Yesterday, we drove north to Haverford, PA, where we were visiting author/illustrator for the Haverford School Parents Association Book Fair.
The signage suggested that we were in the right place.
A quick stroll through the interior confirmed our suspicions.
Bill the Dragon was everywhere. In fact, they had themed the entire book fair around “imaginary creatures” in his honor.
Frankly, it was terrifying.
Our first stop was an assembly for approximately 150 pre-K through 2nd graders.
In case you don’t know, at the Haverford School, you hold your two fingers up like this if you want others to be quiet. For the record, I am pointing at Robbi in this picture. For the record, she wasn’t cooperating.
Once everyone was settled in, we talked about what we do, showed pictures of the barn, and read The Imaginary Dragon. Did the boys enjoy themselves?
Can a high five lie?
Next, we headed to the library, to meet with a group of fifth graders about careers. On the way, we passed the art studio, which was magnificent, and this display of clay figurines.
Which beautifully demonstrated the power of multiplicity.
When we got to the library, we discovered that Bill had arrived before us.
The fifth graders were great. In fact, everyone we met with asked great questions, from the four-year-olds to the teachers.
After a rather satisfying lunch, we presented to 100 or so 3rd and 4th graders.
Again, we told them what we do, but then we moved into workshop mode, assigning them the same “make your own book” project we did with the graduate students last week.
We were curious to see whether it would translate for the younger crowd. Making a mix-and-match book is not an easy proposition.
But they dived right in with no hesitation.
We helped them a little, but just a little.
And what they did was amazing.
We had been impressed with the graduate students ingenuity. But these 3rd and 4th graders had just as much imagination, just as much vision when it came to creating their drawings.
Here is one kid’s astronaut.
And here is a cowboy.
And this, for example was not part of the book. Pure imagination. Pure whimsy.
Instead of drawing an astronaut when prompted, this guy drew a three-headed alien.
The best part was how excited they were to share their books with us.
Especially with Robbi. Haverford is a boys’ school. Robbi was a big hit.
Another cowboy I love.
And another astronaut. This next sequence is all from the same book. Have a look as the panels flip and the characters recombine. Keep in mind that this kid created this book in less than an hour.
Which just proves that kids can do incredible things.
After the workshop, we headed down to the book fair to sell books and talk to kids.
We signed a lot of autographs.
And discovered many more imaginary creatures, created in honor of Bill the Dragon and his book fair.
Including this three headed, three-tailed dragon.
We even picked up a couple of books for ourselves. It was kind of hard not to.
It was an amazing day.
We raised some smiles.
Did some blistering cash commerce.
And made some new friends.
And heard some powerful new ideas regarding what one might do if one was lucky enough to have Abraham Lincoln’s hat.
Eventually, a great day had to end. We were shown out by yet another imaginary creature.
The Haverford School sure knows how to treat its guests right.
At the end of the day, we drove home to reunite with our own little book lovers.
We want to extend a special thanks to our host Elizabeth Springer and the rest of the Haverford School Parents Association for inviting us to spend the day with them and their students. We couldn’t have had a better time.
For any of you readers who work at schools or sit on PTA boards or are members of parents associations, please know that Robbi and I love doing these talks and readings and workshops with kids and are officially open for business. Feel free to inquire if you’d like to discuss the possibility of us coming to your school.
And for any of you who might be parents, teachers, or even kids at the Haverford school, here are a few links that might help you learn more about us and our work.
You’re already on the blog. Check back on Saturdays for the kickoff posts for our weekly theme. Mondays give kids a chance to post their stories on the site. Tuesdays are for sharing drawings. Wednesday is a theme-related quiz. Thursdays are for children’s book reviews and parents roundtable discussions, and Fridays are a mashup of the kid-submitted content for the week. We name a weekly “expert,” who wins some cool prizes.
Here’s a link to the book we shared with the kids we met with on Monday, The Imaginary Dragon.
And here’s a link to the sign-up form for the Bobbledy club. Members get eight fun-filled envelopes in the mail each year, including three picture books by Robbi and me, one book they write and illustrate themselves, one book by a kid in the club, an album of original children’s music, a birthday card, and a funny-looking, five-headed crayon.
We loved meeting and working with your kids and would love the chance to keep sending our books to them.
Thanks again to everyone at Haverford School for an amazing day!