Thursday, April 9, 2009

A great day

I recently had the honor of visiting The Masters School in West Simsbury, CT.

One word:

WOW!

What a great day!

It started out by waking up in a canopy bed! How cool is that?


Then I walked in the door and was greeted with an amazing display all the way down the hall: felt banners representing scenes from How to Steal a Dog!






The students had done so many creative and interesting projects using my books.

The fourth graders wrote in their journals from the perspective of some of the minor characters in the book, like Georgina's friend and her teacher. I was impressed by how they were able to see the same story through different eyes.


The fifth graders drew their own versions of the covers of some of my books. Again, a great way to think about the books and what the students saw as some of the more important story elements that could be highlighted.


The third graders made these lovely welcoming cards for me.


And the sixth graders had so many thoughtful and intelligent questions for me about my books.


One student made this awesome poster of Willy on some cool foam material.


And another student made a How to Steal a Dog Easter egg!!! Here it is on my Easter Egg tree.


And here it is up close.


And the day would not have been complete without this mummified chicken.


Thank you, Masters School, for such a lovely and memorable day.

4 comments:

Sara said...

That Easter egg is adorable. Simply adorable! (I'm turning away from the mummified chicken.)

K. M. Walton said...

Hi - new to your blog! I found it after attending the SCBWI Pocono Mountain Retreat. Lisa Graff used the first chapter of your book, How to Steal a Dog, to illustrate how a first chapter SHOULD be written. I learned heaps of things from your writing and Lisa's interpretation of it.

In addition to being a writer, I also teach 6th grade and will definitely be getting copies of your book. I really like your voice and can't wait to have my students read your work.

p.s. the school above did a wonderful job connecting with your book!!

Barbara O'Connor said...

Thanks for writing! Lisa Graff is a peach. It was so nice of her to use my book as an example at the conference. I love her writing, as well, and think she's a first rate editor.

Greta Blanchard said...

Thank you for coming to The Master's School! Because we read three of your books, it was extra special to have you here!
Thank you so much for putting us on your blog! It was a great experience to see all the pictures of your visit here. Many of us are inspired to write and we'll be starting Greetings From Nowhere, today.
Mrs. Greta Blanchard, Autumn, Lauren C. Grace, Alden, Crystal, Olivia (the egg maker), Nick, Winston, Tyler, Lauren B, Jacob, David, Adalie, Keon, Kathryn (the poster maker), Jessi, and Sam - Grade 5