Lisa Cohn's Blog, page 12
February 21, 2016
Let’s Fetch Puppies, Kindness, Bullies and Love: Author Visits
These are just some of the ideas we have gathered for our next books–from students we visit via Skype in the classroom from around the country–and around the world
Most every Friday, we visit with a new class via Skype in the classroom and the Microsoft Education Network. Before we meet with them, we send our books and audiobooks (recorded by Michael and friends.)
We explain that our book project started three years ago, when our beloved Lucy, a golden retriever, died suddenly of cancer, giving us no warning she was ill.
We then give kids some writing tips about creating characters and conflict. Michael often explains the idea of conflict, as he did during this lesson:
Generally, kids line up to ask questions, and many of them are for Michael. How old is he? Does he play soccer, like Bash? Does he have a new dog? (Yes, and we often introduce kids to our new dog, Hudson.
At the end of every lesson, we ask kids for ideas for our next books–and really value the ideas they give us. A number of themes come up every class–Bash and Lucy should fetch puppies, kindness, bullies, responsibility and love. Hudson should be in the book. And so should Michael’s older sister, Ally, who was the first person to read our first book and urge us to follow our writing journey.
Here’s a clip from one brainstorming session:
Often, during these brainstorming sessions, Michael gets ideas for our next books. For example, during our most recent Skype visit, a student’s suggestion prompted Michael to announce that our next book should include monsters (illustrated by Michael) that will chase any characters who don’t like dogs. We’re excited about this idea; we’ve been thinking that some of Michael’s illustrations should be included in our next book, a chapter book.
Our visits with schoolchildren (in person and via Skype) are the most satisfying part of our writing journey. You can learn more here about our school visit by emailing us at BashAndLucy@gmail.com!
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February 7, 2016
How Writing KidLit Helped us Cope with Grief Over the Loss of Our Dog
Michael with Lucy
By Lisa Cohn
Three years ago, our beloved dog, Lucy, died suddenly of cancer at the age of 6, giving no warning she was ill.
Every day, up until the day she died, I ran with her through the forest behind our house. Every day, right up until the day she died, our family members tossed balls with her, romped with her, and took her everywhere with us in our car.
I had no clue she was suffering from cancer, and, of course, was overcome with intense grief when we lost her. Every corner of my life reminded me of Lucy. My home office, our neighborhood, our forest, our car–they all seemed empty without her.
Puppy Lucy in the garden
Just as important, I was inspired by Lucy’s bravery and strength. After she passed away, the vet told us, “A sick dog will often romp with you on the beach all day, then come home and pass away. Dogs don’t focus on what hurts.”
At the time, I was so upset by Lucy’s death that I couldn’t eat or sleep. As a writer, I often turn to writing to help me when I’m having a hard time–and that’s just what I did. My book lover, Michael, jumped in to help me begin our “Bash and Lucy” book series.
Our aim was to keep the memory of Lucy alive in our books–and to teach our readers about all that dogs give to their human companions. As part of that mission, Michael and I started giving “Skype in the Classroom” lessons about our writing and publishing experiences. We always begin the lesson with a photo of Lucy. We ask kids if they ever use writing or art to help them overcome grief, and during every lesson, a few children share stories of writing or doing art projects to overcome grief over the loss of a pet.
Learn more about our experiences in this Oregonian story: http://www.oregonlive.com/pets/index.ssf/2013/10/grief_over_dogs_death_inspires.html
When Lucy died, we couldn’t stand the emptiness of a home with no dog. Soon enough, we met puppy Hudson, a golden retriever, and brought him home. His love, goofiness, and energy brought us happiness when we were feeling so sad. At the request of many of the kids we work with, he’s going to be an important character in our third book.
Golden retriever Hudson
Have a story about how you coped with the loss of a pet? Please share it with us. As always, you can email us with questions and comments at BashAndLucy@gmail.com
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January 24, 2016
Captain Underpants: In Bad Taste or Inspiring?
During this kids’ book review, Michael, suffering from a mild stomach upset, accidentally toots. Watch the whole video to see how hard he laughs and what he says next! He also demonstrates wedgie power.
https://youtu.be/lppegNQZh1k
The two main characters, Harold and George, he says, are very creative and funny. They’re not trying to be mean. They’re just trying to “take a comeback to the teacher,” who is mean.
“All the teachers in Captain Underpants are mean,” he explained after he did this book review. “Except in book Five, Ms. Ribble is no longer mean. She is turned into someone like George and Harold who does inappropriate things. I like her a lot!” says our KidLit reviewer.
Captain Underpants, by Dav Pilkey, has been banned by many schools because of the potty humor. In fact, it was THE most banned book series in 2012, according to Business Insider.
If you watch this video, you’ll understand why kids love Captain Underpants. In fact, many parents say that the humor in these books inspired their kids to read.
As for Michael and the other boy members of the Roving Reader Leaders, their rating of Captain Underpants is an overwhelming thumbs up. They love the potty humor. But that’s not all. Michael says that he thinks the characters are creative in an inspiring way. In other words, they challenge authority–but they’re not really mean.
If a series makes kids laugh, inspires them to read, and teaches them to be creative, think for themselves and challenge authority, why exactly should it be banned?
If you don’t like Captain Underpants and would like to see schools ban it, we’d love to hear from you!
If your kids were inspired to read by Captain Underpants, we’d love to hear from you. And stay tuned, we’ve got another review of this controversial KidLit series coming up–by four young males members of the Roving Reader Leaders.
Email us at RovingReaderLeaders@gmail.com
January 10, 2016
Dogs in the Dentist Office & Other Ways Dogs Calm Kids with Anxiety
Service Dog Quells Anxiety at the Dentist Office
By Lisa Cohn
Dogs calm kids who suffer from anxiety in the dentist office–and in so many other ways.
I recently mentioned to a friend that her 10-year-old son seemed really connected to the family’s goldendoodle.
“Yes,” she responded. “He used to have problems with anxiety, but now that we have a dog, he’s so much calmer.”
And I wasn’t surprised to hear that a friend with an autistic son takes her son’s service dog, Major, on dental visits. The dog sits on the boy’s stomach while he’s having work done on his teeth.
Therapy Dog in the Dentist OfficeI
In fact, one dental office, Applewood Family Dentistry, has a dental therapy dog to help children and adults who are jittery while visiting the dentist.
New research confirms what many families already knew about the benefits of having a dog. A canine in the home can quell anxiety in children and reduce the risk that they’ll suffer from anxiety when they’re adults.
Growing up, I was a huge dog lover, and was the child in our family of seven who slept with our dogs, took them sledding, and went cross-country skiing with them. As a child, I also suffered from anxiety–like many members of my family. Anxiety is a popular topic when I get together with my cousins. We relate stories about who’s afraid of elevators, heights, bridges, tall buildings and dentist visits. I’m particularly anxious in elevators and traffic jams; I’m sure I’ll get trapped. While my dogs were never official therapy or service dogs, I knew that a big snuggle with my furry friend would quell my racing heart after a particularly scary elevator ride (up Seattle’s Space Needle, for example) or getting caught in a traffic jam.
As I write this, my favorite tail wagger, Hudson, a golden retriever sits at my feet. These days, one of my biggest sources of anxiety is worrying that Hudson will get hurt–an interesting twist on the dogs-and-anxiety story.
Our appreciation for the many ways dogs help humans launched our “Bash and Lucy” book series. We hope that with our books, blogs, dog book reviews and dog heroism stories (see below), we teach kids and families about the many ways dogs help kids–and adults.
The post Dogs in the Dentist Office & Other Ways Dogs Calm Kids with Anxiety appeared first on Bash And Lucy.
December 27, 2015
Meet our New KidLit Lovers and Book Reviewers!
Ahmed, a curious and charismatic unschooled 7-year-old, loves being read to, and enjoys chapter books like Dragon Slayer’s Academy, A to Z Mysteries, and The Magic Tree House series.
When not plotting to save the world or engrossed in a super-hero duel with his younger brother, Rahim, Ahmed can be found dreaming about his future empire, Bath Castle, where he creates hand-made fizzie bath bombs and aromatherapy soaking salts. He also loves playing with friends, soccer, climbing trees, pokemon, ninjago and building legos.
Ahmed helped review the new Christmas book, “The Not Very Merry Pout-Pout Fish,”
https://youtu.be/a4i2ddCgXe8
Deborah Diesen, author of this book, sent us a tweet saying the kids had made her “very merry” by doing this review. She told the kids to keep reading! We love connecting with authors and often interview them.
Featured in this review is Keiragan, age 8, is a huge book lover and reader. Along with “The Not Very Merry Pout-Pout Fish,” her favorite holiday books include “The Mitten,”
“How the Grinch Stole Christmas,” “Bear Stays Up for Christmas” and “Llama Llama Jingle Bells.”
Also new to the kidlit lovers team at Roving Reader Leaders are a sister-brother team, Margot, age 7, and Wesley, age 10. You can see them in the photo above to the right, reviewing books, along with our chief, Michael. Like Ahmed, they are homeschooled.
Margot loves dogs–especially pugs! She and Wesley recently reviewed a “Buddy Files” book for us, which we’ll be sharing soon. They were also interviewed for a nice piece in the Beaverton Valley Times, "For Roving Reader Leaders, It's All About Loving Books."
http://portlandtribune.com/bvt/15-new...
We love how the author of this article begins the piece. Very funny!
In addition to being featured in the Beaverton Valley Times, Roving Reader Leaders was also featured by Fox-12 Oregon.
If you’re a parent or teacher who’s interested in having your kidlit lovers join our club, be sure to email us at RovingReaderLeaders@gmail.com! You can also sign up for our club here:
Join the Roving Reader Leaders club!
Our aim is to get kids actively engaged in reading, discussion and analysis in fun ways!
Meet our New KidLit Lovers and Book Reviewers!
Ahmed, a curious and charismatic unschooled 7-year-old, loves being read to, and enjoys chapter books like Dragon Slayer’s Academy, A to Z Mysteries, and The Magic Tree House series.
When not plotting to save the world or engrossed in a super-hero duel with his younger brother, Rahim, Ahmed can be found dreaming about his future empire, Bath Castle, where he creates hand-made fizzie bath bombs and aromatherapy soaking salts. He also loves playing with friends, soccer, climbing trees, pokemon, ninjago and building legos.
Ahmed helped review the new Christmas book, “The Not Very Merry Pout-Pout Fish,”
https://youtu.be/a4i2ddCgXe8
Deborah Diesen, author of this book, sent us a tweet saying the kids had made her “very merry” by doing this review. She told the kids to keep reading! We love connecting with authors and often interview them.
Featured in this review is Keiragan, age 8, is a huge book lover and reader. Along with “The Not Very Merry Pout-Pout Fish,” her favorite holiday books include “The Mitten,”
“How the Grinch Stole Christmas,” “Bear Stays Up for Christmas” and “Llama Llama Jingle Bells.”
Also new to the kidlit lovers team at Roving Reader Leaders are a sister-brother team, Margot, age 7, and Wesley, age 10. You can see them in the photo above to the right, reviewing books, along with our chief, Michael. Like Ahmed, they are homeschooled.
Margot loves dogs–especially pugs! She and Wesley recently reviewed a “Buddy Files” book for us, which we’ll be sharing soon. They were also interviewed for a nice piece in the Beaverton Valley Times, "For Roving Reader Leaders, It's All About Loving Books."
http://portlandtribune.com/bvt/15-new...
We love how the author of this article begins the piece. Very funny!
In addition to being featured in the Beaverton Valley Times, Roving Reader Leaders was also featured by Fox-12 Oregon.
If you’re a parent or teacher who’s interested in having your kidlit lovers join our club, be sure to email us at RovingReaderLeaders@gmail.com! You can also sign up for our club here:
Join the Roving Reader Leaders club!
Our aim is to get kids actively engaged in reading, discussion and analysis in fun ways!
November 17, 2015
Book Lover, Age 7, Gives "Rumplepimple" a 99-Million-Star Rating
Michael gives some details about the book’s characters, conflict and illustrations in this video book review of “Rumplepimple.”
Learn more:
http://www.rovingreaderleaders.com/20...
November 8, 2015
Two Boys, Age 6, Do Kids' Book Review: The World Should Read This!
These founding members of the Roving Reader Leaders loved this book, which is one of many "You Choose Stories: Scooby-Doo" books from Capstone that invite kids to choose a number of different endings. Michael and Levko reveal their favorite part--a funny part--and think hard about a rating before giving it 6 million stars.
You can watch their kids' book review here:
https://youtu.be/oIVqAlZfcDU
Not only do our Roving Reader Leaders review books; they also interview authors. Michael was thrilled to interview the author of this book, Laurie Sutton. He asked her about some of the choices she makes, made a special request, and got a promise from her. Watch his interview with her here:
https://youtu.be/0-QRTwkxk-M
How do kids become Roving Reader Leaders? Good question! They simply join our club here: Join the Club! You can learn more about Michael, Levko and the founding members of the Roving Reader Leaders here: Meet our Reader Leaders
Why are the kids called "roving" reader leaders? Good question! Many of our book reviews take part in gyms, parks, taxis, museums and on city streets and playgrounds. Our literary experts rove around, sharing their love of books wherever kids can be found!
It all began when book lover Michael, now age 7, decided to start reviewing books. He thought it would be fun to do book reviews in fun places. Since he takes his books everywhere, we began shooting reviews on the Oregon Coast, in Montana ski lodges, in New York taxis, and on playgrounds all over Portland, Oregon. Soon his good friends started joining in the fun.
Be sure to follow our book reviews by liking us on facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RovingReaderLeaders
And if you're an author who'd like to have your book reviewed, email us at RovingReaderLeaders@gmail.com--but please be patient! We've got a big stack of KidLit books to review!
October 23, 2015
Kids Lead Kids’ Book Chats at Roving Reader Leaders!
By Lisa and Michael Cohn
On our new YouTube Channel and website–Roving Reader Leaders–Kids lead kids’ book chats–in gyms, bookstores, parks, museums and on playgrounds–anywhere kids can be found!
To share our love of reading and writing with more children, we decided to move our children’s book reviews and our KidLit author interviews (also by kids) to a new YouTube channel and website:Roving Reader Leaders
You’ll still find lots of discussions about dogs and dog books here, on our Bash and Lucy blog.
Learn all about Roving Reader Leaders by watching this video, which features clips from kids’ book reviews by kids–plus a clip from Michael’s interview with Laurie S. Sutton, author of many “You Choose Stories: Scooby Doo” books:
We invite parents, teachers and kids to join our club here: Roving Reader Leaders Club
Club members do book reviews, take part in online, phone and in-person KidLit chats, and can be featured on our website as being reader leaders. What’s more, they earn badges for being book lovers!
Authors are welcome to submit their books for review. While we can’t promise we’ll review on YouTube all the books that are submitted, it’s likely that we’ll do a written review on our blog.
Parents, teachers, librarians and young book lovers, do you have a book you’d like us to discuss? Email us at RovingReaderLeaders@gamil.com!
Our mission is to encourage kids to get actively engaged in reading and discussion in fun ways. One of the most fun things we do is review books in parks, gyms, museums, bookstores and on playgrounds! We’d love for you to do a video book review and submit it to us!
This whole project began with the sudden death of our dog, Lucy. To help keep her alive in our hearts, we started a book series that stars her. Michael, 5 at the time, started doing video reviews of kids’ dog books. We then started reviewing all kinds of kids’ books–which prompted us to launch Roving Reader Leaders. Please comment on our videos or on our new facebook page:https://www.facebook.com/RovingReaderLeaders
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October 5, 2015
Get Free Kids’ Audiobook on Audible–For Limited Time!
Free Kids’ Audiobook Recorded with Help of Boys
By Lisa and Michael Cohn
One of 7-year-old Michael’s favorite things to do is record audiobooks of our “Bash and Lucy” kids’ dog books, along with friends. For a limited time, you can take advantage of our “free kids’ audiobook” promotion on Audible.com.
Our award-winning “Bash and Lucy Fetch Confidence” is now available as an mp3 download on Audible. It features the voices of Michael, age 6 (at the time of the recording), his friends Adam and Matthew, age 6, plus Edward, age 8.
You can listen to a 2-minute preview of the audiobook here, just below the image of the cover:
Bash and Lucy Fetch Confidence on Audible.com
Here’s how you get your free download:
Go to our book’s page at http://www.audible.com/pd/Kids/Bash-and-Lucy-Fetch-Confidence-Audiobook/B015P22SHK/
Add the audiobook to your cart.
Create a new Audible.com account or log in.
Enter one of the promo codes below and click “Redeem” on the cart page.
To change the price from full price to $0.00, click the box next to “1 Credit” and click the “update” button to apply the credit to your purchase.
Complete checkout, and start listening to the free copy of the book.
Here are the promo codes available. If one doesn’t work, try another one–or one on the bottom of the list. We’re sharing them all in the hopes that 25 kids get to learn about children who write award-winning children’s books and create audiobooks of them! In this recording, co-author Lisa Cohn is the narrator.
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6M8U8MKG4CXHZ
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DLN25EKXS9NCF
DRNB4M6UF2FAW
NKZJGAQ5TKBCQ
FSXPFYKBJLUT4
2FKB7D6DQT438
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Bash and Lucy Picture Book
Why did we create audiobooks of our books?
Michael loves to listen to audiobooks. He checks out kids’ audiobooks from our library at least once a week. We often discuss how the reader–whether the author or a voice-over artist–interprets the characters. He thought it would be a great idea to create audiobooks of our kids’ dog books, with his friends reading the parts of the characters in the books. In fact, the kids whose faces appear in our books are the ones who read in the audiobooks!
Learn more about the benefits of children listening to kids’ audiobooks here: Four Great Reasons Kids Should Listen To Audiobooks
Questions? Having trouble getting your free mp3 of our audiobook? Email BashAndLucy@gmail.com
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