1-7-12 The food table with Mardi Gras Mambo popcorn and a fleur de lis king cake!

Friends:

Last Saturday, Marita Gentry and I had our Dinosaur Mardi Gras book debut party at Octavia Books in New Orleans. It was so much fun! Despite the incredibly huge football weekend it was in New Orleans (Saints playoff game and LSU v. Alabama national championship game), we had a GIGANTOSAURUS turn-out! We had an amazing food table with Mardi Gras Mambo popcorn from Popcorn Bistro and a fleur de lis king cake from Hi-Do Bakery.

1-7-12 The fleur de lis king cake from Hi-Do Bakery. Yum!

The book is inspired by a Dinosaur Mardi Gras float that my nephew made a few years ago. I still have the original float that inspired the book. It is the centerpiece of our food table. It is also a craft that kids can make. You can find it in the back of the book.

1-7-12 Dinosaur Mardi Gras shoebox float, like the craft at the back of the book

I performed the story as my daughter, Eliana, turned the pages of the book. Marita Gentry, the illustrator, drew Dino doubloons using paper plates. She did an amazing job and we gave them to the kids afterwards. All the kids received DINO-MITE prizes too.

1-7-12 The kids pose with Marita Gentry's Dinosaur Doubloons, drawn live during the performance, on paper plates

Marita designed 18 different Dinosaur masks and the kids made them at the party. They came out sooo cute!

1-7-12 Dinosaur Mardi Gras masks that the kids made!

It was a CHOMPING, STOMPING up-ROAR-ious time at Octavia Books! Thank you and hugs to Judith Lafitte and Tom Lowenburg of Octavia books for hosting our CARNIVORE CARNIVAL! ROAR!

Until next time…

Warmly,
Dianne

12-15-11 Drawing D is for Dalmatian in P.E.

Friends:

Today was Day 9 of my residency at Bissonet Plaza Elementary in Metairie, Louisiana. Today, I was in P.E. with Ms. Lombardino, Ms. Tammie, Ms. Kelly, Coach Eric, and Coach Mark. It was such a fun day. I saw all the grades in groups and told draw and tell stories that they had not yet heard.

12-15-11 W is for Whale in P.E.

I love the P.E. staff. They are zany and fun to work with! Check out Coach Eric, who became a part of my story, “A is for Alligator,” literally! hahahaha

12-15-11 Drawing A is for Alligator - the end of the tail ended up on Coach Eric's head!

The students were fun and also had the opportunity to hear stories of my travels around the world, and my life as an author.

12-15-11 An embellished B is for Bear in P.E.

I loved being in P.E. with the P.E. staff. They are fabulous to work with!

12-15-11 We <3 Coach Eric at Bissonet!

It was a great day and I look forward to my last day at Bisonet!

Until next time…

Warmly, Dianne

12-14-11 T is for Turtle in final by a student in Ms. Penton's Kindergarten class

Friends:

Today was Day 8 of my A is for Alligator: Draw and Tell Stories from A-Z residency at Bissonet Plaza Elementary in Metairie, Louisiana. It was my last day to work with the students in the classroom and finalize their books for publication.

Because there are so many activities going on in the school during the holidays, my schedule was crazy today. I had to rearrange four classes but everything worked out. My first visit was to Ms. Muller’s and Ms. Joy’s Pre-K babies. I had to combine the classes but the students were amazing. They drew their final “B is for Bear” in markers and the illustrations came out gorgeous! We were all so happy with the results!

12-14-11 Ms. Muller's and Ms. Joy's PK classes create their final pages for B is for Bear

Next, it was on to Ms. Lambert’s third grade class. They worked on the final art and stories for “L is for Lion.” I love how the title page and cover came out! Great job, guys!

12-14-11 L is for Lion final book art for cover and title page in Ms. Lambert's 3rd grade class

Then it was on to Ms. Penton’s Kindergarten class. They did a great job with their words and their “T is for Turtle” illustrations! Yay!

12-14-11 A student in Ms. Penton's Kindergarten writes her T is for Turtle words

My next class was Ms. Vizzini’s second grade classs. The class finalized their art for “R is for Rooster.” These students did a fabulous job and I love their Rockin’ Roosters!

12-14-11 R is for Rooster final book art for cover and title page in Ms. Vizzini's 2nd grade class

For lunch, Ellen Miller, the awesome librarian, treated me to a dine-in lunch of Thai food, our annual tradition. Delish! Thank you, Ms. Miller! After lunch, I visited Ms. Bonanno’s first grade class and they worked on the final illustrations and stories for “X is for X-Ray Fish.” They had so many great artists that I had to choose three: one to illustrate the dedication page, one to illustrate the title page, and one to illustrate the cover. How eXciting!

12-14-11 X is for X-Ray Fish final book art for cover and title page in Ms. Bonanno's 1st grade class

My last class was Ms. Vegas’ 4th grade class. I had to see them during their P.E. period because of all the scheduling challenges. While many of them managed to finish the final art for “Q is for Quail,” the class as a whole was wound up and disruptive. Their stories and illustrations were wonderful, however, their behavior needed work. There were a couple of phenomenal students like Savannah and Logan, and they made me smile!

12-14-11 Q is for Quail final book art for cover and title page in Ms. Vega's 4th grade class

Tomorrow, I hang out with the P.E. gang and see all the students during their P.E. period. I look forward to telling lots of draw and tell stories!

Until next time…

Warmly, Dianne

12-13-11 E is for Elephant art in Ms. Tonguis' 1st grade class

Friends:

Today was the 7th day of my A is for Alligator: Draw and Tell Stories from A-Z residency at Bissonet Plaza Elementary School in Metairie, Louisiana. My first class was with Ms. Anchissi’s Kindergarten class. The class worked on the final pages for their book, creating final words and pictures. Ms. Anchissi’s class had “J is for Jackrabbit” and these little ones remembered all the steps of the story!

12-13-11 J is for Jackrabbit book cover in Ms. Anchissi's Kindergarten Class

My next class was Ms. Frechette’s third grade class. These students are so industrious and created wonderful stories and art for “O is for Owl.” I can’t wait to see their final book! I’ll have to come back for a special visit, just to see how amazing their book comes out.

12-13-11 O is for Owl title page in Ms. Frechette's 3rd grade class

After third grade, it was time to head over to Ms. Morrow fourth grade class. Although my time with them was shortened, I was impressed with the amount of work they did. They had some fabulously fanciful stories about unicorns.

12-13-11 U is for Unicorn story and art in Ms. Morrow's 4th grade class

Then it was on to Ms. Chieffo’s second grade students. When I walked into the classroom, the students gave me a rousing cheer. When we were going over the illustration for “I is for Iguana,” I was impressed with how these students recalled all the details of the draw and tell story. They created their own imaginative stories about the iguana and fantastic artwork as well.

12-13-11 I is for Iguana book cover in Ms. Chieffo's 2nd grade class

After lunch, I ambled over to Ms. Tonguis’ class. Ms. Tonguis has a tremendous sense of humor and we are always laughing up a storm. I just love to see that much joy in the classroom. It’s infectious! The students were so excited to show me their work on “E is for Elephant.” I was proud of both their awesome art and their stupendous stories.

12-13-11 E is for Elephant book cover in Ms. Tonguis' 1st grade class

My last class of the day was Ms. Daignault’s 5th grade class. What a talented group of kids. This class has both a mixture of writers and artists. It was so difficult to choose the book’s cover and title page illustrators. The jobs went to Dairon and Bennett, respectively. “M is for Monkey” is absolutely marvelous!

12-13-11 M is for Monkey book cover in Ms. Daignault's 5th grade 6th period class

Wednesday is my last day to work in the classroom with the students. On Thursday and Friday, I see them in P.E. for group work and performances. It goes by so quickly!

I look forward to my traditional Thai lunch with Ms. Miller, the librarian. I also look forward to another day of remarkable classes!

Until next time…

Warmly, Dianne

12-10-11 Dianne de Las Casas is drawing A is for Alligator at St. Bernard Parish Library

Friends:

On Saturday morning, I did my A is for Alligator: Draw and Tell Tales from A-Z program from my book of the same name (illustrated by Marita Gentry and published by ABC-Clio Libraries Unlimited) at the St. Bernard Parish Library. My 11 year old daughter, Eliana, came with me and did all the photography. Thanks, Eliana! Along with the drawing steps, I told stories that went along with the steps. Janet Perez, the children’s services coordinator, asked me to adapt the program for the holidays. So I did!

12-9-11 One of the kids draws Gator Claus

“B is for Bear” was super cute. The children named the bear “Bella.” I embellished her with a bow, jingle bell earrings, and a pink tutu. Hilarious and adorable!

12-10-11 Dianne de Las Casas draws B is for Bear with embellishments

It was a family program so the grown-ups were drawing right alongside the children.

12-10-11 Library patrons at St. Bernard Parish Library work on their drawings

Here is “B is for Bear” by one of the children.

12-10-11 B is for Bella Bear

Next, I did “D is for Dog.” I drew a Dalmation and the results were so much fun. Look at this “D”-lightful Dog drawn by one of the kids.

12-10-11 A child draws D is for Dog. Love that hat!

Then it was “P is for Penguin,” a cool Winter animal!

12-10-11 P is for Penguin

My last draw and tell story from A is for Alligator was “W is for Whale.”

12-10-11 W is for Whale

Just for Janet, I developed some new draw and tell stories. They came out sooooo cute! Using the numbers 0, 1, 2, and 3, I drew Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.

12-10-11 A child's drawing of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer Using the Numbers 0, 1, 2, and 3

I also used the numbers 0, 1, 2, and 3 to draw Santa Claus!

12-10-11 Drawing Santa with the numbers 0, 1, 2, and 3

I ended the program with a rousing rendition of the Christmas song, “Up On the Housetop” with kids playing instruments and singing. It was so much fun!

12-10-11 Ending the program with a performance of Up On the Housetop

Thank you so much, Janet and St. Bernard Parish! I love visiting your library!

Until next time…

Warmly, Dianne

12-9-11 Dianne de Las Casas takes a photo with her iPhone of Z is for Zebra in Ms. Naugle's 4th grade class

Friends:

Friday was Day 5 of my Bissonet Plaza Elementary A is for Alligator Draw and Tell Residency. Since most of the school was on a field trip to see The Wizard of Oz play, I spent the morning with fourth grade. My first class was with Ms. Vega, who was a teacher at Strehle Elementary, another school I’ve done residencies with, so we were old friends. The students were assigned “Q is for Quail.” I loved how excited they got when I told them my writer’s secret… That really spurred some creative stories! Want to know the secret? Sshhhh. I can’t tell you… or it wouldn’t be a secret! But the fact that the Bissonet Plaza students are talented is definitely no secret!

12-9-11 Ms. Vega's 4th grade class works on Q is for Quail

My second class was Ms. Morrow’s fourth grade class. They did “U is for Unicorn.” They had so much fun inventing stories about unicorns. “U is for is or Unicorn” is the only story in my A is for Alligator book that is a mythological beast and not a real animal. Only this unicorn is definitely not a beast… so cute!

12-9-11 U is for Unicorn in Ms. Morrow's 4th grade class

Then it was on to Ms. Naugle’s fourth graders. I just love Ms. Naugle and how technologically savvy she is. She creates videos, Skypes with schools around the country, blogs, and Tweets! In fact, we were tweeting each other in class. Ms. Naugle’s group was given “Z is for Zebra.” There are so many great artists in this class!

12-9-11 Z is for Zebra in Ms. Naugle's 4th grade class

After lunch, I went to see the itty bitties in Pre-K. Because of the field trip, Ms. Joy and Ms. Muller had to combine their classes into one. I thought it was going to be more challenging but the kids were AMAZING. They worked on “B is for Bear” and did such a fantastic job! I was astounded by these kids. It just goes to show you… never underestimate the power of imagination!

12-9-11 B is for Bear in Ms. Joy's and Ms. Muller's Pre-K classes

Next it was on to Mr. Boone’s third grade class. They worked on the final copies of “S is for Shark.” I had some really great stories like this one:

12-9-11 S is for Shark story in Mr. Boone's 3rd grade class

There was some equally stunning artwork as well in Mr. Boone’s third grade class.

12-9-11 A final drawing for S is for Shark in Mr. Boone's 3rd grade class

My last class of the day was Ms. McLeod’s 5th grade class. They worked on their final stories and art for “H is for Horse.” This class is definitely a class of writers! I was so impressed by their story writing.

12-9-11 Working on the final story book pages for H is for Horse in Ms. McLeod's 5th grade class

I look forward to my upcoming final week with Bissonet Plaza Elementary!

Until next time…

Warmly, Dianne

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

Oprah Blog - Life Lift

“Children can have too many toys, but never enough books.” – Jarrett Krosoczka from his Picture Book Month Essay.

I created an initiative to designate November as “Picture Book Month.” Katie Davis, Elizabeth Dulemba, Tara Lazar, Wendy Martin, and Australian International Liaison, Christopher Cheng, came on board to help me champion the cause and spread the word. A logo was designed by Joyce Wan. Videos were created by motion graphics designer, Carter Higgins. PictureBookMonth.com features essays from “Picture Book Champions,” thought leaders in the children’s literature community. Each day in November, a new essay is posted from such notable contributors as Peter Brown, Suzanne Bloom, Denise Fleming, Leslie Helakoski, Eric A. Kimmel, Jarrett Krosoczka, Tammi Sauer, Dan Yaccarino, and Jane Yolen. Looking ahead, 2012 Picture Book Month Champions include such notables as Doreen Cronin,Toni diTerlizzi, Brett Helquist, Tom Lichtenheld, John Rocco, and Karma Wilson.

Though the website officially opened on November 1, the site saw over 25,000 visitors in the first couple weeks. The initiative became a movement and the movement went viral. Imagine my surprise to find out that Picture Book Month had been featured on the Oprah Blog, Life Lift! Read the post in its entirety: http://www.oprah.com/blogs/November-is-Picture-Book-Month

Now, not even a third of the way through November, a Google search of “Picure Book Month” lists nearly 10 million results. It has been tweeted, Facebooked, Googled, linked, and blogged. Besides Oprah, Picture Book Month has been featured in Huffington Post, School Library Journal, Publishers Weekly, and Kirkus Reviews, to name a few. Organizations such as the Children’s Book Council, Reading is Fundamental, and the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators support the initiative as partners.

The Picture Book Month website also features links to picture book resources, authors, illustrators, and kidlit book bloggers. In addition, parents, educators, and librarians can download the theme calendar to help them plan their picture book celebrations and access picture book activities. Libraries and schools worldwide are holding Picture Book Month celebrations.

Join the celebration! Visit www.picturebookmonth.com.

“But if you really want more curious, intelligent, creative children in the world, then go ahead and give them picture books.” – Peter Brown from his Picture Book Month Essay

Read * Share * Celebrate!

November is Picture Book Month!

“I have always believed that literature begins in the cradle — the poems we say to the babies, the stories we tell them — prepare them to become part of the great human storytelling community. We humans are the only creatures in the known universe who make and remake our world with story.” – Jane Yolen from her Picture Book Month essay

The New York Times declared, “Picture Books No Longer A Staple for Children” in an article published in October 2010. The controversial article incited a barrage of responses from the children’s book industry, many in defense of the venerable picture book. In addition, the digital age has ushered in an unprecedented amount of ebooks and, with devices like the iPad, the color Nook, and the Kindle Fire, picture books are being converted to the digital format.

Thus, Picture Book Month was born. Founder Dianne de Las Casas decided it was time to celebrate picture books in their printed format so she created an initiative to designate November as “Picture Book Month.” Katie Davis, Elizabeth Dulemba, Tara Lazar, and Wendy Martin came on board to champion the cause and spread the word. A logo was designed by Joyce Wan. A website (www.picturebookmonth.com) was created to feature essays from “Picture Book Champions,” thought leaders in the children’s literature community. Each day in November, a new essay will be posted from such notable contributors as Suzanne Bloom, Denise Fleming, Leslie Helakoski, Eric A. Kimmel, Tammi Sauer, Dan Yaccarino, and Jane Yolen.

Better World Books and organizations like Scholastic Book Fairs Philippines are lending their support. The website will also feature links to picture book resources, authors, illustrators, and kidlit book bloggers. In addition, parents, educators, and librarians can download the theme calendar to help them plan their picture book celebrations and access picture book activities.

Join the celebration! Visit www.picturebookmonth.com. The website officially opens on November 1, 2011. Read * Share * Celebrate!

“Picture books are important because they are with us for life. They are the most important books we’ll ever read because they’re our first. No matter how many books we’ve read since, they will always have a place in our hearts.” – Dan Yaccarino from his Picture Book Month Essay

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