Marcia Thornton Jones's Blog, page 202

Common Core and Curriculum Connections

Common Core. I’m going to get those words out of the way at the start. Please don’t run away screaming. My goal is to show that there are ways to use middle grade fiction to meet the guidelines of the standards.
One of the misconceptions about the Common Core is that it expects students to read nonfiction ("informational texts") instead of fiction. Another way to look at it is that students need to be reading more overall, and that the nonfiction can come in classes other than English Language Arts. It’s also easy to see that the standards encourage collaboration amongst departments within a school whether it’s through research projects.
As a librarian, it’s exciting to see the possibilities. Students might read a book like Wake Up Missing by Kate Messner in English class, then study the brain and concussions in science, and the geography and history of the Florida Everglades in Social Studies. Or students might read Holly Schindler’s The Junction of Sunshine and Lucky and then study found art in their art classes before creating their own projects. In fact, completing research is a big part of the Common Core writing standards, so any time students can be encouraged to find out more about what they are reading in their fiction, they are meeting a standard.
When I wrote The Water Castle, I was vaguely aware of the Common Core, but hadn’t given it much thought. It turns out, though, that the book fits very nicely with the standards since it includes science, math, and mythology. When I created the Educator’s Guide, I was sure to connect the activities to the standards. (You can download the Guide here.) I am currently working on a guide to go along with my upcoming release, The Spy Catchers of Maple Hill, and once again I’ll be keeping the CCSS in mind. This is a work of historical fiction that took a great deal of research on my part. Research and writing are a huge part of the CCSS, and I plan to emphasize that in my guide. Of course, as a librarian, I have an ulterior motive: getting more classes into the library.
As an author, I hope my books allow for exciting discussions and inspire kids to dig deeper and research different aspects of the story. And if this helps teachers meet the CCSS, so much the better. All this month at Smack Dab authors will be sharing the ways in which their books can be used in interdisciplinary studies. I hope that teachers and librarians will chime in to share the ways that they’ve used middle grade novels to meet the standards. At the risk of getting political, i don’t think the standards themselves are good or bad. It’s all in the implementation. There are many wise and creative teachers out there who are using literature to implement the standards in ways that are, dare I say it, fun.

Curriculum Connections for DON'T FEED THE BOY by Irene Latham

One of my favorite things about school visits is walking in and seeing all the amazing work teachers and librarians have done to incorporate one of my books into all areas of study. The things people come up with are inspiring!

But not everyone has time to come up with their own ideas. Which is why I like to provide for each of my books a DISCUSSION GUIDE that includes cross-curriculum suggestions. And since DON'T FEED THE BOY will be released in paperback June 24, I've decided to feature those ideas here. You can find more for this book and for others at my website.

LANGUAGE ARTS
1. Write a “who am I?” poem from the perspective of one of the animals at the zoo (your choice.) ex. IF NOT FOR THE CAT by Jack Prelutsky
2. Write a letter to a friend telling them all the ways they are important in your life.
3. Write a story about Whit’s first day at Meadowbrook Middle School.
4. Read IF I RAN THE ZOO by Dr. Seuss. Write your own version.
5. Write a position paper in favor or against zoos. Present your argument orally.

MATHEMATICS
1. Choose five exotic animals and create your own imaginary backyard zoo. Research what these animals eat. Calculate how much and what type of food to order. Create a budget.
2. Create a poll to discover the most popular/least popular zoo animal. Display your results in a graph.

SCIENCE
1. One of Whit’s summer projects is a field study. Conduct your own field study of an animal in your life.
2. Research an animal on the Red List of Endangered Species. Create a conservation plan based on your findings.

HISTORY
1. Research the history of zoos. Give a news report as if you are reporting from the very first zoo, a current zoo, or a zoo in the future.
2. Whit’s mother is a veterinarian turned zoo director. Research the role of women in zoos.
How has it changed? What gender roles do you see currently emerging?

ART
1. One way Stella escapes her life is by drawing birds at the zoo. Research and draw your favorite.
2. Create a 3-D model of Meadowbrook Zoo.
3. Examine the illustrations in DON’T FEED THE BOY. Why do you think the illustrator chose those particular scenes to illustrate? Choose another scene and illustrate it yourself.
4. Make a poster advertising the zoo. Include hours, prices and attractions.
5. Research John James Audubon, a famous artist and naturalist who, like Stella, loved to draw birds. Choose one of his paintings and attempt to copy it.

SMACK DAB NEWS!

Laurie Calkhoven's first historical mystery for American Girl — The Traveler's Tricks: A Caroline Mystery — debuts on March 1st!

Caroline has an important package to deliver for her father in the big city of Albany. That means a three-day stagecoach trip with her friend Rhonda! The other travelers, including a charming magician and a beautiful young woman with a sad past, fascinate the girls. But strange things begin to happen. Is there a mysterious rider in the woods? What made the inn's serving girl run from the barn screaming? And when Caroline's precious package goes missing, she realizes the culprit must be a fellow passenger. Will she unmask the thief in time, or will her promise to Papa be impossible to keep?

Writer's Block Cupcakes

 So, remember back at the beginning of the month, how everyone was saying “Oh, look, it’s Groundhog's Day.  Did you know that the groundhog’s predictions are wrong more often than right?”  But THEN, this year, the groundhog said six more weeks of winter—and lo and behold, it’s been nothing but snow, and snow piles, and snow days, and rock salt shortages (at least where I live—your mileage may vary). 
And that got me thinking about writing “superstitions,” by which I mean those little rituals and habits we develop and writers, which are 100% guaranteed to work the way we need them to (again, your mileage may vary).  And I’m not talking about reasonable, sensible stuff that fits under the broad category of having a good work ethic.  I’m talking about the entirely EVEN MORE sensible practices which involve developing YOUR VERY OWN deeply rooted superstitions. 
I have heard tell of a writers’ group in Oregon that possessed a magic plastic tiara, which, if worn during the submission process, practically guaranteed a positive response.
And Barnes and Noble used to sell a magic concoction known as “Writers’ Chai” in their bookstores that, once drunk, guaranteed a productive work session. 
And then there are “Writer’s Block Cure Cupcakes,” that I just invented last week, which are to be made and eaten to cure writer’s block.  They are chocolate, which is important—and they are very easy to make, which is important if you are me.
Here is the recipe.
1. DON’T USE AN ELECTRIC MIXER.  The electricity will somehow mess up the magic part—or maybe it’s just that I’m usually too lazy to get my mixer out of its cupboard.2. Put 1 cup sugar in a large bowl.3. Put 1 cup flour in a large bowl.4. Add 1 teaspoon baking powder5. Add ½ teaspoon baking soda6. Add ¾ teaspoon salt.  For extra good luck, put the salt in the bowl by pouring over your left shoulder.7. Add ½ cup cocoa powder8. Stir with spoon of your choice (although you will be happier if you don’t choose a teeny-tiny spoon).
9. Turn on the oven, set to 350.10. Get a measuring up for liquids and put….11.  …½ cup buttermilk in it (if you don’t have buttermilk, you can make it by taking regular milk, adding 1 ½ teaspoons of vinegar to it, and letting it sit for 5 minutes.  Or you can just use regular milk.)12. ¼ cup oil13. 2 tablespoons vanilla14. 2 eggs15. Stir all these liquids together.16. Then add the stirred liquids to the stirred powdered and stir until everything is mixed into a big gloopy-looking mess of chocolate.17. Then get 1 cup of piping hot/boiling coffee and pour into the big gloopy mess.  Stir and stir some more until everything is mixed together.  The batter will be thin. 18. Even if you hate coffee (like I do), don’t skip this step.  You can’t taste the coffee in the cupcakes—it just somehow makes the chocolate taste more chocolately through some kind of magic I do not understand.19. You can use instant coffee if you want.  The cupcakes don’t care.20. Or if you really don’t feel like making coffee, add a ½ teaspoon espresso powder to recipe.  Put it in right after the salt, and add it by pouring it over your right shoulder.21.  Put paper liners in a cupcake pan, or if you don’t have paper liners, grease and flour a cupcake pan.  This should make about 12 cupcakes.22.  Pour batter into the cupcake pan. 23. Bake for 15-17 or so minutes.  Put a toothpick in the middle of a cupcake to check for doneness.  When the toothpick comes back clean, take cupcakes out of oven.24. Turn off oven (which I only mention because usually forget this part)25. Eat a cupcake right then if you must. 26. Let the cupcakes cool, put them in something airtight, and then put them in the fridge.  Writer’s Block Cure Cupcakes, like revenge and winter itself, are best served cold. 27. If you want frosting, you are on your own.  I understand it is easy to make and that there are many fine recipes, but making it involves getting the mixer out, and that isn’t happening.28. If you do make frosting, I recommend eating it off a spoon and leaving the cupcakes plain.  Frosting on spoons is highly acclaimed and rightfully so.  And plain cupcakes are perhaps even more delicious than frosted ones.29. Now go write.  

Writerly Recharge: by Olugbemisola Rhuday-Perkovich

Even though it's a short one, February (or any month) can be one of those draggy ones for me, so I thought I'd share a few of the writerly pick-me-ups that I've collected along the way.  Sometimes a quick read of an inspiring post, a little time in a great book, a brief email exchange with another writer, or a little laughter can be just the thing when I'm feeling stuck, or bored with my own writing, or distracted, or...

Zadie Smith's 10 Rules of Writing.

Eudora Welty  on writing place.

 Karen Strong's lessons from a writing routine.

Anne Lamott, of course, because Bird by Bird.

And just yesterday, from the fabulous "This Itch of Writing" blog, tips for choosing between multiple writing projects.

And of course, a literary favourite, good old Twyla Tharp's Creative Habit, a put of strong black tea, and treating myself to a spiffy new notebook and Micron pen are always good for a boost!

I have a long list, but posting more might perhaps just maybe be procrastinating, and I need to pick one for the day and get to work.

What writing recharges do you use?










http://www.theconfidencelounge.com/5-...

IT NEVER GETS DONE (HOLLY SCHINDLER)

I've got two books releasing this year:

THE JUNCTION OF SUNSHINE AND LUCKY (MG, February),















and FERAL (YA, August).
















...Which means I'm reinventing my author site, organizing two blog tours, sending copies for review, participating in online chats and discussions, designing giveaways...and writing my next books.  Large jobs to be sure--and a short month (February) can only add to the pressure to GET IT ALL DONE.

If you look at writerly jobs in big chunks (promote THE JUNCTION, write my next YA), you go nuts.  Which is why I love my planner.  It forces me to look at small, daily jobs (send out two JUNCTION giveaways, update tour dates, read 50 pages of first-pass pages for FERAL, type edits for first two chapters of next MG). 

I miss the deep-breath feeling of ending a semester.  It was such a great feeling driving away from a college campus after the last final had been taken knowing EVERYTHING was finished.  There is no real "finished" feeling in your professional life--just one task that winds up bleeding into the next, the next. 

But that's another reason why I love my planner--when I go to bed each night, I can see what I've accomplished each day, and can rest assured that I'm on track.  And I love knowing that the next day will be equally full...

Monthly Theme: Love to Beverly Cleary

by
Stephanie J. Blake

I still have several paperback books from my elementary school days. At book order time, my parents would give me $2.00, and I would spend days flipping through the flyer deciding on a book. It killed me to have to pick only one. Because of book club, I have nearly every one of Beverly Cleary's books.

This is my copy of Ellen Tebbits, an eighth printing in 1981. It cost only $1.75!

 I have read this book at least 10 times. The story never gets old. The pages are yellow and the binding is breaking, but I love this book! Here's my copy of Beezus and Ramona. It was only 60 cents.   See how naughty Ramona looks!   This copy of Henry and the Paper Route printed in 1972 is so fragile I can barely touch it for fear it will fall apart. Whenever I would get a new book I would carefully install a bookplate.My 3rd grade penmanship is so cute.   Buying books was so fun! (And still is!) It's no wonder that reviewers of my book, The Marble Queen, have mentioned Ramona or Beverly Cleary. Mrs. Cleary has probably been the biggest influence on my writing, and I love her for it. 

Smack Dab in the Classroom: How Fan Fiction Can Inspire Kids to be Authors by Dia Calhoun

In middle school I was not only a voracious reader, I also a wrote fan fiction before there was a name for it. I loved the Little House on the Prairie books. But alas, there were only nine in the series. After devouring them all many times, I wanted to stay in that world. So I made up stories starring me as Laura. I didn’t just “retell” Wilder’s stories, I made up new ones.

A few year later, my imagination intrigued b Star Trek, I made up stories around that series, too. Sometimes I was the captain. Sometimes the science officer—a female Vulcan.

I firmly believe that my imaginative extrapolations of existing stories was part of what led me to becoming an author—of original stories! believe that kids today should be encouraged to do the same—write stories based on books they love.

But there is so much concern today about “plagiarism.” But consider music. Music has a long history of composers who wrote variations on the themes of other composers. This from Wikipedia:

“Many classical and later composers have written compositions in the form of variations on a theme by another composer . . . .Many of these works are called simply "Variations on a Theme of/by ...". Other works, which often involve substantial development or transformation of the base material, may have more fanciful titles such as Caprice, Fantasy, Paraphrase, Reminiscences, Rhapsody, etc.”

Fan fiction is not plagiarism. It is a point of departure for imagination and creative exercise. If this is made clear to kids, it is a wonderful way to get them started writing stories—especially kids who might not otherwise. If they can write a story based on one they’re already excited about, half the battle is won.

And who knows where that might lead? I would be honored if some kid started on the road to being an author by writing about Eckhart from my book After the River the Sun , or Eva from Eva of the Farm . Honored if my work could do for someone else what Laura Ingalls Wilder’s work did for me.
Dia Calhoun posts Smack Dab in the Classroom articles on the 23 day of every month. Learn more about Dia Calhoun on her blog. 

Blessings in the Bleak Midwinter by Laurie Calkhoven

February's turning out to be a challenging month. Not writing-wise. I'm chugging along on a ghostwriting project that has been a lot  of fun.  But there have been other challenges. I won't go into detail, but let's just say that having a parent with Alzheimer's is a challenge.  I'm trying very hard to hold a strong intention that the right thing is going happen, but in the meantime there's been fear, sadness, and uncertainty to deal with.

But February has also been filled with blessings and miracles in my writing life.  The NJ SCBWI invited me to teach a day-long Meditations for Writers and Illustrators workshop along with a teacher named Mimi Cross who combines yoga and writing prompts. Teaching these kinds of workshops is one of my favorite things to do.  Here's a link in case anyone is in the tristate area and wants to join us. It's going to be a great day:  http://www.formstack.com/forms/?1383610-dE1Rw484dE



Then I got e-mails from Colorado fifth graders who are reading DANIEL AT THE SIEGE OF BOSTON, 1776, and I learned that it's been a grade-wide read aloud for a few years now. Their teacher followed up with this:  "I meant to tell you that reading this book is a highlight of the year.  Even though I've read it so many times, I love it again and again.  The questions and discussions are priceless."




A writer-friend sent me a charm to hang in my writing space that reads: "Write, Revise, Release," and "Give Your Story Wings."  It reminds me of the love and support that comes to be from other writers, and that thought alone does give me wings.






And finally, WILL AT THE BATTLE OF GETTYSBURG, 1863 won the Beacon of Freedom Award from the Williamsburg Regional Library in conjunction with Colonial Williamsburg. This is a child-voted award and that makes it all the more special. I can't wait to get down there (in early May) to accept the award in person!


These past few weeks have been filled with stress and sadness and fear, but also many blessings.  I guess I have to be grateful for all of it, the good and the bad, but I'm especially grateful for my wings.

BETWEEN WRITERS: A CONVERSATION WITH MARJOLIJN HOF

One of the gifts of my neighborhood is Wild Rumpus Books, a magical bookstore with cats, and chickens and ferrets, and other gentle creatures, and a well-read staff that’s always able to put the perfect book into your hands.  AGAINST THE ODDS, by Marjolijn Hof was that very book for me—a surprise find that was every bit as beautiful and moving as my bookstore friends promised that it would be.   A slim, middle grade novel published in the Netherlands to critical acclaim, AGAINST THE ODDS is the story of a young girl whose aid-worker father goes missing in a war zone.  Impressed with this beautiful work, I reached out to Marjolijn Hof from across the sea.  And while I’d rather talk books and writing with Marjolijn in the Netherlands, I’m delighted for our pen-pal correspondence, and so grateful to have found her work.

First, congratulations on all your successes.  AGAINST THE ODDS, your first novel, won a number of major Dutch and Flemish children’s book prizes, and has been translated into nine languages.  Could you talk a little bit about writing your first book?  How long was it in the making?  First of all, thank you very much for all the praise heaped upon me! And I do feel like going to that bookshop of yours right now, not because they recommended my book, but because it seems such a wonderful place to me.I don’t look upon Against the Odds as my first book. I had already written stories for educative publishers and provided the narrative for a number of picture books. It was my first book for young adults, though, and also my first novel to appear with a regular publishing house and as such it was dubbed my ‘debut’, in spite of any qualifications I would try to make.All in all it took me almost a year to complete.

How did you find an editor and publisher for it?  As said before, I had previously worked for several other publishers, but I did not consider them suitable for Een kleine kans, as Against the Odds is called in Dutch. Then a co-worker put me in touch with Querido.

Were there particular narrative challenges you encountered in the process of writing the book? My stories tend to start with a question. What would it be like if…? As for Against the Odds: what would it be like if your dad decided to involve himself in something really dangerous. What would you do if you were frightfully worried about his safety? Empathy is one of the corner stones of my oeuvre: I try to ‘become’ my main characters and thence the story develops.  In this case I wanted to do more than focus on the thoughts and feelings of the main character, I wanted the story to be more universal – a story that could be about any war. No specific country is mentioned for that reason, nor is Kiki’s age. Surprisingly, some reviewers did state them explicitly.  Combining the intimate and the universal was my greatest challenge. By consistently sticking to Kiki’s point of view, by closing up rather than zooming out, I could avoid referring to a particular war zone out in the big world, which is what gave the story its universal character.

Did you imagine your book would speak to so many people as you were working on it?  No, not for a single moment. I allow that sort of question to interfere with the writing process as little as I can. Of course, as a writer of children’s literature you cannot but have a target readership in mind, but on the other hand I do not want to feel tied down by that. And I definitely do not wonder if the book will sell or not. I am highly critical of my own work and I go through phases of acute self-doubt, so I guess the opposite holds true, rather. Most importantly, I concentrate on the work in hand rather than on what it may bring about. Once a book is finished, I will put it out of my mind quite easily. However, I found myself overwhelmed by the success of this book and the whole aftermath. Remember I was completely new to publicity and the limelight.

For some writers, early success can make later projects difficult.  Was that your experience?  While writing it never bothered me at all. However, for quite some time Against the Odds kept being considered my best book, and that did get to me in a sense. It was as if I was over the hill. My latest book, De regels van drie (The Rules of Three) got a splendid reception and when a reviewer claimed it was as good, if not better than Against the Odds, that came as a relief.
I appeared on the scene rather late anyway, so whichever way you look at it, I remain a late-developer.

One of the things I admired so much in Against the Odds was your use of implication to develop character and conflict.  In fact, it was during a Wild Rumpus conversation about subtext in children’s’ literature that the staff put your book into my hands and insisted I should read it.  Are you aware of subtext as a literary device while you’re working? Yes. I always try to create some breathing space in a text. I feel it is important to leave the readers some room for imagination, you should not spell everything out. It is a matter of trusting them. And another thing, I am keen on dialogues, which cannot do without a subtext or they will lack interest. I will revise and delete obsessively. Thus my prose will get sparer and sparer –  more is hinted at, less is said explicitly.

Humor also demands room and I cannot imagine ever writing a book in which it does not figure.

What are you working on now?  What are the delights and challenges in this new book? At present I am working on an adventure story. The genre requires new skills and a different approach. The incubation took rather long, I am afraid, but now I have actually started writing. I am really up against it, but then I have never been one for easy options. Every story has its traps and pitfalls, whether it is the subject you struggle with or the structure. I am new to the adventure story, which makes the whole undertaking all the more rewarding and exciting.

With every new book I ask myself whether I can make it work and I am not at all sure. And that is exactly as it should be.