Month: April 2020 (Page 2 of 2)

Calling all Cool Beans!

Remember when we read The Cool Bean by Jory John and Pete Oswald? It was so fun to read with you and realize that what is really cool is to be kind. Our school is full of Cool Beans!

Here is a video of Pete Oswald as he talks to us about how he came up with the idea for the garbanzo bean and what he uses to do his illustrations. I had never heard of frisket paper before…I love learning new things! Watch below to see what frisket paper is and why Pete Oswald uses it to do his illustrations:

Jory John and Pete Oswald have also teamed up for a new picture book called The Great Eggscape! I have bought it for our library, so you can take it out when we get back to school. 🙂 In the meantime, here is a read aloud of the book below. You may be able to connect if you were hunting for eggs this morning! Happy Easter! And Happy Vaisakhi tomorrow!

Happy reading, too!

Mrs. H.

Good morning, Lovelies…

I have been re-reading one of my favourite authors over the last few weeks. I very rarely re-read anything, as I have stacks of new books that are waiting to be read! But Richard Wagamese is different. He was an Ojibway Canadian author and journalist and has won many awards and even had one of his books made into a movie. I find his words to be so powerful and transformative. Here are some I want to share with you…

All that we are is story. From the moment we are born to the time we continue on our journey, we are involved in the creation of the story of our time here. It is what we arrive with. It is all we leave behind. We are not the things we accumulate. We are not the things we deem important. We are story. All of us. What comes to matter then is the creation of the best possible story we can while we’re here; you, me, us, together. When we can do that and we take the time to share those stories with each other, we get bigger inside, we see each other, we recognize our kinship – we change the world, one story at a time…

-Richard Wagamese

I hope you take the time to create the best possible story you can, especially under the circumstances.  I continue to miss you all and the stories we get to share and make together.  🙂

Mrs. H. (I would insert a heart here, but I’m working on figuring that out…help? 😉 )

Good morning, Clinton Thunderbirds! 🙂

Since I left you yesterday, I have been wondering about OK from THE OK Book and just how Tom Lichtenheld, the illustrator, came up with his idea. This lead me to do a little research and I found Tom’s site that was really fun to explore. If you’d like to explore it, follow this link

https://www.tomlichtenheld.com/childrens_books/

On the site, I found an interview with another children’s author and illustrator, Carrie Charley Brown. In the interview, Tom had these words of wisdom for budding illustrators:

“Don’t forget that illustration is as much about ideas as technique.”

I’ve got ideas, I thought, but I can’t even say I’m ‘OK’ on technique! 🙂

Thankfully, I know many illustrators who are helping us all with technique while we’re staying safe at home. You will definitely know these three, as we’ve read their books together at Clinton. Take a peek at these sites and get working on your own illustrations. As always, feel free to take a picture of your creations and post in the comments. Can’t wait to find the next Mo Willems or Carson Ellis here at Clinton!

First, Mo Willems:

Next, Carson Ellis:

Dav Pilkey draws Big Jim and Commander Cupcake! Dogman, too!

https://kids.scholastic.com/kids/books/dav-pilkey-at-home/

Have fun and keep reading, too!

Mrs. H.

This morning I thought I would share a book that most of us already know…The OK Book! It’s written by one of my favourite authors, Amy Krause Rosenthal. The illustrator, Tom Lichtenheld, does such a great job using the letters ‘OK’ to support the story that Amy is telling about trying all sorts of different things…perhaps making happy mistakes! Like flipping a pancake on your head! 🙂

Just press play to watch the story…

Feel free to watch the story as many times as you’d like and think about what YOU might like to try while you’re safe at home. Perhaps you’d like to bake some cookies or prepare supper. Maybe you want to learn to knit or crochet. Maybe you want to perfect your cartwheel or juggle your soccer ball. So many possibilities! Take this time to set a goal for yourself and maybe even become more than just ‘OK’. 🙂 As Amy says at the end…”Is it just the beginning?”

While you’re thinking about your plans, here’s another challenge! Picture yourself as the OK character in the story and try to draw OK doing what you’ve set as your goal. If you would like to share, I would love to see your illustrations! You can post them in the comments below or send them to my email: pam.hossack@burnabyschools.ca  If you’re ‘ok’ with me sharing them with our community, I can post them here, as well. Feel free to also just send what your goal might be…you might give others an idea!

Good morning, Lovelies!

If you’re here, you have remembered where to find the Library tab on our Clinton homepage. The usual Catalogue link and Web Resources link are there, but you’ll have noticed the new one…a blog!! It’s what I’m going to use to stay in touch with you and your families. 🙂

Remember when I wished you “Happy Mistakes” at the beginning of the year?? Well, here’s our chance! I’ve been making many happy mistakes as I learn about blogging and I’m challenging myself. The blog will grow and change as we figure out what is the best way to keep in touch and allow me to support you as you grow and change. Learning from home will give you a chance to learn and discover in a whole different way than we usually do at school. It’s more than OK to feel unsure and maybe a little overwhelmed…if you can’t figure it out yourself, just ask for help! Even though we’re a little further away from each other than usual, we’re all in this together!

I invite you all to check back here often and engage with me and the items that I’ll be posting. I am excited to have made my first post and connected with you…I miss you!!

Happy Mistakes!
Mrs. H.