14 Mar 2018

Visiting Authors Week One: Inspired and Energized Learners

We were honored to welcome Naomi Shihab Nye and Todd Parr to ASD this week. We kicked off our Visiting Author celebrations with a Elementary School welcome assembly led by our Student Librarians. Our students were thrilled to introduce Naomi and Todd to our school and share some of the writing and art work they have been doing in preparation for the visit.


The last five days have been full of inspiring and energizing presentations and workshops. With Naomi, students have been writing and sharing beautiful poetry. Naomi has encouraged students to ask questions and write from a place where they not have all the answers. Naomi has a gift for bringing out poetry in us all. She gently encourages us to take risks and share our thoughts with each other. Students have been captivated by Naomi's readings and songs.



With Todd, students have been drawing and creating their own books. Todd encourages students to follow their hearts and learn from their mistakes. While students laughed out loud as Todd shared The Underwear Book, they also connected with the important message in Love the World. We have all delighted in Todd's readings, art work and personal stories. 

On Wednesday, more than 60 students participated in Todd's after school drawing workshop. Todd read several of his books to our students and parents. He then invited everyone to draw together as a community. Students and parents created large panels of bright, colorful art inspired by Todd's books.





We also welcomed our parents into the library for an informative session on building empathy through reading. Both Todd and Naomi shared their insights into supporting our children's reading and encouraged parents to expose their children to a variety of poetry and literature.

We look forward to another week full of learning and creativity. Workshops will continue for all grade levels and Naomi will offer an after school writing workshop in the ES Library on Wednesday, March 21 from 3:30 - 4:15 pm. We feel so fortunate to have Naomi and Todd share their craft and passion with our community of learners.

7 Mar 2018

Visiting Author Celebrations Kick Off on Sunday!


Todd Parr and Naomi Shihab Nye will join our community of learning from Sunday, March 11 through Thursday, March 22. We are fortunate to have them with us for two whole weeks! Our celebrations will kick off with a Elementary School Welcome Assembly at 8:30am in the ES Gym. Students will then begin their workshops and sessions with the authors over the ten school days.

Books for Signing

A few books are left for sale! Or bring in your own books to have them signed! Don't delay to avoid disappointment. All signed books will be delivered to students by March 22.

Family Opportunities

Tuesday, March 13:
Talk Tuesday for Parents K1-Grade 12 - Meet the Authors
Building Empathy Through Reading
Elementary Library: 8:30 - 9:15 am Naomi Shihab Nye and 9:30-10:15am Todd Parr

Wednesday, March 14:
Drawing and Writing Workshop with Todd Parr

Students K1-Grade 5 & Parents Welcome
Elementary Library 3:30 - 4:15pm

Wednesday, March 21:
Writing Workshop with Naomi Shihab Nye

Students K1-Grade 5 & Parents WelcomeElementary Library 3:30 - 4:15pm





Student Work

Stop by the Elementary Library to view some amazing student work inspired by Naomi and Todd's books. Our students are ready to celebrate and learn from two incredible story tellers.

After reading Naomi Shihab Nye's poem "Famous," students in Grades 2-5 wrote their own poems.




Students also read "Torn Map" and "Who's Rich?" by Naomi Nye and responded to the poems with the heads, hearts and hands. We discovered how personal our reactions and connections to poetry can be.



In both art classes and library classes, students created Todd Parr inspired drawings and book pages using the iPad app Drawing Desk. The students used bold lines and bright colors. We created collages of their drawings to display in the library. 








In addition, some classes explored some of Todd's themes such as being different, the meaning of peace, and what makes us feel good. Check out the links below to hear some of our student voices.