Sibert Smackdown! There’s Still Time!
The American Library Association’s Youth Media Awards are about 7 weeks away. I can’t wait to find who the winners will be, can you? As a nonfiction lover, the Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Medal is my favorite award of all. And that’s why I started the Sibert Smackdown seven years ago. It’s a fun activity for students […]
Crafting Mega-fun Informational Writing: Text Structure
Most narrative nonfiction books have a chronological sequence text structure and most traditional nonfiction and browsable nonfiction titles have a description text structure, but expository literature has a broad range of text structures. That’s one of the reasons they make great mentor texts for informational writing. Mega-Predators of the Past is a blended nonfiction book […]
Crafting Mega-fun Informational Writing: Text Features
As you can see in the sample below, most of the spreads in Mega-Predators of the Past present information in five different ways—main text, main illustration, a comparison box, a caption box, and a Mega Fact File. Why did I include so many text features? Because I had a lot of goals for the book, and […]
It’s Time for the Sibert Smackdown!
The Sibert Smackdown is an activity intended to build enthusiasm for the Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Medal, which is given each year as part of the American Library Association’s annual Youth Media Awards. It focuses on picture books because they are more manageable to read in a school setting. Here’s how it works. Students in grades 3-8 read the […]
Crafting Mega-Fun Informational Writing: Choosing a Topic
Back in August 2016, as I was looking at the articles and notes pinned to the Idea Board in my office, I stumbled upon an article I’d torn out of Smithsonian Magazine in 2012. What was it about? Titanoboa—a fearsome 40-foot-long (Yikes!) snake that lived in the swamps of Colombia 60 million years ago. I’d been holding onto it for 4 […]
5 Kinds of Nonfiction and Student Purpose
In writer’s workshop, students are often asked to think about “author purpose,” but today, I’d like us to consider student purpose when it comes to reading and writing and thinking and learning. One of the reasons Marlene Correia and I are so passionate about sharing the 5 Kinds of Nonfiction classification system with educators is because […]
In the Illustrator’s Studio
One thing I love about the artwork in Tree Hole Homes is Amy Hevron’s clever idea of incorporating real pieces of wood into the illustrations. In all my years of publishing books, I’ve never seen that before. If you look closely at the images, you’ll see that the animals and backgrounds are painted, but the trees […]
It’s a Book!
Hip, hip hooray! After 11 years and who-knows-how-many drafts, I’m so excited to announce that Tree Hole Homes: Daytime Dens & Nighttime Nooks is entering the world today. It offers young reader a sneak peek into the secret lives of tree-dwelling critters from around the world. Click here and scroll down to watch a video that shares the […]
Exploring the 5 Kinds of Nonfiction with Students Majoring in Education by Valerie Bang-Jensen
A few weeks ago, Professor Valerie Bang-Jensen let me know about a great activity she’d developed for her undergraduate education students, and I asked if she’d share more details in a blog post. I’m so grateful that she agreed. Thank you, Valerie, for this wonderful way of introducing the 5 Kinds of Nonfiction classification system […]
5 Recommended Reads for Curious Kids
Kids love nonfiction! Studies show that 40 percent of elementary-aged children prefer fact-based books and another 30 percent enjoy fiction and nonfiction equally. So doesn’t it make sense to share these titles with young readers at home as well as at school? Here are five fantastic nonfiction picture books about our precious planet and the […]