I visited you on a snowy morning
right before St. Patrick's Day to help you celebrate your Read-a-Thon
(organized by Mrs. Finamore and Mrs. Vleisides this year)! You raised over
$10,000 for your library. Congratulations!
I started
with the 3rd and 4th graders. I talked about how I became a writer 
and
where my ideas for books come from. Afterwards I autographed books.
Then 
I
visited with the 5th, 6th, and 7th grades. We talked about mummies and bogs and
I read one of my favorite mummy stories. 
Then
I talked about The
Very Real Ghost Book of Christina Rose. I read the first chapter of the book
to give you an idea of what the book was like. You asked lots of good questions.
Next
it was time for the first grade. I told you about the strange tracks in the snow
and how that became my first story idea ever (even if I never finished writing
it). 
Then
I talked about buried treasure and how three boys found some money in a deserted
bank in Jacksonville, Oregon (except that their mothers caught them)!
Afterwards, I autographed books for you.
Finally,
it was time for the second grade. All day long, I had chosen two winners from
each session to receive special Read-a-Thon books. 
The
last two winners were announced in the second grade. I read a couple of treasure
stories to you, including one of my all-time favorites: the story of the
skyjacker, D. B. Cooper.
I hope you all wanted to write
stories when you went home that day. Thank you for being such a great audience. I had a great time
visiting you and your wonderful school.
If you
want to e-mail me to ask question or just say hi, you can reach me here.
