Whenever I knit, I learn all over again that crafting is not really about making something perfect. It’s about touching yarn or other materials. It’s about transforming something from one thing into another. It’s about letting nagging worries slide away and losing yourself in something meditative or creative. It’s all
Thank you so much to those of you who were able to come to my online launch event last week with Red Balloon Bookshop! It was just lovely to see some familiar names in the Chat–really warmed my heart. Since I had gathered info and thoughts in preparation for the
October only: Looking for how-to mentor texts to share with your students? If You Want to Knit Some Mittens takes the reader from a sheep to a pair of sunny gold mittens in 18 easy steps—including some madcap adventures and ending with a close-knit friendship. Plus Angela Matteson and I
October only: I’m so pleased to have a measuring lesson plan (using yarn!) for K‑2 available on Patricia Newman’s wonderful blog as part of her LitLinks series celebrating the links between STEM topics and writing/literature. I hope you enjoy it! [My Classroom Connections posts share a way to connect one
October only: There’s nothing like getting outside to read a nature book! A couple of weekends ago, I got to share Secrets of the Loon with some families at a Minnesota park through Dakota County Library. It was a gorgeous fall day, and it was fun to talk about how
I’ll be sharing lots about my forthcoming picture book, If You Want to Knit Some Mittens, in the coming weeks. But for now, I just want to soak up the joy on the face of a family friend, Ryeli, who I gave one of my author copies to. Teachers, I
I always felt a little sad when our girls’ schools had Grandparents Day programs, since they never had any local grandparents. I think any holiday or celebration that happens around certain family members could also use recognition that not all families have someone in that role—and that’s okay! Check out
When you’re studying colors and/or weather, check out my How to Make a Rainbow. I featured this book at a storytime recently, and the kids had fun identifying some of the objects of each color. Then we did a little motion song to the tune of “Farmer in the Dell.”
As time flies faster and faster, sometimes whole seasons seem to disappear in a blur of whirling calendar pages! We’ve just moved, and home is chaotic. But summer is short, and I want to make sure I don’t miss the whole thing. So I’m looking at my book, Lion of
While writing Snowman-Cold=Puddle, I thought about the many different ways seasons are defined, including agriculturally, by temperature, by planetary alignment, etc. Many regions of the world have rainy and dry season instead of our four North American seasons. For me, as a kid and then a teacher, summer always started
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