Mrs. P's Reading is Cool Blog

Turning Student’s Imaginations into a Story!

A few years ago, a friend gave me a nightgown for my birthday that was so large I wound up using it as an emergency parachute in case I ever had to jump out of my second-floor bedroom. Last Christmas, I received a pair of red socks from my cousin that were so small I wound up using them as ear warmers for my cat.
There is, however, one gift I enjoy receiving even when it doesn’t fit. Sometimes especially when it doesn’t fit. That gift is a book.

Getting a book that doesn’t “fit” can open up your world in ways you never imagined. “Why I never showed the slightest interest in Ancient Greece,” you think. “Why would someone give me a book about that?” Then you read it and are transported back to a world so amazing and compelling, you read three more books about it simply because you don’t want to leave.   “Why would someone give me a book about a racehorse? I’ve rarely gone to the races and have no special interest in horses.” But then you read Seabiscuit: An American Legend by Laura Hillenbrand and are hypnotized; swept away against your will by the evocative writing and astonishing story. Sometimes, I enjoy wandering through a library or bookstore and letting serendipity direct me to my next book. And if it’s the last thing I ever thought I’d read, odds are it’s going to be a fulfilling experience.

On my free website, www.MrsP.com, I sit in a cozy chair by the fire and read classic stories to kids. It’s one of my favorite ways to share the gift of reading. My website features a library with dozens of tales, from the hilarious to the scary. I encourage kids to not just choose the stories that immediately strike their fancy, but to give others a try too. For some reason, those often turn out to be the stories that stick with you – and even change your life.

Or course, I realize it’s not always easy to persuade kids to read anything if they haven’t developed a love and appreciation of books. To help with a student needing a bit of encouragement, I’ve created my Be-a-Famous Writer Contest.

That’s also why I have created my Be-a-Famous Writer Contest, so I students can see their story woven out of thin air from her or his imagination read aloud by a professional story teller, and illustrated by a professional illustrator! Yep, that’s just one of the prizes.  I guarantee, that student will be a lot closer to understanding the power of books and the wonders of reading. The winners also have their classrooms filled with books in every format. These sponsors, all leaders in the education market, will be providing the prizes. And I’m not making up that story!

 

The Art of Storytelling - How Writing Contests Can Nurture Creativity in the Classroom

A caveman runs into his cave, takes a seat by the fire and, still trying to catch his breath, tells his family about the huge black wolf that jumped on him just moments before, and how he escaped a horrible death by hitting the toothy, drooling beast on the snout with a tree branch till it roared in pain and galloped away into the woods. The caveman didn’t realize it but he was one of the world’s first storytellers. He was beginning a tradition of passing stories by spoken word from generation to generation, changing and improving them with each retelling, and eventually engraving them on the printed page, preserved intact for future generations like an insect trapped in amber.

And who knows? The caveman’s story about the wolf might have evolved over the centuries into “Little Red Riding Hood,” a fairy tale so ancient no one is really sure whence it came. But it’s a story that is still read by parents to their children and is one of the most popular videos on my storytelling website, www. MrsP.com. Here is a Download Create your own story.   worksheet for your students to start telling their won stories.

I decided to build my website around the art of storytelling (in the sense of reading classic stories to an audience) because it creates a special bond between the reader and the listener. The reader, with only words and the passion of her voice, is helping the listener create their own special version of a story, with their own specific images from their own imaginations. No two listeners will ever have the same experience hearing a story because each listener is an active participant in its creation. It’s the difference between watching a baseball game on TV and going outside and playing your own game. Unless you get beaned in the head by a line drive, odds are creating
your own game will be more fun, memorable and fulfilling than just watching someone else’s creation.

Of course, the storyteller can help the listener create her or his own version of a story by offering an enthusiastic performance. The best storytellers let down their guards, forget they’re dignified adults and become the characters and feel the emotions. I like to use different voices for the different characters in my stories, and I rehearse them just as diligently as any of the parts I’ve played in my other life as an actress in Hollywood. Sometimes it gets a bit complicated, especially in stories with a lot of characters: “Oh, dear – did the Mad Hatter have a British accent and a lisp, or was that the Cheshire Cat?!” Somehow, though, I’ve always managed to sort things out at the last second and have avoided any embarrassing and tragic voice mix-ups!

One of the greatest joys of my life as a storyteller is reading aloud stories written by children. Every year I host my K-4 Be-a-Famous Writer contest for classrooms. The winners have their stories read by me on YouTube Channel for everyone to hear. It’s so much fun, such an infinitely good time for both my heart and soul, to help bring to life the world of a child’s imagination! And what makes me just as happy is what the writing contest teaches kids: how much power they hold in their words and their thoughts. Even a caveman could see there’s no better lesson in life than that.

Details on the writing contest can be found here.  Your classroom could be filled with books and technology from my amazing sponsors.  You might also consider visiting my online learning lesson to spark imaginations in your classroom.

         

Picture Book, Wanda’s Wart, Both a Halloween Tale & Discussion opener for Bullying

For October I have a great  picture book, Wanda’s Wart, to share in my Magic Library.  It is even more special that it was written by illustrator Robin Robinson, who has illustrated most of the stories at my YouTube Channel.  The story is very timely for October as it can enjoyed as a Halloween tale, since the star of the story is a witch, but more importantly it is a story that deals with important topic of bullying, and October is National Bullying Prevention Month.

Wanda's Wart is an all-ages indie picture book about the importance of friendship, honesty—and not being afraid to stand out for what makes you an individual.  This story may be a tool for dealing with certain kinds of bullying, and for kids who run the risk of suppressing their interests and talents just to fit in.  We may not all be the best witch in our class, but we could all be a little more fearless about being ourselves, warts and all.  

                                      


                                                    Enjoy my interview with Robin:
 
What inspired you to write Wanda?  I was bullied mercilessly as a kid, and I heard a lot of mixed messages.  Was I asking for it?  Was it my fault somehow for being different?  What did I expect if I stood out?  These were more important questions to me than why they bullied—I understood how hard the lives of most of my tormenters were, but that didn't help me!  This isn't a story about bullies learning not to bully or getting their comeuppance, because that isn't something I have much to say about.  This is a story about dealing with it.  The things people teased me for ended up being some of the most important aspects of my personality and my life.  If I had succumbed to the hegemonic effects of the bullying, I would have lost who I was—and am.  I still have friends to this day I met when I was a bullied elementary school student, and they are very precious to me.

What message do you hope children will take away from the story? I'm not sure that I can hope my message will become a part of folk culture, but I'd like to give kids nuanced stories about the things they face now, without telling them they have to be magically virtuous to deserve a happy ending.  Wanda has a lot more to face, many more childhood problems that aren't easy to navigate, and which magic will complicate rather than solve!

You have illustrated so many of Mrs. P stories, have there been some favorites? Tell me about them: I have so many favorites!  The Be a Famous Writer competition is a blast for me, getting to read stories written by kids always brings me back to my elementary school days and it is great to be in that mindset while illustrating.  The Peanut Butter and Jelly Hotdog felt so real, and The Magic Piano also hit home for me—I'm a bit introverted myself.

Do you have a favorite children's story?   Kid lit is my life, and I have too many favorite stories to list, but I've always gone back to Alice in Wonderland and Tove Jansson's Moomintroll books as my essential reads.   Alice is so exactly what dreams feel like, and so full of both the frustration and wonder of being young and nothing making sense.  The Moomintroll books have the sweetness and charm of Pooh, but sharper wit and more Bohemian ethics which really speak to me, plus her artwork is so simple, funny, and haunting at the same time that I'm always in awe of it.

What about an illustrator that inspired you with a children's book? Just like I have so many favorite stories, I have so many favorite authors and illustrators who inspire me!  I've already swooned over Tove Jansson, but I was very impressed with Maurice Sendak when I was young and have carried an affinity for his work ever since.  They were both daring and haunting and very very full of humanity.

Do you have any other books you are working on currently? I'm working on a VERY funny and VERY gross picture book with Portland-based comic book writer Neal Bailey which we will be kickstarting last this year, and I'm also working hard on about 3 different dummies which may eventually see the light of day!  I like getting to switch between gross-out humor and cute animals and lonely ghosts, rather than working on just one flavor of project all the time.

Where can people see your work? My portfolio is www.robinillustration.com, and I also keep two tumblrs which update frequently-- thegorgonist.tumblr.com is my art blog and tuesdayzoo.tumblr.com is a weekly challenge where myself and another wonderful illustrator, Nicole Allin, both draw a strange animal in our very different styles.  I have a shop at www.thegorgonist.etsy.com that is full of my illustrated jewelry, prints, and books, and I even have a webcomic, which is not kid friendly, at www.ushalacomic.com  I'm all over the place!  

Do you have any advice for young artists in elementary school that you would like to share?  To any young artist, know that all you have to do to be an artist is make art.  Just draw, paint, mold, strum, dance—whatever!--every day, and make sure to look at and experience lots of different kinds of art, too.  Read books, look at famous paintings, follow illustration blogs, try out for school plays—write your own plays and songs!  No one can stop you.

Robin Robinson is a young illustrator with one foot in classic lit and another in pop culture.  Her illustrations have appeared in web magazines, on indie book covers, and in many of the bedtime stories read aloud in Mrs P's Magic Library.  In 2013, she had her first book published with Penguin, a young reader's edition of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz.  Her previous self-published offerings for children are the colorful romp, Meet the Bad Day Monsters and The Last Keyhole, a ghost story.  She hopes to make many more books about Wanda, Jinx, and the other little witches!

Nurturing Your Student’s Natural Storytelling Skills with D.I.Y. Bookmaking

When you were a kid, did you ever lie on the grass at recess, look up at the clouds and see all sorts of magical and wonderful images in them? I did. It was nice to know that if I’d read all my books from the library, I could always go outside and be entertained by the sky – which, by the way, makes even the biggest Imax movie screen look positively tiny. I like to share with teachers ways to nurture storytelling skills. My motto is “If you can tell a story, you can write a story”. I had a teacher who when I returned from recess would ask me what I saw up in the sky - A flock of sheep? What were they doing? Where were they headed? Why? It got my brain thinking all kinds of creative which ways.

Asking your students to tell you a story helps to develop an active mind. Kids are naturally creative; your job is to give them an environment that will let their imaginations flourish. When a students creates a watercolor they painted at school, you can get them in the storytelling mode with an open-ended suggestion like “tell me about your picture.” It’s tempting to try and guess what they created but much more fun (for both of you) to hear them weave a story to go with the picture.

A fun way to help students get into a creative mode, is to give them a pile of pictures you’ve cut out of old magazines. Ask them to create a collage - and then tell you a story about it. You’ll be amazed at what your students will come up with!

I love D.I.Y craft projects. Making handmade books out of your students story is a great way to celebrate the enjoyment of writing. It’s also a great way to nurture a life-long love for books.  Here is a PDF to Download Mrsp_bookmaking with simple instructions. You can create simple books in many ways, and the materials can usually be found around the students home:

• Cut out shapes from a brown-paper bag to use as pages for the book. Books don’t always have to be square or rectangular - try a circle. It’s also fun to use colored craft paper.
• Make an accordion book for a fun variation.

                                                                                     

• Use a hole-punch along the spine to tie ribbon, yarn or thread through it to hold the pages together.
• Or use buttons along the spine edge to hold your book together.

                                                                                   

Remember: children are natural storytellers and encouraging this skill will pay dividends for the rest of their lives. When you’re a kid, having your ‘head in the clouds’ can sometimes be a very good thing.