I’ve worn glasses since childhood. I really wanted them. I considered them an accessory rather than an albatross. I remember holding the huge black letter “E” in the wrong direction in the optometrist’s office, even though I could see the vision chart clearly. The doctor must have seen right through this ploy because my first pair of glasses did little to change my nearly perfect vision. Still, for the first week or so, I wore them religiously, glad to come into my third grade classroom appearing a little different than I had just days before.Guest Blogger: Jacqueline Woodson
I’ve worn glasses since childhood. I really wanted them. I considered them an accessory rather than an albatross. I remember holding the huge black letter “E” in the wrong direction in the optometrist’s office, even though I could see the vision chart clearly. The doctor must have seen right through this ploy because my first pair of glasses did little to change my nearly perfect vision. Still, for the first week or so, I wore them religiously, glad to come into my third grade classroom appearing a little different than I had just days before.
The American Library Association's Youth Media Awards, announced each January, are a high point on the book community's calendar. For this month's post, TeachingBooks.net contacted and recorded conversations with the award winners, asking them to share their inspirations and influences.
During 15-plus years of researching nonfiction for young readers I’ve learned that every project includes at least one pinch-me-is-this-really-happening moment. Such was the case as I researched the Memphis sanitation workers’ strike of 1968 for Marching to the Mountaintop: How Poverty, Labor Fights, and Civil Rights Set the Stage for Martin Luther King, Jr’s Final Hours (National Geographic, 2012).