Children

Bissonet Plaza Elementary A is for Alligator Draw and Tell Residency Day 1 – December 5, 2011

by dlcasas on December 5, 2011

12-5-11 P is for Penguin by a student in Ms. Whiteman's Kindergarten class

Friends:

Today was my first day at my annual artist residency at Bissonet Plaza Elementary in Metairie, Louisiana. The residency is sponsored by a grant administered by the Arts Council of New Orleans through the Louisiana Division of the Arts.

I am excited about this year’s project. The students are learning draw and tell tales from my new book, A is for Alligator, illustrated by Marita Gentry. The book teaches students how to turn every letter of the alphabet into an animal. After the students learn to draw the animal, they are writing stories using the animal as a character in the story. Each class will then compile their stories and we will send them to get published through Student Treasures.

My first class was Mr. Boone’s 3rd grade class. Their letter was “S is for Shark.” After learning how to draw the shark from the letter S, they created some fun stories.

12-5-11 S is for Shark in Mr. Boone's 4th Grade Class

My second class was Ms. Lambert’s third grade class. These students produced amazing drawings from “L is for Lion,” and their stories were equally charming.

12-5-11 L is for Lion in Ms. Lambert's 3rd grade class

Next it was off to Ms. Whiteman’s Kindergarten class. I taught the students “P is for Penguin” and was so impressed by the imagination of these little students!

12-5-11 P is for Penguin in Ms. Whiteman's Kindergarten Class

Then it was on to Ms. Presser’s second grade class. The students did “K is for Kangaroo.” They loved drawing the kangaroo and came up with some interesting story ideas.

12-5-11 K is for Kangaroo in Ms. Presser's 2nd grade class

After lunch, I visited Ms. Duhe’s first grade class. They worked on “C is for Cat” and did such a wonderful job drawing their cats and coming up with cool descriptions of their cats.

12-5-11 C is for Cat in Ms. Duhe's 1st grade class

Finally, my last class of the day was Ms. McLeod’s fifth grade class. They did a fabulous job with “H is for Horse” and I had so much fun brainstorming story ideas with them. I loved their idea of a snow-boarding horse being chased by an abominable snowman down a hillside!

12-5-11 H is for Horse in Ms. McLeod's 5th grade class

I look forward to my classes tomorrow!

Until next time…

Warmly, Dianne

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Skype Author Visit: Brook Forest School in Illinois – Friday, October 7, 2011

by dlcasas on October 10, 2011

10-7-11 Dressed as Witchy for a Skype Author Visit with Brook Forest School in Illinois

Friends:

On Friday, I had a lovely Skype Author Visit with Brook Forest School in Illinois, arranged by their phenomenal school librarian, Mr. John Schumacher, famously known as “Mr. Schu.” Mr. Schu is active in promoting literacy and is well known for his blog, Mr. Schu Reads.

Mr. Schu asked me to perform my new book, The House That Witchy Built (illustrated by the amazing Holly Stone-Barker), for his Kindergarteners. It was so much fun! They participated with me and did all the onomatopoeia sounds in the story as well as the hand motions I showed them on screen. It was hilarious. They asked me questions and I talked to them about Halloween and all the fun costumes they planned on wearing.

10-7-11 Skyping with a Kindergarten Class at Brook Forest School in Illinois, arranged by the wonderful Mr. Schu!

This is what I looked like on their end, after I donned my Witchy hat. Photo is courtesy of Mr. Schu.

10-7-11 How the children saw Dianne during the storytelling of The House That Witchy Built

We had fun meowing, flapping, rattling, and cackling. It was a great Skype Author Visit. Mr. Schu printed out activities for the students from my Book Activities and I sent them a snail mail package full of goodies.

Thank you, Brook Forest School Kindergarten and Mr. Schu for a Spooktacular Skype Author Visit!

Boo to You!

Until next time…

Warmly, Dianne

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The House That Witchy Built Book Debut Party at Octavia Books – Saturday, October 1, 2011

by dlcasas on October 5, 2011

10-1-11 Dianne de Las Casas, Judith Lafitte of Octavia Books, and Holly Stone-Barker

Friends:

On Saturday, October 1, 2011, Holly Stone-Barker and I had our big book debut party for The House That Witchy Built at Octavia Books in New Orleans, Louisiana. We had a wonderful party table with tasty treats.

10-1-11 The House That Witchy Built Book Debut Party Table at Octavia Books

Check out our table’s centerpiece, which looks like a picture in the book. It was made by the ever-talented Holly.

10-1-11 A close-up of The House That Witchy Built party centerpiece

Holly made cute spider cupcakes while Kid Chef Eliana and I made adorable ghost cupcakes.

10-1-11 Spider cupcakes made by Holly Stone-Barker and ghost cupcakes made by Dianne de Las Casas and Kid Chef Eliana

I told the story of The House That Witchy Built, our new book with Pelican Publishing, and embellished the storytelling with audience participation. The kids wore aprons with the book’s characters on them, lovingly handmade by Holly (isn’t she incredible?!).

10-1-11 Look at all the cute kids wearing those adorable character aprons that Holly made!

All the kids were given witch and wizard hats to wear. They were precious! Some of the kids even came in their own costumes!

10-1-11 Little witches and wizards participate in the storytelling of The House That Witchy Built

Look at this sweet little witch!

10-1-11 Ella Stone-Barker wears her Witchy hat!

We had an amazing crowd (my biggest book launch yet at Octavia) and sign lots of books! Just fabulous! Tom Lowenberg and Judith Lafitte were amazing hosts and I thank them profusely for allowing us to debut our book at Octavia! A very special thank you to all the little fans who came… :)

10-1-11 Dianne de Las Casas with the most precious pumpkin ever!

Until next time… Boo to You!

Warmly, Dianne

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Technology Workshop for SCBWI New Orleans – Saturday, September 17, 2011

by dlcasas on September 18, 2011

9-17-11 Carrell Gueringer, Dianne de Las Casas, and Karen Konnerth after the SCBWI technology workhop and meeting

Friends:

On Saturday, I gave a 1.5 hour workshop called “Taming Technology: Using the Internet for Book Biz Success.” It was for my local SCBWI (Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators) meeting. Here is the workshop handout although my presentation was really more of an overview because of the limited time span.

A couple of extras I talked about too:

Website Grader – Grade your website and see how it ranks from 0-100 and learn how to improve it.

KidlitBookTrailers.com – A social networking site for kidlit book trailers. View kidlit videos and post your own.

Taming Technology: Using the Internet for Book Biz Success
Workshop Handout

Contact Information
Name: Dianne de Las Casas
Address: P.O. Box 2656, Harvey, LA 70059
Daytime Phone: 888-721-5915
Email: dianne@storyconnection.net
Website: www.storyconnection.net
Facebook: www.facebook.com/diannedelascasas
Facebook Fan Page: www.facebook.com/fanofdianne
Twitter: www.twitter.com/storyconnection (@storyconnection)

Synopsis:
Google Calendar, Plaxo, LinkedIn, Facebook, Google+, Ping, Toodle-Do, Twitter, Blogs, Podcasting, Smart Phones, Ning, Wikipedia, YouTube… It’s a jungle out there! Technology can be so overwhelming but have no fear; your tour guide is here! Go on a safari with tech-savvy author & storyteller Dianne de Las Casas. Tame technology and harness its power to streamline your book biz. You’ll find out how technology’s tools can catapult your career. You’ll be swinging in no time!

Objectives
• Understand the various free tools available on the Internet
• See how you can integrate technology to streamline business practices
• Create a “Taming Technology” strategic plan to enable them to use 2-3 of the web tools immediately

Writers will learn to tame technology by using it to:
1. Streamline Business Practices;
2. Market through Social Media; and
3. Market through other online methods.

Streamline Business Practices
Writers can manage the day-to-day administrative duties of a small business using the following (mostly) free tools:
• Google Calendar – Scheduling management
• Plaxo – Address book management
• Toodle-Do – To-do list management with multiple user capabilities
• EPK – Electronic Press Kit
• Booking Request Form – Booking online
• Gmail – Web-based email with the best search feature provided by Google
• Smart Phones – A phone with the ability to call, text, surf the Internet, and send/receive email

Market through Social Media
Artists can increase their visibility with social media marketing through the following sites:
• Facebook
• Twitter
• Google+
• Klout
• Ping.fm
• Ning
• YouTube
• LinkedIn

Market through Other Online Methods
Gain a following using other online marketing methods:
• Email Newsletter
• Podcasting
• Blogging or Vlogging
• Wikipedia
• Skype or Oovoo

Internet Terminology
• App – Means “application,” a platform/software built for use with a mobile device such as a smart phone or tablet computer
• Booking Request Form – Booking online
• Blog – Online journal of thoughts and/or information
• Blogging – Online journaling
• Blog Tour – A virtual book tour where authors promote their books on various book blogging sites
• Cloud Computing – Storing files online instead of a traditional computer hard drive so you have instant access to them anywhere
• E-Book – Electronic book made to be read digitally on the computer, a smart phone, a tablet device, or a dedicated electronic book reader such as the Kindle or Nook
• EPK – Electronic Press Kit
• Email Newsletter – Newsletter shared electronically
• Facebook – Popular social networking site
• Gmail – Web-based email with the best search ability feature
• Google Calendar – Scheduling management using Google’s free online software
• Google+ – New social networking site by Google
• Klout – A measure of influence on the web – Klout.com
• LinkedIn ¬– Social Networking Site for professionals
• Mashable – Social media information site
• Micro-blogging – Online journaling in a very small way, using very few characters to get your point across
• Oovoo – Online video chat using web cams
• Ning.com – Customizable Social networking site
• Ping.fm – A service that allows users to update all their social networks at once
• Plaxo – Address book management
• Podcasting – Stands for Portable On Demand broadCAST – through the Internet via voice or video
• Skype – Online video chat using web cams
• Social media – An online forum that allows you to interact with other users worldwide (Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, LinkedIn, Plaxo, etc.)
• Social networking – A form of connecting through various social media such as Facebook or Twitter
• Synch – Synchronizing or sharing information from one electronic device or web source to another
• Toodle-Do – To-do list management with multiple user capabilities
• Tweet or tweeting – Blog posts in 140 characters or less
• Twitter – The premier micro-blogging social networking tool on the web
• Vlog – Video log or a video recording used as a blog post
• Wikipedia – User-created online encyclopedia to which anyone can edit and contribute information
• YouTube – Social networking site through sharing of videos

Creating a Strategic Plan for Integrating Technology into your Biz
Number the list in order of importance. What part of your business do you wish to work on? The corresponding FREE Internet tool is listed next to it.

____ Create a manageable calendar. (Google Calendar)

____ Build my professional network. (Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Klout, Ping.fm, Hootsuite, Plaxo, LinkedIn, YouTube, Ning sites)

____ Build a manageable to do or project list. (ToodleDo)

____ Manage my contacts (Google Contacts, Plaxo)

____ Build a fan base through blogging. (WordPress, Blogger, LiveJournal)

____ Start an email newsletter. (Yahoo Groups, Dada Mail)

____ Build an electronic press kit. (Sonic Bids for performing artists)

____ Start a podcast. (Blog Talk Radio, Talk Shoe Radio)

Dianne’s Favorite Biz Productivity iPhone/iPod Touch Apps:
• Amazon Kindle, iBooks and B&N Nook – Read books/periodicals on your iPhone or iTouch
• Bump – Bump iPhones to exchange contact info, pics & files instantly
• Calengoo – Calendar that integrates with online Google Calendar
• Dropbox.com – Not just for iPhone, it allows you to drop files into a “box” that you can access from any device – desktop, laptop, phone, iPad, etc.
• Facebook – Integrates with online Facebook
• Hootesuite – Helps manage your Twitter account
• MileBug – Tracks business mileage
• MyHub – Puts all contacts from Plaxo, Facebook and Twitter in one place
• Toodledo – To do list that integrates with online
• WorldCard – Scan business cards directly into your address book
• Wunderlist – A to do and list management app

Until next time…

Warmly, Dianne

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Louisiana Association of Media Professionals Conference – Thursday, September 15, 2011

by dlcasas on September 18, 2011

9-15-11 Signing my new book, The House That Witchy Built, at the LAMP Conference

Friends:

This past Thursday, I signed books at the Louisiana Association of Media Professional Conference in Metairie, Louisiana. It was my first time to sign my new book in public, The House That Witchy Built. Fun!

Boo to you!

Until next time…

Warmly, Dianne

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An Organized New Office! Thursday, September 15, 2011

by dlcasas on September 15, 2011

9-15-11 My new office with three work areas

Friends:

Many of you have been hearing me chatter on and on about my “dream office.” Well, it is finally done! This week, the baseboards were installed.

9-15-11 My desk and comfy leather chair

My new office has a “beach” theme with white cabinetry, sea blue walls, and sand colored countertops. I have displays of my seashells and sand from around the world, beach paintings from artists in Mexico and Santa Monica, California, and photographs of the beaches I visited in Hawaii this past summer.

9-15-11 My ode to my favorite place... the beach!

There is tons of cabinetry, drawers, file drawers, and a massive built-in bookcase to house my big book collection.

9-15-11 The library wall. Woo hoo!

There are three work stations. I roll back and forth between my desk and the work area behind me. It’s great space with lots of room for special projects. Kid Chef Eliana has her own space! It’s always organized too.

9-15-11 Eliana's work area and the storage tower for promo materials

I just love working in my new environment!

9-15-11 Another view of my desk and work station

Until next time…

Warmly, Dianne

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Book Trailer: The House That Witchy Built – Wednesday, September 14, 2011

by dlcasas on September 14, 2011

Friends:

Here is the book trailer for my new Halloween title, The House That Witchy Built, illustrated by Holly Stone-Barker and published by Pelican Publishing Company. The voiceover is done by none other than my talented daughter, Eliana! Fantastic job, Eliana! The book can be ordered at your favorite local bookstore or through any online book retailer.

Books are Bewitching Fun!

Until next time…

Warmly, Dianne

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Sneak Peak of Dianne’s iPad App – Rockin’ 3 Billy Goats – Wednesday, September 14, 2011

by dlcasas on September 14, 2011

Rockin' 3 Billy Goats iPad App Art Sample by Stefan Jolet

Friends:

This holiday season, I have an iPad app coming out. My story app is titled “Rockin’ 3 Billy Goats.” It’s a story from my Jump, Jiggle & Jam storytelling CD (which is now only available on iTunes and through my mp3 download store on my website). The app will feature art by Stefan Jolet, who is an amazing illustrator.

It will be an interactive “Touch and Tell Tale,” where the story can be heard with music and sound effects or read aloud by the child or grown-up. The reader will be able to read the story, listen to the story, and touch the screen to animate the characters. It’s going to be so much fun.

I’ll keep you updated as to the progress of the app!

Until next time…

Warmly, Dianne

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Lafayette Parish Schools PK In-Service – Wednesday, August 10, 2011

by dlcasas on September 7, 2011

8-10-11 Performing the story of The Emperor's Dragon, a draw and tell tale from my book, Handmade Tales

Friends:

Yes, it has been nearly a month since this workshop! I took a break from blogging to get some writing done and to work on other projects (developing an iPad story app). I actually thought that I had posted this blog!

So last month, I had the pleasure of doing a day-long in-service for PK teachers in Lafayette Parish. It was so much fun. I began the workshop with an ice breaker in which participants had to create a self-portrait from items in their purses, bags, or wallets. I love a woman who carries chocolate in her purse!

8-10-11 A self-portrait made from items in a workshop attendee's purse. Yay for chocolate!

The morning session was dedicated to Handmade Tales. We began with a draw and tell story called Catching a Pest in 7 steps. It’s from my book, Handmade Tales: Stories to Make and Take, and is great for teaching numbers and sequencing.

8-10-11 Catching a Pest in 7 Steps - A draw and tell tale

Then they learned the story of “The Emperor’s Dragon,” another draw and tell tale.

8-10-11 The Emperor's Dragon drawn by a workshop participant

Then it was time for a cut and tell story. The PK teachers learned the story of “Joseph Had a Little Overcoat.” They were having fun “cutting up.” LOL

8-10-11 Joseph Had a Little Overcoat, a cut and tell story

They learned how to make a Russian nesting doll just by folding paper. It’s so cute!

8-10-11 A Russian nesting doll made out of paper from my book, Handmade Tales

I showed them how to make a 6 page book out of a single sheet of paper. It’s a very versatile origami craft that can be used to showcase ABCs, used as an “About Me” book, or turn little ones into authors and illustrators.

8-10-11 The six page book from the story, The King's Advisor

The teachers learned the story of “Papa’s Teepee,” which features a coffee filter that is magically turned into a snowflake. Then the teachers created a snow blizzard. I always love this part!

8-10-11 Creating a snow blizzard out of coffee filter snowflakes from the story, Papa's Teepee

They learned another cut and tell story that resulted in a perfect 5 point star!

8-10-11 Lafayette PK Teachers are stars!

We had a blast with the story, “Bandana Man,” and I love this picture of the PK teachers becoming old women with their bandanas!

“Bandana Man” is another rendition of “The Gingerbread Man,” except he’s made out of a bandana and one hand becomes all the animals in the story (a spider, a snake and a fox). When they learned how to make Bandana Man, there were lots of oohs and ahs. He is pretty cute!

8-10-11 Bandana Man!

Then it was time to learn some string stories. I told the string story of “The Stubborn Turnip,” which has a cool magic trick in it. These PK teachers were great with their strings!

8-10-11 The string figure bowl from the string story, The Stubborn Turnip

They even learned how to make a star out of string. Talk about wowing kids!

8-10-11 Making a star out of string! Cool!

After lunch, it was time for the second half of the workshop featuring “A is for Alligator: Draw and Tell Tales from A-Z” and “Picture Book Make and Takes.” “A is for Alligator” is a book with Marita Gentry published by ABC-Clio. We take every letter of the alphabet and turn them into animals using storytelling as the device. It’s really amazing and kids of ALL ages LOVE it.

8-10-11 A is for Alligator from my book of the same name illustrated by Marita Gentry

The stories from A is for Alligator are great for teaching the letters of the alphabet and the sounds that they make.

8-10-11 E is for Elephant from my book, A is for Alligator, illustrated by Marita Gentry

This is “W is for Whale.” How precious is that?! You can see how the teacher highlighted the “W” in the drawing with a different color.

8-10-11 W is for Whale from my book, A is for Alligator, illustrated by Marita Gentry

The second half of the afternoon focused on “Picture Book Make and Takes.” I showed the teachers all the cool activities that are downloadable for free from my website in the “Book Activities” section. They made a Cajun Cornbread Boy puppet and Madame Poulet and Monsieur Roach story shaker.

8-10-11 The story shaker from Madame Poulet and Monsieur Roach

They did a baby bear collage from Mama’s Bayou, created Ma Farmer’s Down Home Cookbook from The Gigantic Sweet Potato, and created an accordion dragon puppet from There’s a Dragon in the Library.

8-10-11 The accordion dragon from There's a Dragon in the Library

It was a great way to spend the day and I really enjoyed myself with the PK teachers of Lafayette Parish schools. A special thank you to Christine Duay for bringing me in!

Until next time…

Warmly, Dianne

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Kid Chef Eliana Cooks at the Southern Food and Beverage Museum – Saturday, July 23, 2011

by dlcasas on July 24, 2011

7-23-11 Kid Chef Eliana shows her Perfect Pesto Pasta at the Southern Food and Beverage Museum

Friends:

On Saturday, Kid Chef Eliana demonstrated her “Perfect Pesto” and signed books at the Southern Food and Beverage Museum. The basil was picked fresh from my mom’s (her Nana’s) garden the evening before. She also cooked Italian-marinated chicken with fresh sage and oregano, garden rotini, pesto cream cheese dip, and sparkling pomegranate punch. It was a full buffet!

7-23-11 Kid Chef Eliana chops herbs for her Italian marinated chicken

It was a lot of fun and Kid Chef Eliana had a great crowd!

Until next time…

Warmly, Dianne

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