A writer named Rebecca Gardyn Levington came super close to being my #PBChat mentee in 2019. I wrote her a private note to let her know how impressed I was by her rhyming skills. So much so that I encouraged her to KEEP writing rhyming manuscripts (which I don’t often …
Geometry is one of my favorite math units to teach in kindergarten. Kindergartners mold playdough shapes for ages, chatter about sides and vertices, and become suddenly fascinated with rectangular tiles—tiles, people! And the books! We have enough shape books in our classroom library to fill a big ole’ basket. But can …
Andrea: If you read my previous blog post interviewing Maria Gianferrari about Bobcat Prowling, then you know that she had two books release this year. I’m excited to interview Maria again, this time for her second 2022 book baby, Being a Dog: A Tail of Mindfulness. Hi Maria! Congratulations on …
Recently, I was asked by one of my webinar attendees how I approach writing a sequel. I started my explanation when I realized I had written an entire post on this topic on Tara Lazar‘s blog a few years ago. Hooray for past Tammi helping present Tammi out! 🙂 Since …
When I visited The Kerlan Collection of Children’s Literature at the University of Minnesota, I was struck, inspired, surprised, and overjoyed, by many things. Seeing artwork created by iconic illustrators was incredible. The subject of my post today was one of the most overwhelming discoveries that I made and I …
I talk a lot about revision, because it’s such an important part of the picture book writing process. And, revision can come at so many different phases in the writing process. Writers often revise: On their own before anyone else sees the manuscript. (Often multiple times.) After sharing the story …
Author Beth Anderson has a new book out in the world, and it’s a doozy! Here’s the gist of the story, from the publisher: “… offers an engaging look at the inspiring life of Franz Gsellmann, an inventor from rural Austria who, with no formal artistic or engineering training, built …
Hugs are the best, the absolute best. I love them, crave them, and not to brag, but I am renowned for mine. I have letters of reference. The previous 2+ years have made the want and need for hugs much more apparent. In the before times, I would hug most …
I don’t know when it began, my interest in how seemingly disparate things are connected. Maybe it was all the mysteries I read as a kid, trying to suss out what the clues were and how they fit together before the detective did. Maybe it was learning about the butterfly …
It’s labeled Read Aloud on the classroom schedule, but it’s hard not to think of it as Story Time. It’s where we gather on the floor and make our voices sound like each of the three Billy Goats Gruff, where we make predictions about whether Little Star will eat the …