70 Amazing Facts About Canadian Children's Author Robert Munsch

See the whole original article from cbc.com HERE

Highlights...

6. Love You Forever was originally a song Munsch wrote to himself, to help him deal with the grief he and his wife were going through after two stillbirths.

7.Munsch has visited hundreds of schools and daycares for free, often without telling themhe's coming.

11. He started writing stories at age 35.

12.Munsch's books have been translated into 32 languages, including 8 aboriginal languages.

13. As a child, he had an imaginary friend named Bobby Smith, who was very naughty.


17. When he travels, he prefers staying with local families to staying in hotels.


24. Spelling is not his forte.

31. His 2008 stroke has made him forgetful, which is why he doesn't tour anymore.

32. He's a Trekkie.


41. In his book Murmel Murmel Murmel, a male truck driver adopts a baby. Robert based the story on his own experience at the time, as a stay-at-home parent with his adopted son, Andrew.

42. He has a black poodle named Guinness. His previous dog was a black poodle named Cinder

66. His favourite TV show is Elementary.

67. His book Get Out of Bed! inspired a Fall Fair parade float in Tavistock, Ontario. On the float, the girl who inspired the book lay in bed while Robert Munsch read to her. It won first prize.

68. His favourite colour is black.

69. Theatre productions of his books have included Little Munsch on the Prairie, Magical Mystery Munsch, Munsch Ado About Nothing and Munschia Mia.

70. Munsch has 71 million copies of his books in print in North America. That's two Robert Munsch books for every Canadian citizen.

Why a Good Book is a Secret Door

Mac Barnett is the author of fifteen books for children. He was the executive director of 826LA, a nonprofit writing center, and founded the Echo Park Time Travel Mart, a convenience store for time travelers. In this talk about creativity and wonder, he explains why kids are the ideal readers of literary fiction -- and what adults can learn from them about imagination and the willing suspension of disbelief.

We Bid Farewell to Norman Bridwell

Like so many others, I cut my reading teeth on the stories of a big red dog named Clifford.  Working in elementary school libraries for the last 10 years I can attest that such is still the case.  The Clifford books are still amongst the most popular series for primary grades.

Norman Bridwell, the creator of the beloved Clifford, has died at the age of 86.

From BBC News:
His loveable character first made an appearance in 1963 and went on to star in more than 40 stories, selling 120 million copies worldwide.  Bridwell had completed two more books which are due for release next year.

His wife of 56 years, Norma, said: "A lot of people were Clifford fans and that makes them Norman fans too."

She was responsible for naming the character Clifford after her imaginary childhood friend.

Over the decades, the bright red dog featured in a host of stories, including Clifford Goes To Hollywood and Clifford and The Grouchy Neighbours, which became popular bedtime reading for children.  

The dog regularly got into trouble before redeeming himself with a daring rescue or doing a good deed. Bridwell's wife said there were parallels between the author and his creation.

"He's never been able to recognise that. Clifford tries to do the right thing, Norman tries to do right the thing, and he makes a mess of it. But he's the most lovable grown-up man. He's just a nice guy."

Before he found fame with Clifford, Bridwell worked as a commercial artist during the 1950s.  He made numerous attempts to break into children's publishing, until a New York book editor suggested he created a story around an illustration he had submitted of a child and her oversized dog. Further rejections followed, until publishers Scholastic saw his creation's potential - a move which led to lasting success for the company.

"I said to my wife, 'Now don't count on there being any more. This one is just a fluke. I don't know if there will ever be another one,'" Bridwell said.

In more recent years, the character was animated in a series of cartoons for US television, while a feature film - Clifford's Big Red Movie - was made in 2004.

~~~~~~

Mr. Bridwell talks about the Clifford series in the 50th anniversary video from Scholastic.ca

“Norman personified the values that we as parents and educators hope to communicate to our children -- kindness, compassion, helpfulness, gratitude -- through the Clifford stories which have been loved for more than 50 years,”  said Dick Robinson, chairman, president and CEO of Scholastic.

International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women

Women's activists have marked November 25th as a day against violence since 1981. This date came from the brutal assassination in 1960, of the three Mirabal sisters, political activists in the Dominican Republic. Governments, international organizations and NGOs are invited to organize activities designed to raise public awareness of the problem on this day.

 Violence against women continues to be a global pandemic and impacts on, and impedes, progress in many areas, including poverty eradication, combating HIV/AIDS, and peace and security. Violence against women is a consequence of discrimination against women, in law and also in practice, and of persisting inequalities between men and women.

 Physical. Sexual. Psychological. Economic. Violence against women takes many forms and affects women from childhood to old age. The roots of violence against women lie in persistent discrimination against women. Women who experience violence suffer a range of health problems and their ability to participate in society is diminished. This violence does not observe distinctions of culture, religion, race or age. It harms families, communities across generations and reinforces other violence prevalent

So how do we address this in the library?  There are several books available that can help approach these sensitive subjects with our young patrons on both an individual level and as a global issue.

I like that these books use animals as characters rather than people.  I think that it allows young readers to distance themselves from frightening situations without taking away any of the impact and validity of the situations described.

A Terrible Thing Happened by Margaret M. Holmes
Sherman Smith saw the most terrible thing happen. At first he tried to forget about it, but something inside him started to bother him. He felt nervous and had bad dreams. Then he met someone who helped him talk about the terrible thing, and made him feel better.

Holmes has written a book that doesn't pretend that thing will go back to the way they were, but instead lets the reader know that many emotions can result from a tragedy such as anger, sadness, fear and that acting out can result when these emotions are hidden or ignored. Finding someone to talk to can help. There is also some information for caregivers at the end. We never learn what the terrible thing that happened to Sherman is, making this book relatable for all kinds of situations: bullying, divorce, abuse, death, accident, crime, and so on.

On a Dark, Dark Night by Sara B. Pierce
A bear cub sees his father strike his mother. He runs away, and is comforted by his friend Moose, who brings in another friend, Eagle. Eagle, taking on the role of the police officer, goes to the father bear and talks to him. Eagle brings him before the animal council, which Pierce calls “the animals’ version of our judicial system.” The council decides that the father bear can no longer stay in the village. Several seasons pass, the father returns, and he and the mother bear begin to talk about whether he can return home or whether he needs more time alone. The story leaves what happens next unsaid making the book suitable for a variety of situations.

Books for the "Where do I Come From?" question

Children can start to ask about sex and babies at any time.  Knowing when to start having those discussions and what to say can be very intimidating.  How much information do you give? Do you only answer what was asked or should you offer more information?  How do you explain mature concepts to a child? How much is too much? Not enough?  

Each parent need to decide these answers for themselves.  Be honest and factual and be prepared for many little conversations rather than a single big one.  This not only takes the pressure off the parents to have the perfect answers, it allows both the children and parents time to digest the information.

There are many books available that can help broach the subject and help to illustrate the biology of puberty and sex.  These three titles offer varying degrees of detail and illustrations

What Makes A Baby

by Cory Silverberg"A Truly Inclusive Way to Answer the Question ''Where Do Babies Come From?'': The new book What Makes a Baby offers an origin story for all children, no matter what their families look like." -The Atlantic

Geared to readers from preschool to age eight, What Makes a Baby is a twenty-first century children's picture book about conception, gestation, and birth. It illustrates a variety of family compositions without being specific about gender people or body parts, so most parents and families will find that it can reflect their own experiences.


Where Willy Went
by Nicholas Allan

Willy is a little sperm who lives inside Mr. Browne with 300 million friends. Every day Willy practices for the Great Swimming Race. And when the day arrives, he swims faster than his 300 million friends to win the prize—a marvelous egg. Then something wonderful happens, and eventually Mr. and Mrs. Browne have a baby girl who has the same winning smile as Willy and who grows up to be a great swimmer.  The cartoon illustrations explain how babies are made without being terribly specific about the act of sex.  I like that it introduces the concept of genetics.   

It's So Amazing!
by Robie H. Harris

This book was created in response to repeated requests from parents, teachers, librarians, and health professionals for an up-to-date book about sex and sexuality for young children. Using language that kids will understand, it covers many subjects related to reproduction. I liked that it covered so many situations, from natural conception to doctor-aided pregnancies, and included a variety of family situations. Some readers may be uncomfortable with some of these topics, such as briefly discussing abortion, Aids/HIV and masturbation, but I found it very easy to use the sections somewhat independently from others. This is a resource that adults can come back t again and again as new questions arise from children. The information is straightforward and factual (no storks here), however I recommend reading ahead so that you are familiar with both the text and the pictures and can then decide what is appropriate for your child.

Poetry Highlight: Helaine Becker

"Talking is what I do best. Writing is how I talk when no one else is around."

Helaine Becker is an award-winning writer of books for children. She has written over 50 books and also writes for children's magazines and for kids television. She presents (performs) at schools across Canada and the US teaching writing skills for fiction, non-fiction and verse. Ms. Becker also introduces students to aspects of the business side of writing.

 Originally from New York, Ms. Becker is both an American and Canadian citizen. She has lived in Canada for more than 20 years and makes her home in Toronto, with her husband, two sons, and dog, Ella. Ms. Becker pulls inspiration from her reading, extensive travels and experiences as an active swimmer, runner, cyclist, and compulsive read-aholic. She has an orange belt in karate and is contemplating going for her grapefruit belt. (helainebecker.com)

Her poem, Ode to Underwear, was set to music by the Irish Descendants, a Canadian band, and played nationally on CBC radio. More people ask her to read this poem than all her other funny poems combined. It is a popular title at my schools! Plus, it's about underwear. What more could kids want?

 “Everything inspires me. The world is fascinating and so darn silly. And I don’t write for children. I write for myself.”

Books By Helaine Becker:

Helaine Becker's Website: www.helainebecker.com

and Blog: helainebecker.blogspot.ca

Miss Malarkey Leaves No Reader Behind by Judy Finchler

Ace teacher Miss Malarkey returns in a picture book narrated by a reluctant reader. Although comfortable within his small group of video-game-playing buddies, a boy wants to contribute to the schoolwide goal of reading 1,000 books in hope of seeing Principal Wiggins "dye his hair purple and sleep on the roof of the school." Trying one of Miss Malarkey's suggested books after another, he rejects them all--until she finds the perfect one to match his eclectic interests. Expressive cartoon-style illustrations, brightened with markers and colored pencils, create a series of lively scenes in which speech balloons record conversations and comments not found in the text. With an unstated moral, this is one volume that librarians won't soon forget. Short lists of recommended books, including a bibliography of adult books that recommend children's books, are appended. [Carolyn Phelan-Booklist]

Check out this Free Lesson Plan on Teachers Pay Teachers

It includes a written lesson plan, discussion questions, a reading survey, and a book list to use with the school library catalog. This is a great lesson for starting the beginning of the school year, as it allows you to see students' interest and gets them excited about choosing library books. It also will allow students to go the library with a purpose as they search for the books that they have included on their book list!

From Miss  Malarkey Leaves No Reader Behind by Judy Finchler