Category: Conferences

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Got Bugs?

Okay, Scientists in the Field (SITF) fans … do you remember this Donna M. Jackson title from 2002? Of course you do. How could you forget that cover? I remember reading it back when I was obsessively studying the SITF series and preparing to pitch my own title to its editors. That pitch became my first book, Tracking Trash, and now, in just a couple hours, I’ll be in a conference call with Tom Turpin, the guy up there with the bugs on his face.

Can I just take a moment to say that this sort of full circle stuff thrills me to no end?

Anyway, Tom and I are joining forces with a group of scientists and educators to tout the power of insects in science education. We’ll be sharing our ideas later this month at the Entomological Society of America annual conference in Reno, Nevada, in a morning-long symposium. If you happen to be in ‘the biggest little city in the world’ at the same time, do please stop by and say hello. I don’t think there are any plans for us to wear bugs, but you never know …

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ALA 2011

 

The American Library Association Annual Conference kicks off on Friday in New Orleans, and I’m super excited because I’LL BE THERE! I’m teaming up with nine fantastic nonfiction writers in a massive celebration of writing and reading and sharing nonfiction. Here are the details:

Nonfiction Book Blast: Booktalks and Activities for Your Library
Sunday June 26, 2011, 8am-10am
Morial Convention Center Room 243

Start school with new booktalks and activities from ten nonfiction authors: April Pulley Sayre (Rah, Rah, Radishes), Kelly Milner Halls (In Search of Sasquatch), Deborah Heiligman (Charles and Emma), Loree Griffin Burns (The Hive Detectives), Carla Killough McClafferty (The Many Faces of George Washington), Christine Taylor-Butler (Magnets), Shirley Duke (You Can’t Wear These Genes), Darcy Pattison (Prairie Storms), Carla Mooney (Explorers of the New World) and Anastasia Suen (Read and Write Sports). (Handouts)

I’ll also be signing books in the Houghton Mifflin Harcourt booth (#1539-1540) immediately after the presentation and until 11am. I’ve packed scads of honey candy, so please do stop by.

For a complete list of all the Book Blast authors and their signing schedules, visit our blog.

Safe travels!

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Nonfiction Book Blast

I’m excited to be part of a panel of nonfiction writers sharing books with librarians at the American Library Association annual conference in New Orleans this summer. To give everyone a taste of ourselves and our books, we’ve started blogging together over at Nonfiction Book Blast .

This week’s featured author is the weird and wonderful Kelly Milner Halls.

Last week’s featured author was the multi-talented Shirley Duke, who is hard at work on a video trailer for our panel. (More on that soon. And, yes, I’m a week late getting this post up; I’ve been doing my taxes!)

The ladies of Nonfiction Book Blast will be blogging each week on Nonfiction Monday and I’ll be linking the posts here each week. Stay tuned.

 

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NSTA 2011

I’m heading to the National Science Teachers Association (NSTA) annual conference … in San Francisco, baby! I’m excited at the prospect of all those science teachers to mingle with and learn from. Sunshine and warmth? Total bonuses.

At the conference, I’ll join Professors Susannah Richards and Jeanelle Day, and my colleague Alexandra Siy, to talk about practicing science in childhood, in the field, in books, and in the classroom. Ours promises to be a lively and informative discussion; please join us if you are at the conference. Here are the details:

Buzzing About Science:
Behind the Scenes with Scientific Trade Books that Invite Inquiry
Thursday, March 10, 2011
3:30pm-4:30pm
Hilton San Francisco, Union Square
Golden Gate Room 8

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My Friend Caleb

Photo courtesy Tracy Gandy

The 2011 March Into Reading festival weekend was stupendous. In addition to talking trash and writing with students at Pennfield School, tools with students at St. Michael’s School, and bees with students at Cluny School, I got to hang out with book lovers of all ages, including my new friend Caleb. He is six, and he gave me the handmade honey bee you see in the picture up there. How cute is that bee? How cute is that boy?

Thank you, Caleb.

And thank you to author escort extraordinaire Tracy Gandy, conference organizer Kitty Rok (and her many, many co-organizers), booksellers Judy Crosby and Jenny Williams, photographers Gloria and Richard Schmidt, Julie the Announcer (!), all my author and illustrator colleagues, and every single person who wandered through Saturday’s Enchanted Garden of Books at Salve Regina University. You all sure know how to throw a book party!

© Gloria Schmidt

 

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Marching in to Reading …. Again

© 2008 MIR photos courtesy Gloria Schmidt and Jenny Williams

Back in 2008, I attended the March Into Reading literacy festival at Salve Regina University in Newport, Rhode Island. It was one of my first major speaking events, and I was moved by students and starstruck by colleagues at every turn, as evidenced in my excessive blogging during and after the event. (See, for example, this, and this, and this, and this.) At the very end of my very last March Into Reading blog post (yes, there is one more here), I mentioned how much I’d like to go back to Newport one day. And guess what? This week, I’m going back.

Hooray!

I’ll be visiting with students in Newport area schools all day on Friday, and on Saturday I’ll join authors Melissa Stewart, Wendy Watson, Clara Silverstein, Jane Bregoli, and Laura Backman at one kickin’ book festival. The O’Hare Academic Center on the campus of Salve Regina University will become an Enchanted Garden of Books from 9:30am until 1:00pm, with children’s discovery rooms, author and illustrator workshops, book sales and signings, and even a petting zoo. You’ll find a complete schedule of workshops and events at the official event webpage.

Hope to see you in Rhode Island!

 

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SB&F Fun

The SB&F Prize for Excellence in Science Books, coordinated by the wonderful editors at the review journal Science Books and Films (SB&F) and sponsored by the science-loving folks at Subaru, were awarded this past weekend at the annual conference of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). In case the abundance of acronyms have you doubting there was much fun to be had, allow me to elaborate …

They painted our book cover onto the hood of a Subaru:

And since I couldn’t drive the car inside the convention center, I posed on top of it instead:

Ellen Harasimowicz and I signed books beside it, too:

And I met Ms. Frizzle! Okay, not exactly Ms. Frizzle … but I did meet Joanna Cole and Bruce Degan, creators of the Magic Schoolbus books and SB&F Prize winners in the picture book category (below, right). And I met Sean Connolly, too, the SB&F Prize winner in the hands-on category (below, left). Here we all are clutching our fancy new awards:

Call me crazy, but that was fun!

Thank you to Subaru, AAAS, SB&F, Heather Malcomson, Terry Young, Maren Ostergard and all of the scientists, librarians, editors, and book lovers who helped make this weekend celebration of science books for kids such a blast.

All photos © Ellen Harasimowicz