The TeachingBooks Blog
First: If anyone tells you that writing is easy, you have my permission to remind him or her that if writing were that easy, everyone would be doing it. What I do (almost) every day is play with words. I love it, couldn’t live without it. But the “playing” part is a bit of a misnomer. Wordplay demands a comfortable chair, lots of coffee, and seven carts of patience pulled by tireless oxen.
Students of all ages benefit from quality books that authentically portray a variety of cultures. Librarians and teachers are aided in their efforts to diversify their collections through the work of the American Library Association's affiliates and roundtables that recognize distinguished titles for children and teens.
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.