Folktales

Stories on Board Residency at Strehle Elementary, Avondale, LA Day 2 – Tuesday, January 11, 2011

by Dianne on January 11, 2011

1-11-11 Students in Ms. Johnson's second grade class play Gingerbread Jam

Friends:

Today was the second day of my “Stories on Board” Residency at Strehle Elementary in Avondale, Louisiana. I began my day in Ms. Johnson’s second grade class. As soon as I walked into the class, the students cheered and jumped up to give me hugs. It was so sweet. This was my second visit so, after a vote by the class, I shared the story of “The Gingerbread Man.” They loved the “running” chorus throughout the story (LOL) and kept signing it as they played the game, “The Gingerbread Jam.”

My second class was Ms. Hoadley’s Pre-K class. Ms. Hoadley gave me a GIGANTIC hug – sooo sweet! It was my first visit to the class and I told them the story of “The Little Red Hen Makes a Pizza.” They were so adorable singing all the parts and making the motions. After the story, they played “The Little Red Hen’s Pizza Party.” What cuties!

1-11-11 Students in Ms. Hoadley's Pre-K class play The Little Red Hen's Pizza Party

Next, I went to Ms. King’s Kindergarten class. Ms. King always gives me such a warm welcome and tells me how much she loves my stories and books. Thank you, Ms. King. I <3 U too! I told the story of “The Gingerbread Man” and then the students played “The Gingerbread Jam.” It was a ton of fun.

1-11-11 Students in Ms. King's Kindergarten class play Gingerbread Jam

After the kindergarten class, I returned for a second visit to Ms. Creecy’s third grade class. The students astounded me with the work on their game boards. I can’t wait to see the finished products! Their class was assigned “The Gingerbread Man” and the titles of their games are “The Running Man,” “The GB Jump,” “The Kooky Cookie,” and “Granny Blast.” Awesome work, Ms. Creecy’s class!! Woo hoo for you!

1-11-11 Students in Ms. Creecy's third grade class work on their game, Granny Blast, based on The Gingerbread Man

In Ms. Lankard’s second grade class, I told the story of “The Gingerbread Man” and they ate up the story. Ha ha. They loved singing the chorus: “Run, baby, run, as fast as you can. You can’t catch me ’cause I’m the (clap, clap) Gingerbread Man!” Of course, there are fun motions to go with the chorus and they enjoyed the story. After the story, they played “The Gingerbread Jam.” They had fun getting past the granny, the pig, the horse, the cow, and the fox. :)

1-11-11 Students in Ms. Lankard's second grade class play Gingerbread Jam

Next, I went to Ms. Glass’ third grade class. They were assigned the story of “The Three Little Pigs.” Wow, did we have fun getting creative with that story! Some of their game titles are “Makin’ Bacon,” and “Wolf Tornado.” Ms. Glass challenged them to stretch their imaginations and come up with inventive titles. Unfortunately, I was so involved in helping them with their games that again, I forgot to take pictures. Don’t worry. I will definitely take some pictures of their super cool games the next time I visit their class.

After Ms. Glass class, I slipped into Ms. Dempster’s third grade class next door. It was the last period of the day and I had just enough time to go over the process with them and pass out their game boards. They weren’t able to begin work on their titles or drawings yet. I have two more visits with them so I am excited about what they will do with their story, “The Tortoise and the Hare.” One student already came up with a phenomenal game title, “The Hare-y Situation.” I love seeing the students’ minds in action!

It’s amazing what kids can do when they are taught a skill set and given some room for creativity. I am excited about my work at Strehle. More fun to come!

Until next time…

Warmly, Dianne

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Stories on Board Residency at Strehle Elementary, Avondale, LA Day 1 – Monday, January 10, 2011

by Dianne on January 11, 2011

1-10-10 Telling The Little Red Hen Makes a Pizza in Ms. Avist's first grade class

Friends:

This week, I started a new residency at Catherine Strehle Elementary in Avondale, Louisiana. We are doing “Stories on Board: Creating Board Games from Favorite Tales.” Stories on Board is one of my books published with ABC Clio, Libraries Unlimited.

For the lower grades (pre-K through 2nd), I tell a story and then they play a board game based on that story. For the upper grades, they are assigned a story that turn into a board game. It’s a fun process and there are a lot of skills involved for all the grades.

My first class was Ms. Avist’s first grade class. I told the story of “The Little Red Hen” and following the story, they played a game I created based on the story.

1-10-10 Ms. Avist first grade students play The Little Red Hen's Pizza Party

After Ms. Avist’s class, I moved on to Ms. Giroir’s Pre-K class. Again, I told the story of “The Little Red Hen” and they played the game, “The Little Red Hen’s Pizza party.” Of course, because they are so young, they needed guidance and help. They played in groups of four and learned how to count game board spaces. There was also addition and subtraction involved so the little ones learned quite a bit.

1-10-10 Ms. Giroir's Pre-K students play Little Red Hen's Pizza Party

Next, I headed to Ms. Guidry’s third grade class. I went through my lesson plan, explaining the Stories on Board process. The students learned about perils and triumphs and how to apply them to a board game. After deconstructing the story, they began work on their game boards. They were assigned the story, “Sody Sallyraytus.”

1-10-10 Students in Ms. Guidry's third grade class work on their board game

Then it was on to Ms. Creecy’s third grade class. They were assigned the story, “The Gingerbread Man.” These students came up with some very creative titles such as “Granny Blast,” “The Running Man,” “The G-Man Jump,” and “The Kooky Cookie.” I loved their inventive ideas!!

1-10-11 A game in Ms. Creecy's third grade class called The Kooky Cookie, based on The Gingerbread Man

After Ms. Creecy class, I moved on to Ms. Vega’s fourth grade class. Once they settled down, they were intent on learning the process and creating their board game. They were assigned the story, “Goldie Locks.” Unfortunately, I was so involved in teaching and monitoring their progress that I neglected to take pictures! I will definitely snap some shots of their board games in progress as well as the finished product.

Ms. Landry’s fourth grade class was assigned the story of “The Little Red Hen.” They began work on their boards and came up with some great titles such as “Henopoly” (based on Monopoly) and “Chicken Path.” Again, I forgot to take pictures! I can’t wait to see the results of their creativity.

My last class was Ms. Johnson’s second grade class. They listened to the story of “The Little Red Hen” and then played “Little Red Hen’s Pizza Party.” They had a ton of fun and begged me to return to their class.

1-10-10 Students in Ms. Johnson's second grade class play Little Red Hen's Pizza Party

It was a great first day and I loved returning to Strehle. The teachers are so wonderful and welcoming. This is my fourth year at Strehle and I love working with the students at this school. It’s nice to come to a place where you feel like you are at home. Thank you, Strehle!

Until next time…

Warmly, Dianne

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Bissonet Plaza Elementary Twisted Tales Residency Day 8 – Wednesday, December 15, 2010

by Dianne on December 15, 2010

Friends:

Today was Day 8 of my Twisted Tales residency at Bissonet Plaza Elementary in Metairie, Louisiana. The school librarian, Ellen Miller, brings me in each year on a grant administered through the Arts Council of Louisiana as part of the Decentralized Arts Funding through Louisiana Culture, Recreation and Tourism.

My day began in Ms. Mora’s 4th grade class. I enjoyed being in the class. The students were so productive and really did a great job working on their fractured fairytales. Their class was assigned “Henny Penny” and they had such creative ideas. The standout story of the class was “The Foxy Corvette” by Dakota, Carrington, Qossay, Joycelyn A. and Patrick C. I also loved the story of “Froggy Loggy” by Sierra, Jade’, Eligha, Bobby and Ramiroon. The entire class did a wonderful job and I am very proud of them!

12-15-10 Dianne de Las Casas with Ms. Mora's 4th grade class

There was a scheduling snafu with third grade because they had Christmas play practice. After working it out with Pre-K, I was able to re-arrange and see Mr. Boone’s third grade class. As the students worked on their stories (the original story was “Goldilocks”), I helped a group with their story, “Monkeylocks.” It turned out so cute!

12-15-10 Dianne works with students from Mr. Boone's 3rd grade class on their story, Monkeylocks

My next class was Ms. Vizzini’s second grade class. Oh what fun we had with Madame Poulet and Monsieur Roach!

12-15-10 Monsieur Roach from Ms. Vizzini's second grade class

After the story, Ms. Vizzini’s class made their story shakers. Love those creative second graders!

12-15-10 Ms. Vizzini's second graders and their story shakers

After a wonderful lunch of Thai food with Ms. Ellen Miller, the school librarian (Thank you, Ms. Miller!), it was time for Ms. Lemoine’s happy first graders.

12-15-10 Dianne de Las Casas with Ms. Lemoine's first grade class and their story shakers

I told the story of Madame Poulet and Monsieur Roach to raucous laughter. They loved seeing Madame Poulet slurp up the roach!

12-15-10 Madame Poulet eats up Monsieur Roach in Ms. Lemoine's first grade class

After the students created their story shakers, Ms. Lemoine had them shake them to music. It was so much fun! She also printed one of my book activities so that later the students could do a writing activity (writing a letter to me).

12-15-10 Telling Madame Poulet and Monsieur Roach to Ms. Lemoine's first graders

I ended my day in Pre-K. Because of the scheduling conflicts with the Christmas play practice, the Pre-K teachers graciously allowed me to combine them and see them at the same time. I had Ms. Muller’s and Ms. Joy’s Pre-K classes together in Ms. Joy’s room.

12-15-10 Telling Madame Poulet and Monsieur Roach to Pre-K

The two Pre-K classes did very well together. They loved the story and cracked up laughing!

12-15-10 Madame Poulet comes after Monsieur Roach in PK

On Thursday, December 16, the 5th graders are performing the fractured fairytales that I rewrote and turned into story theater scripts. On Friday, December 16, the 3rd and 4th graders will perform the story theater scripts from their fractured fairytales. It’s going to be so much fun! I better start getting those scripts ready!!

Until next time…

Warmly, Dianne

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Bissonet Plaza Elementary Twisted Tales Residency Day 7 – Tuesday, December 14, 2010

by Dianne on December 15, 2010

12-14-10 Telling Madame Poulet and Monsieur Roach to Ms. Anchissi's Kindergarten class

Friends:

Today was the 7th day of my “Twisted Tales: Spinning Stories into Fractured Funnies” residency at Bissonet Plaza Elementary in Metairie, Louisiana. I started the day signing books in the Teacher’s Lounge for all the students who ordered books. My first class was Ms. Anchissi’s kindergarten class. We had a lot of fun with Madame Poulet and Monsieur Roach. They loved the story and enjoyed making their story shakers.

12-14-10 A row of chicken story shakers from Ms. Anchissi's Kindergarten class

My next class was Ms. Frechette’s third grade class. They were assigned the story, “The Gingerbread Man” to fracture. While each group had fantastic stories (“Easy as Pie,” “The Beignet Boy,” and “The Rat Race”), the stand-out story was “Easy as Pie.” Since the students had finished their stories, we worked on a final of “Easy as Pie,” with me typing the story on my iPad. The students were so amazed and watched on the Smart Board as I demonstrated my iPad using the Elmo. The refrain in the story is so cute: “Roll, roll, roll as easy as pie. You can’t catch me, I’m the pie guy!” Adorable! Needless to say, I chose this story to turn into a story theater script that the students will perform on Thursday. Phenomenal work, Ms. Frechette’s class! Woo hoo for you!

12-14-10 Easy as Pie by Ms. Frechette's third grade class

Next, I headed to Ms. Morrow’s fourth grade class. They had not progressed as quickly as I had hoped but they certainly worked hard while I was in class! The stand-out story of the class was by Jasmine, Dairon, Bennett and Madison. It is titled, “The Big Yellow Lion,” a fractured version of “The Little Red Hen.” I loved how the story was set in the jungle with a big yellow lion making a mud pie (chocolate mud pie, that is) and included a cute refrain: “Me oh my, a mud pie? I won’t help you, no, not I!” It will be so much fun to perform as a story theater!

12-14-10 The Big Yellow Lion from Ms. Morrow's 4th grade class

After 4th grade, it was on to Ms. Chieffo’s 2nd grade class. As soon as I walked into the room, they cheered for me. And it cheered me up because I had been feeling under the weather all morning. Ms. Chieffo asked me to quickly show them how to fold their “Ma Farmer’s Down Home Cookbook.” They are cute little recipe books made into an origami 6-page book using a single sheet of 8 1/2 X 11″ paper. After performing a rousing rendition of Madame Poulet and Monsieur Roach, they made their stylish story shakers. It was such a pleasure to be in their class because they were so well-behaved.

12-14-10 Second graders from Ms. Chieffo's class with their story shakers

I spent my lunch in the teachers lounge again, signing books for all the classroom teachers I have working with during my residency. After lunch, I went to Ms. Tonguis’ 1st grade class. She asked me to share Mama’s Bayou and I happily obliged. Afterward, I performed Madame Poulet and Monsieur Roach, and the students created their fanciful story shakers. Ms. Tonguis is so much fun to be around! She even acted out the part of Monsieur Roach, complete with lying on the ground with her “legs up” to simulate a roach’s early demise. Too funny!

12-14-10 Showing Mama's Bayou to Ms. Tongui's first graders

My last class was Ms. Dagneault’s 5th grade class. The students worked in their groups, completing their fractured fairytales. They were assigned “Cinderella” and turned it into “Cinder Man,” “Raparella,” “Cinderella Gone Bad,” and “Minirella.” Phenomenal creativity flowed in this class!

12-14-10 Ms. Dagneault's 5th graders work on their fractured fairytale

It was such a wonderful day at school (except for the part about me being under the weather). This year, I have not written one behavior report. I haven’t had to counsel any students on their behavior and all the students have been super polite and helpful. Thank you so much, Bissonet students, for being so terrific! A special shout-out and thank you to Destiny in 5th grade, who helps carry my bag down the stairs every day! Ms. Easley, if you are reading… YAY for Bissonet!

Until next time…

Warmly, Dianne

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Bissonet Plaza Elementary Twisted Tales Residency Day 6 – Monday, December 13, 2010

by Dianne on December 13, 2010

12-13-10 Dianne tells Madame Poulet and Monsieur Roach to Ms. Johnson's kindergarten class

Friends:

Today was the sixth day of my ten-day Twisted Tales residency at Bissonet Plaza Elementary in Metairie, Louisiana. My day began in Ms. Naugle’s 4th grade class. The students worked hard on writing their fractured fairytales. “Little Red Riding Hood” was the assigned original tale and it was fractured many ways by different groups in the class: “Code Red,” with Little Red Riding Hood as a spy, “Little Red Riding,” with Little Red driving a red corvette, and “Petite Rouge” with Little Red in the bayou meeting a grinning gator.

12-13-10 Ms. Naugle's 4th graders work on their fractured fairy tale, Little Red Riding

Next, it was on to Ms. Fury’s 3rd grade class. The students worked in their groups perfecting their fractured fairytales. Their assigned story was “The Three Billy Goats Gruff.” There were many creative stories including “Who Dats Crossing My Bridge?” and “The Three Little Pelicans.”

12-13-10 Ms. Fury's 3rd graders collaborate on their fractured fairytale

My third class was Ms. Johnson’s Kindergarten class. The students absolutely LOVED the story of Madame Poulet and Monsieur Roach (Mrs. Chicken and Mr. Roach). After the story, the class made story shakers with Madame Poulet on one side and Monsieur Roach on the other side.

12-13-10 A student in Ms. Johnson's Kindergarten class shows his colored story shaker template

My fourth class was Ms. Leblanc’s second grade class. Ms. Easley, the acting principal, came by to observe and watched the story of Madame Poulet and Monsieur Roach come to life with the help of the students. It was so much fun.

12-13-10 Madame Poulet approaches Monsieur Roach in Ms. Leblanc's second grade class

After participating in the story, the students worked on their creative story shakers. Too soon after, it was time for lunch! How time flies when you’re having tons of fun!

12-13-10 Ms. Leblanc's second grade students show their shakers

During lunch, Cajun Cornbread Boy and I had a Skype visit with a Kindergarten class in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania who wanted to know all about The Cajun Cornbread Boy book. Ms. Naugle, 4th grade teacher, was kind enough to allow me to Skype in her room with her students. It was a blast. The Kindergarten class showed me the puppets they made to act out the story, asked me a few questions, and even sang the refrain for me: “Run, cher, run as fast as you can. You can’t catch me. I’m full of cayenne.” Ms. Heistand, their teacher, told me that they loved reading The Cajun Cornbread Boy! Yay! They told Ms. Naugle’s class that it snowed flurries that morning. It was a fantastic experience. Thank you, Ms. Heistand’s class!

12-13-10 Dianne de Las Casas Skypes with a Kindergarten class in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

A special thank to Ms. Naugle for allowing me to Skype in her room with her students present. Ms. Naugle even Tweeted about it!

12-13-10 A student in Ms. Naugle's 4th grade class holds Cajun Cornbread Boy next to Ms. Naugle's Tweet

After lunch, it was off to Ms. Hadley’s first grade class. I told the story of Madame Poulet and Monsieur Roach to a very enthusiastic response. Over the weekend, Ms. Hadley even bought my book, The Gigantic Sweet Potato!

12-13-10 Madame Poulet and Monsieur Roach in Ms. Hadley's first grade class

After the story, they made their story shakers and they danced all over the room with them! They LOVED shaking their homemade maracas!

12-13-10 Ms. Hadley's first graders hold up their Madame Poulet and Monsieur Roach story shakers

My last class was Ms. Brumfield’s 5th grade class. The class was assigned the story, “Sleeping Beauty” to fracture. They had such clever stories: “Sleeping Ugly,” “Snoring Beauty,” and “Weeping Beauty.” I look forward to seeing them finished! Ms. Brumfield had to leave early and all the groups worked so nicely. I was so impressed with their cooperation and collaboration with each other!

12-13-10 Ms. Brumfield's 5th graders work on their fractured fairytale, Sleeping Ugly

It was a great day and I look forward to two more days in the classrooms. Days 9 and 10 will be spent with all the grades during their P.E. periods.

Until next time…

Warmly, Dianne

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Bissonet Plaza Elementary Twisted Tales Residency Day 5 – Friday, December 10, 2010

by Dianne on December 13, 2010

12-10-10 Telling Madame Poulet and Monsieur Roach to Ms. Hahn's Kindergarten class

Friends:

On my 5th day at Bissonet, I began a second visit to the classrooms for this artist residency titled “Twisted Tales: Spinning Stories into Fractured Funnies.” My first visit was to Ms. Clement’s 4th grade class. They worked on their fractured fairytales and turning them into a full written story. Their assigned story was “The Princess and the Bean.” I love their fractured versions of “A Royal Pain” and “The Queen and the Bean Burrito!”

12-10-10 Ms. Clement's 4th graders collaborate on their fractured fairytale

In Ms. Arnett’s 3rd grade class, they also worked on writing their fractured fairytale based on the story of “The Three Little Pigs.” I simply love this group’s version: “The Three Little Fish and The Big Bad Shark.” They came up with such a clever refrain in the story. The Shark said, “Little Fish, Little Fish, let me in!” The fish answered, “Not by the scale of my finny fin fin!” I LOVE how creative and talented these students are!

12-10-10 Ms. Arnett's 3rd grade students collaborate on their twisted tale, The Three Little Fish and The Big Bad Shark

Then it was time to visit Ms. Hahn’s kindergarten class. I told the story of “Madame Poulet and Monsieur Roach.” They loved it and had fun making their story shakers out of paper plates.

12-10-10 Ms. Hahn's kindergarteners make Madame Poulet & Monsieur Roach story shakers

Ms. Presser’s second grade class impressed me with their creative Sweet Potato Pals from my last visit to their class. They hung the completed Pals on the wall. Cute!

12-10-10 Ms. Presser's 2nd graders' finished Sweet Potato Pals!

I told the story of Madame Poulet and Monsieur roach to Ms. Presser’s second graders and they were so enthusiastic with their participation in the story that Ms. Presser had to settle them down.

12-10-10 Dianne de Las Casas is a mad Madame Poulet in Ms. Presser's 2nd grade class (photo taken by a second grade student)

After the story, they worked on their Madame Poulet and Monsieur Roach story shakers.

12-10-10 A second grader in Ms. Presser's class works on his story shaker

My visit to Ms. Duhe’s second grade class yielded an equally enthusiastic response. When I walked in the door, they all yelled, “Ms. Dianne!” It’s nice to be so well-received! After telling the rockin’ story of Madame Poulet and Monsieur Roach, they made story shakers out of paper plates filled with beans, folded in half, and glued closed.

12-10-10 Ms. Duhe's first graders and their Madame Poulet & Monsieur Roach story shakers

My last class of the day was Ms. McLeod’s 5th grade class. They had fun collaborating and writing their fractured fairytales. They were assigned “The Frog Prince” and the two stories that stood out were “The Camel and the Princess” and “The Gummi Frog and the Fruity Princess.” Such amazingly clever kids! I can’t wait to see how these stories turn out!

12-10-10 Students in Ms. McLeod's 5th grade class work on their fractured fairytale

After my last class, I had to hurry and leave to get to a book signing at Barnes & Noble Citiplace in Baton Rouge. Unfortunately, I lost my car keys and the whole school had to be searched! Fortunately, some students helped me find my keys and I only lost 20 minutes. I made it to my book signing on time! Whew!

I look forward to the next week, finished the residency at Bissonet Plaza Elementary.

Until next time…

Warmly, Dianne

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Bissonet Plaza Elementary Twisted Tales Residency Day 4 – Thursday, December 9, 2010

by Dianne on December 9, 2010

12-9-10 Ms. Johnson's Kindergarten class pull that sweet potato with a heave and a ho!

Friends:

Today was the fourth day of my artist residency at Bissonet Plaza Elementary in Metairie, Louisiana. The school receives a grant through the Arts Council of New Orleans and have been bringing me in for over ten years. I love seeing “my students” grow through the years, like a sweet potato! :)

12-9-10 Ms. Lemoine's first graders pull the gigantic sweet potato

My day began in Ms. Mora’s fourth grade class. I taught them my Twisted Tale technique, showing them how to fracture a fairytale to make it funny and unique. They were assigned the story of “Henny Penny,” a chicken who thinks that the sky is falling. They worked in groups and came up with some creative ideas. One group decided to set their story in the bayou and call it “Froggy Loggy.” Too cute. A branch falls on the frog and he needs to tell someone. His friends, crawfish, snake, and catfish travel with him. They meet “Gator Lator!” So cool! Another group came up with “Guinea Piggy,” set inside a house with a ferocious cat. Impressive work, Ms. Mora’s class!

12-9-10 Students in Ms. Mora's class work on their fractured fairy tale

My second class was Ms. Lemoine’s first graders. Ms. McGivern was substituting for Ms. Lemoine, who had laryngitis! :( The students had a blast and really loved the story of The Gigantic Sweet Potato.

12-9-10 The sweet potato is so GIGANTIC, Ms. Lemoine's first graders can't circle around the sweet potato!

Afterward, they made Sweet Potato Pals, designing their own special faces on their sweet potatoes.

12-9-10 Ms. Lemoine's first grade Sweet Potato Pals

Then it was on to Ms. Johnson’s kindergarten class. They were sitting so nicely on their carpet, ready for me when I arrived! So nice! I had so much fun with these students and with Ms. Johnson. After telling the story, they made their Sweet Potato Pals.

12-9-10 A student in Ms. Johnson's Kindergarten class creates his Sweet Potato Pal

Then we had a blast dancing! I taught the kids a new dance called “The Wobble!”

12-9-10 Dianne de Las Casas teaches Ms. Johnson's kindergarteners how to do The Wobble dance!

My last class before lunch was Ms. Vizzini’s second grade class. I love telling The Gigantic Sweet Potato! Kids always respond so well to the story and these students were no exception!

12-9-10 Love how Ms. Vizzini's second grade class gets into the fun!

They even got to make Ma Farmer’s Down Home Cookbook! So precious!

12-9-10 Ms. Vizzini's second graders create Ma Farmer's Down Home Cookbook

After lunch, it was time for Mr. Boone’s third grade class. They were assigned the story, “Goldilocks and the Three Bears.” Here are some of their groups’ ideas for fracturing the story: “Boydilocks (the main character is a boy), “Monkeylocks,” set in a jungle with a tiger as the adversary, and “Goldilocks in the Hood.” I can’t wait to see all these stories!

12-9-10 Teaching Twisted Tales in Mr. Boone's third grade class

My last class was Ms. Muller’s Pre-K. Those children had so much fun with the story and they were so funny that I had to pause several times to laugh!!

12-9-10 Just like in The Gigantic Sweet Potato book, Ms. Muller's Pre-K students fall into a tired heap when the mouse comes by

It was another fantastic day at Bissonet!

Until next time…

Warmly, Dianne

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Bissonet Plaza Elementary Twisted Tales Residency Day 3 – Wednesday, December 8, 2010

by Dianne on December 8, 2010

12-8-10 Ms. Chieffo's 2nd grade class loves The Gigantic Sweet Potato!

Friends:

Today was the third day of my artist residency at Bissonet Plaza Elementary. Ellen Miller, the librarian, applies for a grant every year from the Arts Council of New Orleans to fund my visit. It’s my 13th year at Bissonet! Yay! It has been so much fun teaching the upper grades how to fracture fairytales and sharing stories with the lower grades. My day began in Ms. Morrow’s 4th grade class. They were so excited to see me! Ms. Morrow told me that one of the students even told her that she dreamed about me coming to class! How cool is that?

The students were very attentive and enthusiastic about the project. Their class was assigned “The Little Red Hen.” I loved the ideas that oozed from their creative little brains. One group came up with “The Little Green Gator,” to take place in the bayou. Another group created, “The Little Ninja Hen.” They did great work and I can hardly wait to see the stories take shape! Awesome work, Ms. Morrow’s class!

12-8-10 Ms. Morrow's 4th grade class works on their fractured fairytales

Next, it was on to Ms. Frechette’s third grade class. They were a sweet group of students and were excited about their project. Ms. Frechette’s class was assigned “The Gingerbread Man.” After analyzing and breaking down the story, it was time to work on fracturing the tale. One group came up with “The Rat Race,” about a school science teacher whose rat escapes from the maze and students, a teacher, and a principal end up chasing the rat. Too clever! Another group came up with “The Beignet Boy,” changing gingerbread to a beignet and setting the story in the French Quarter of New Orleans. The last group created “Easy As Pie,” changing the gingerbread to an apple pie with ice cream for eyes, a cherry for the nose, and whipped cream for the mouth. The pie rolls instead of runs. What amazing work!!

12-8-10 A student in Ms. Frechette's class works on her Twisted Tales worksheet for her group's story, The Rat Race, based on The Gingerbread Man

In Ms. Joy’s Pre-K class, we had so much fun with my story, The Gigantic Sweet Potato. They giggled and had a blast participating in the story!

12-8-10 Ms. Joy's Pre-K students get into the action in The Gigantic Sweet Potato

After the story, they made Sweet Potato Pals and they came out so cute!

12-8-10 Ms. Joy's Pre-K Sweet Potato Pals!

Next, it was on to Ms. Chieffo’s second grade class. The class enthusiastically received the story of The Gigantic Sweet Potato and had fun participating in the performance. Afterward, they created Sweet Potato Pals.

12-8-10 A student in Ms. Chieffo's 2nd grade class colors her Sweet Potato Pal

I love the faces Ms. Chieffo’s second graders created on their Sweet Potato Pals! No two are alike. They are as unique as the students who created them. :)

12-8-10 Ms. Chieffo's 2nd grade Gigantic Sweet Potato Pals!

After lunch, it was time for Ms. Tonguis’ first grade class. Boy, were they excited to see me! I always have a blast with Ms. Tonguis and Ms. Bonnano joined us too. It was like a big Sweet Potato Party. LOL The students had a ball with the story. They were so participatory and full of laughter. Joy rang through the air!

12-8-10 Dianne de Las Casas tells The Gigantic Sweet Potato to Ms. Tongui's first grade class

They enjoyed creating their Sweet Potato Pals. The word “Pals” was one of their vocabulary words! Look at these precious Sweet Potato Pals from Ms. Tonguis’ first graders!

12-8-20 Dianne's awesome Sweet Potato Pals in Ms. Tongui's first grade class

My day ended in Ms. Dagneault’s 5th grade class. The class was so excited to see me that they had a difficult time settling down. Even so, I was able to get through the lesson and we had enough time to start group work. They were assigned “Cinderella” and there were lots of great ideas bandied. I loved “Cinder Man,” the story of a fellow who wants to go to a rap battle to see his favorite female rap artist. Then there was also “Minirella,” Cinderella in miniature! These students are so creative and incredibly bright. I can’t wait to turn these amazing stories into story reader’s theater scripts!

12-8-10 Ms. Dagneault's 5th grade students works on her Twisted Tales worksheet

After school, I had a really awesome, unexpected treat. I stopped by Ms. Muller’s Pre-K classroom and she fed me collard greens. Get this… the greens were grown in the Pre-K garden.

12-8-10 Ms. Muller's Pre-K garden growing cabbage, lettuce, and greens!

They were the best collard greens I have ever tasted! Ooooh yeah! Thank you so much, Ms. Muller and Ms. Renee’!!

12-8-10 Yummy collard greens from Ms. Muller's Pre-K's class, taken straight from the PK garden!

Another fabulous day at a fabulous school. Keep up the fantastic work, Bissonet Plaza Elementary! :)

Until next time…

Warmly, Dianne

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Book Craft: Cardboard Roll Mouse & Paper Bag Sweet Potato for The Gigantic Sweet Potato book

by Dianne on July 15, 2010

The Gigantic Sweet Potato book, paper bag sweet potato, and cardboard roll mouse

Friends:

Here is a great Book Craft you can do with my book, The Gigantic Sweet Potato, illustrated by Marita Gentry and published by Pelican Publishing Company. They are easy and fun!

The Gigantic Sweet Potato book and cardboard roll mouse

Cardboard Roll Mouse
Materials:
4-5″ cardboard paper roll
construction paper
chenille sticks (white)
Googly eyes
glue
stapler
black marker

Directions:
To make the mouse, from construction paper, cut out a tail and two ears. Pinch one end of the tissue paper roll shut, inserting the tail in the middle. Staple it shut. Wrap the tail around a pen or pencil to create a curl. Pinch the opposite end of the tissue paper roll in the opposite direction (it will look like a triangle). Glue ears at the top and a Googly eye on each side. With a black marker, color the bottom tip, creating a nose. Cut two small white pieces of chenille stick and fold it in half, creating whiskers. Glue on each side of the nose. Your mouse is ready.

Paper Bag Sweet Potato Craft
Materials:
brown paper lunch bag
plastic grocery bags or newspaper
1 green chenille stick
1 sheet green construction paper
orange crayons or orange paint
green marker
hole punch
tape

Directions:
Color or paint every side of a brown paper lunch bag orange. Stuff the bag with plastic bags or newspaper. Cut 3-4 leaves from construction paper and hole punch the top of the leaf. Draw a green line down the middle. Thread leaves on the chenille stick, securing them with a piece of tape. Close the bag by wrapping the end of the chenille stick around the top of the bag. Crumple the bag slightly to give it a less uniform look so that it resembles the misshapen figure of a sweet potato.

The Gigantic Sweet Potato book and paper bag sweet potato

Until next time…

Warmly, Dianne

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Bohol, Philippines Island Hopping, Day 2 – Sunday, May 16, 2010

by Dianne on May 18, 2010

5-16-10 Morning on Alona Kew White Beach, Panglao Island, Bohol, Philippines

Friends:

Zarah Gagatiga (my co-author for Tales from the 7,000 Isles: Filipino Folk Stories) and I went island hopping on our second day in Bohol, Philippines. We rented a bangka boat for the day. A bangka is a canoe with a bamboo outrigger. Our bangka was also motorized.

5-16-10 The bangka boat we used to go island hopping in Bohol, Philippines

We had to leave very early: 6:00 am! First, our bangka driver, Ren Ren, took us to dolphin watch. There were so many other bangka boats out too. Despite the crowded sea, we were still able to view large schools of dolphins jumping in and out of the water.

5-16-10 Caught a dolphin jumping when we went island hopping in Bohol, Philippines

After dolphin watching, we went snorkeling on a coral barrier reef near Balicasag Island. I saw so many gorgeous fish I had never seen up close! There were clown fish, blue devil fish, angelfish, parrot fish, and other colorful sea creatures. It was like going to an aquarium. I loved swimming like a mermaid through Poseidon’s garden! After snorkeling for an hour and a half, we stopped at Balicasag Island to rest.

5-16-10 Zarah, on the right, posing with Balicasag Island jewelry merchants

The people on the island were so sweet and friendly, especially Manang Trudes, from whom I bought tons of jewelry. I taught a little island girl, Hannah, how to make a star from string.

5-16-10 I taught, Hannah, a 5 year old Balicasag Island girl, how to make a star out of string

On Balicasag, I spotted a new nipa hut. This “bahay kubo” reminded me of my mom’s island of Marinduque, where I actually stayed in one for some time. It is constructed of bamboo, rattan, and leaves of local plants such as banana and palm. It is built on stilts so that it can avoid flash floods from the sea or nearby rivers.

5-16-10 A traditional nipa hut (bahay kubo) on Balicasag Island, Bohol, Philippines

After Balicasag, we headed to a tiny island called Putod for some swimming. There I met a couple from Poland and some warm Filipinos from Dumaguete City in Negros, Visayas, Philippines.

5-16-10 I made new friends from Dumaguete City in Negros, Visayas, Philippines

While Zarah and I were swimming, I found this gorgeous starfish. I named him “Spike.” hahaha

5-16-10 I found a starfish on the small swimming island of Putod and named him Spike

After a lovely day of island hopping, Zarah and I were pooped but we ended up working beachside, writing as the waves lapped the shore. Such a wonderful life!

5-16-10 Native Bohol boys play in the sand

Night fell on the beach and I sighed with contentment…

5-16-10 The beachside restaurant lights at our resort, Alona Pyramid

Until next time…

Warmly, Dianne

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