Emma and the Young Authors Conference

Emma was chosen again this year (by her teachers) to attend the Young Authors Conference.  Talk about being excited.  I don't know if you know about it but students have to be invited to go by their teachers and a lot of the times they are looking for students that are creative or that have great imaginations.  I think (now this is just me) it is a great opportunity to learn how different authors/illustrators think and to help them with their own creative writing. Emma has a wonderful imagination and she is always writing stories and songs. 

When you are invited to go to the conference you write a story, illustrate it (if you want), bring it and read it in front of your group (they group the kids by grade, there are a couple of groups in each grade) and then listen to the author/illustrator and have a great time learning outside of the classroom.

This year they had John Stephen Gurney who is an illustrator and and author.  If you don't know the name you mustn't have kids, he is the illustrator for most of the A to Z Mystery series, The Bailey School Kids series and he just had his own book Dinosaur Train published.  He did a great job, I was really impressed with how he talk with the kids and explained how and why he draws the way he does.  I think Emma was really impressed.   She was so excited to come home and show here dad how the draw a grumpy old man.

 Emma and her certificate for participating.  Her story will be published in a book with all of the other stories that were written and read just for the conference. 

 Coco Meets a New Friend

By E. Draper

            Coco was a monkey.  She was a funny monkey, but very quiet. She only had one friend named Tori and she had just moved away.  Little did Coco know that was about to change. 

            One day Coco was up on the canopy in her pink summer dress.  Her mother called her saying “Coco please come here, someone is on the banana phone for you”.  “I’m coming” Coco said “hello”.  “Hi Coco, guess what”, said Tori “I get to come next week to visit”.  “That’s great” Coco said “I will see you then, let me know when you get here”.. 

            Later that evening Coco’s mom said, “I hear that we have a new family that just moved into Tori’s old home”.  “Oh” replied Coco.  “Would you like to come with me to say hi,” Coco’s mom asked her. “Sure mom that would be great” said Coco.

            The next day they went to the new family’s house.  While her mom was talking, she was looking around.  Out of nowhere a monkey came down the stairs.  She looked like she was the same age as Coco.  The monkey wasn’t shy at all.  She came right up to Coco and said, “I’m Lori, what is your name”?  “My name is Coco” said Coco.  “Cool” said Lori “do you want to play today”?  Coco said “let me ask my mom, do you want to come with me while I ask?”  Coco’s mom said “Yes, that would be alright”.   From then on Coco and Lori were the best of friends.  When Tori came to visit, all three of them played together.

 

 Emma getting his autograph in between classes.

Showing the kids how to draw a grumpy old man starting out with math.

I am glad she got to go.  I know I complain about all the things the schools do that costs, but I do have to say I am glad that she has been able to go to this for the last few years.  She has grown a lot in her story telling/writing and like I said she is always writing stories.  I don't know where her stories are but I hope she keeps them and refers to them later when she is older.