’t make a difference,
Not to trouble over grownup things,
Just fill in the lines
And leave it at that.
Tell them you know the truth.
That writing is powerful.
Just one voice on the page
Speaks loudly.
And not only can a chorus of those united change the world.
It is the only thing that ever has.

Read.

But don’t read what they tell you to.
Don’t read excerpts, half-poems,
Carefully selected for lexile content,
Or articles written for the sole purpose
Of testing your comprehension.

Don’t read for trinkets,
For pencils or fast food coupons.
Don’t even read for M&M’s.
And don’t read for points.

Read for yourself.
Read because it will show you who you are,
Who you want to be some day,
And who you need to understand.
Read because it will open doors
To college and opportunity, yes,
And better places still…
Doors to barns where pigs and spiders speak,
To lands where anything is possible.
To Hogwarts and Teribithia,
To Narnia and to Hope.

Read for the world.
Read to solve its problems.
Read to separate reality from ranting,
Possibility from false promise.
And leaders from snake oil peddlers.
Read so you can tell the difference.
Because an educated person is so much harder
To enslave.

And know this.
They’ll say they want what’s best for you,
That data doesn’t lie.
Tell them you know the truth.
Ideas can’t be trapped in tiny bubbles.
It’s not about points
On a chart or a test or points anywhere.
And it never will be.

Copyright 2010 ~ Kate Messner

I shared this poem as part of my 2011 NCTE/ALAN presentations, and I’ve had many teachers write to ask if it’s okay to share with students and colleagues in the classroom. The answer is absolutely yes.  Share away, and please feel free to link to this page.

But please do not copy & paste without permission. The best way to share a copyright protected poem (or story, or article) with blog readers is to share a short quote from the piece and then link to the original post. Thanks!