A Day with Bright Young Minds Can Really Fire You Up

Published: Fri, 05/08/15

Look at the enthusiasm of these students!

They earned a field trip and pizza party for meeting their reading goals over the school year. One young girl more than doubled hers.

I had the privilege and delight of talking to them about writing, and sharing the topics of my books. Their many questions revealed their curiosity and eagerness to learn. I was impressed by their level of knowledge, which, of course, I attribute to the fact they are all terrific readers.

Old Glory Hole at the Bunker Hill & Sullivan Mine

Examining historical photos of miners in the Coeur d'Alene Silver Mining District, the students drew inferences about conditions of the time and place. At left: The original Old Glory Hole at the Bunker & Sullivan Mine, Kellogg, ID.

Discussing of my novel Fire in the Hole!, they talked about how children might have lived in a mining town of the 1890's.

These museum quality artifacts I collected while researching Fire in the Hole! help students gain hands-on experience of the time period.

Below students take a turn with hammer and steel to get a feel for how hard miners' worked in the old days before power drills.

These students attend the Continuous Curriculum School in the East Valley School District near Spokane, WA. They explained to me how they only get six weeks off for the summer, but get more breaks during the rest of the school year.

My favorite part of visiting with students this week was hearing about the characters they developed during a short writing assignment. One character was a 6-year-old girl named Hannah, with neon-hair and freckles. Her goal was to pan for fools' gold, and to meet it, she had to climb a mountain and brave a river full of alligators. Now that's a story I want to read!

News and Links

If you know anyone interested in learning more about character development tell them about this webinar workshop Saturday, May 9th at 9:30am Pacific Time.

It's a webinar, so anyone in the world can access it through their computer or smart phone. Click here for more details and to register.

The workshop will be taught by former editor and publisher Elizabeth Law. One of the brightest minds in children's publishing today, Elizabeth works as a book doctor, mentor, advocate for writers and artists, and consultant.

Elizabeth's blog entry 10 Things that Make an Editor Stop Reading Your Manuscript” drew nearly 20,000 visitors to her website over two days last summer.

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My best,

Mary

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