Apologies

A few months ago, I changed my e-mail address.  Realized a couple of days ago that I forgot to update my contact info on my website.  AAAAARGH!!!  Was able to retrieve the 1262 "lost" e-mails.  Mostly junk.  And a few school visit requests.  Of course I never followed up.  I apologize and will send e-mails soon to each person I involuntarily ignored. 

workshops

Exhausted after the 2 planned workshops.  Successful day.  About 10 people in Voorheesville and 40 (with waiting list!) in Guilderland.  Love the way kids dive into their drawings.  The 3 "games" worked very well.

Thinking of reducing amount I draw/demo and have instead drawn lists of items to consider.
-hair, barrettes, whiskers, facial hair, glasses, earrings, etc
-clothes, hats, shoes, stripes, dots, etc 
To explore. 

Wish I could post some of the kids drawings.  I hint and hint but they hold on to their work.  Maybe a good sign that they are proud of their efforts? 

preparing for workshops

Spent all day preparing for tomorrow's library workshops.  One in Voorheesville, the other in Guilderland. 

Made some samples of various "games" for cartooning.  

Game #1: Potato heads:

Game # 2: Character in motion:

Game # 3: Story in 3 or 4 panels:

visit at Altamont Elementary

Thank you to my new friends at Altamont Elementary for inviting me today. What a wonderful day. Go to Bed, Monster is always fun to read. The potato game always a big hit. The visit was well organized, the kids excited, the faculty engaged. I have been so lucky with my visits so far!
Thank you Kari for contacting me and leading me into your lovely library.

4 groups, 4 team pictures, 3 of them with dogs! Good thing I like dogs.

Our first dog was to ride a motorcycle, be happy, wear shorts and flip-flops and a leash (!)

The second dog was to cook potatoes, be sad (i mistakenly made the tail wag), wear chef hat, clown shoes and pajama pants.

The third dog was to wash dishes , standing on a pile of china plates, be angry about it, and wear party hat, rubber gloves, and shorts.

The K class finally broke with the motif and wanted a crocodile riding a play-jeep, and looking shocked. No wonder as he was heading straight onto a red light (that I accidently cropped upon taking the picture.)

school visit near Chicago

Tuesday was school visit day for me. In Glencoe, IL. What a fantastic visit! What a fantastic school! What a fantastic team of parents, children and faculty! Everyone was so welcoming, enthusiastic and helpful.

Thank you Lisa and Carolyn for inviting me, for organizing so beautifully and for your attention to all details. Thank you Jacob for getting up early to pick me up at my hotel and showing me into the school. Thank you Nancy the librarian for your welcome. I enjoyed eavesdropping on your class while I was signing books. Thank you to the principal for being so interested. Thank you to all the teachers and a special thank you to the art teacher who is a gem of a teacher. I loved seeing her class. (I am sorry I do not remember all the names.)

(note to Lisa's daughter: next time, I would love to see your graphic novel!)

Here are the images we came up with:

A happy koala bear eating spaghetti.
(with top hat, glass of milk, flip-flops.)
(I am sorry to say I need to review my knowledge of koala bears.)

A worried tiger ready to eat a huge potato.
(with tap dance shoes, bows, dress. side lamp.)
(Kids had eating in mind that morning.)

An excited lion dancing disco.
(with new shoes, a zebra outfit, party hat, sunglasses, and, of course, the disco ball.)

A very tired giraffe -named Sabrina- jazz dancing.
(with tank top, shorts, rose in mouth and bow tie.)
(Kids had dancing in mind too!!)

back in time

It is always such a treat to go back to the Robert C. Parker School. My daughter went there for her whole elementary schooling and it was so good for her.
Yesterday I went back, not as a parent, but as an author-illustrator and enjoyed the children so much. Thank you Carol for inviting me. Thank you Liliana and Michele for opening your classrooms to me. Thank you to all the children who became my new friends and teamed up to come up with some good images.
Great job coloring our picture K-4! Better than anything I would have done.

visit in Hamilton

fantastic visit to Hamilton yesterday. preK to 3rd graders. thank you to all my new friends for the invitation and especially to Melissa and Meredith.
here is the product of our team effort:

we started out with the preK and K classes and they requested a cat playing ball and having forgotten to wear his pants that morning:


on with the the 3rd graders who wanted a dancing Tyrannosaurus Rex, wearing dress, top hat and sneakers:


the 2nd graders requested a dragon reading a book on the ceiling! i almost asked for another suggestion on that one and then decided to stick with my rule: yes to first suggestion. no favoritism:


and the first grade came up with a dinosaur playing video games... i had to add the banana peel. (the inscription however was a request.)

visit to grafton elementary

My visit at Grafton Elementary was fantastic. Thank you Susan and kids for inviting me. You were all so well prepared. Your welcome was heart-warming and I had a great time. If I were a kid, I would register at your school!

What we created together:

a horse and a jaguar on a skateboard.


and a gorilla and a hedgehog hiking.

What a team we made!

last visit of the series

today was the last visit of the series of visits in and near Utica. again a good and creative time. after leaving the last group, i realized i forgot to read from my book! can you believe that! nobody seemed to notice. we were all plenty busy with the drawing demos. and that class had a million of interesting questions! which shows good preparation. thank you to the artist in residence.

we had a tiger on a scooter wearing hula skirt and coconut bra. (no kidding!)



and a zebra shopping for ham, eying some potatoes and wearing expensive shoes.

school visits are wonderful but also very draining. it will feel good to concentrate again on a project.

watson williams

Lovely visit at Watson Williams Elementary in Utica. Again, well prepared students - a big thank you to the faculty- and great creative times for all.

We came up with an elephant in a cowboy hat, playing basketball but being distracted by some forgotten peanuts.


And a monkey on a skate board going a bit too fast and unaware of you-know-what!

visit with 5th graders

Same school as yesterday. But with the 5th grade. Just as well prepared, just as enjoyable, just as creative. And more time per group, which was nice.Thank you to all the teachers I met today, for your dedication. Your students are lucky ones!

Here are the drawing demos we came up with:
A cat lounging by a pool, in a tutu and a leprechaun hat and drinking soda,

a buffalo practicing her salsa steps with a broom,

an elephant juggling with pineapples,

and a bunny named Elvis, dancing disco, wearing a jump suit and converse, complete with carrot, hairspray and combs.

visit with 6th graders

I am not used to visiting with 6th graders. I was a bit worried. I ended up LOVING it! The students were so much fun: attentive, respectful, enthusiastic and creative. They obviously were surrounded by an excellent team of teachers. Thank you to all my new friends at Clinton Middle School. Near Utica.
We had to deal with tight time constraints but what fun pictures came out!
We started with a giraffe shopping for coats and wearing a bikini.

Then came a loony rabbit playing ice hockey and wearing sombrero, sweater vest and tutu.

Next, an angry shark playing football...

... and finally, a cat doing a back flip, wearing tuxedo and bunny slippers.

visit to FDR elementary

Reading from MISTER BEAR

The visit at FDR Elementary in Schenectady was a real pleasure. Thank you to Nikki for her enthusiasm and dedication as a "one woman PTO" in a grossly underfunded school. The children were wonderful, with tons of ideas for me to draw.
Thank you to everyone for the warm welcome. It was a treat for me too!

the drawing assigned by the children: an elephant with a hula-hoop and a tiger jumping rope.

getting ready for Schenectady

Decided to donate a reading/drawing visit to an inner city school with no funding in Schenectady. Looking forward to a different experience. Let's just hope I find the place and a few children show up!

visit in Utica

getting ready for a presentation in Utica. Not for children but for teachers. that will be different. i will be conducting my presentation as if for children though, so the teachers get a sense of what it would be like to hire me for a school visit.

my experience with teachers at the elementary level has always been a warm and friendly one. in fact, i consider teaching an art in itself and am delighted to meet people usually full of enthusiasm and curiosity. not to mention an unquenchable love of books.

the presentation is for the Arts in Education Institute at the Stanley Center for the Arts.