Pick a Picture Book Author

Fall is off to a great start because we have an interview with Patricia Toht, author of many irresistible picture books. Read on to find out when she started writing, why she does it, and what the future holds for her. We’ve also included a Book Bite for PICK A PUMPKIN, her latest book, which just happens to be perfect for this time of year!

1. How long have you been an author?
My path has been a long one! When I meet with students, I like to tell them that I started writing before the turn of the century, then I laugh as their mouths drop open. Shortly after I graduated from college, I had a brief go at writing for children (around 1986), but I didn’t try in earnest until 1995, when I stopped working full-time for awhile to stay at home with my four children.

2. What made you want to become an author?
I fell in love with children’s books as a bookseller first. I opened a children’s bookstore in the Chicago suburbs in 1988. Seven years later, Borders, Barnes & Noble, and Super Crown bookstores all moved in a few miles away and siphoned off enough sales to sink us. But my love of selling books eventually grew into a love of writing books.

3. Tell us about your most recent book, PICK A PUMPKIN. Where did you get this idea?
I took a poetry class with Illinois poet Heidi Roemer, which reawakened an affinity for poetry. PICK A PUMPKIN began as a shorter poem about selecting the perfect pumpkin, and it eventually grew into carving a jack-o’-lantern, too. Researching picture books about pumpkins, I couldn’t find any that focused on that process, and I hoped there was a need in the market for a book like that. I soon wrote PICK A PINE TREE, too, and submitted them as companion books.

4. Authors get rejected a lot. What do you do when you get rejected?
Believe me, I don’t always take rejection well! But I read a book by Steven Pressfield called The War of Art, and this quote has always stayed with me:
“So you’re taking a few blows. That’s the price for being in the arena and not on the sidelines. Stop complaining and be grateful.”
I try to remind myself of this. And I’ve also grown to know that writing can be a numbers game. The more you write (and submit), the greater your chance that something will resonate with an editor.

5. You’ve already written PICK A PINETREE and PICK A PUMPKIN. Will there be another PICK A ___ book in the future?
I have a few ideas, but that editor is not interested right now. She wants me to diversify my writing a bit, so I’m working on different things.

6. What’s the hardest part about writing picture books? What’s the easiest?
The easiest for me is coming up with ideas, although I throw out a lot of ideas before I find a really great one. The hardest is the first round of editing with my editor because I’ve worked so hard to make the manuscript the best (I think) it can be before I submit. I can be a crabby re-writer for a few days after my first editorial letter!

7. Can you tell us anything about what you’re working on now?
I have two more books that are in the illustration process. TAXI, GO follows a taxi through the stops and starts of its day, and will be illustrated by Maria Karipidou. TOGETHER WITH YOU is a celebration of grandparents and grandchildren, and pairs me up with Jarvis again!

8. What do you do when you’re not writing?
I’m a library associate in a big, busy middle school. I love it! But I do miss my days working at the public library where I led family storytimes. For me, there’s nothing like a room of “littles” to make my heart happy!

9. What advice would you give someone who wants to become an author? 
It’s not new advice – READ, READ, READ! Because I owned a bookstore, I read hundreds of picture books each season to discern which ones to purchase. I eventually developed an internal sense of picture book rhythm and length, and learned about certain elements like page turns and the “rule of three.” I still check out loads of picture books from my local library. Also, I know that I always have more to learn, so I read craft books, attend conferences, and work with critique partners to improve my writing. (I write for the GROG blog. To learn more about page turns, the rule of three, and how to make a “dummy” of your picture book, check out my posts.)

Bio: Patricia Toht is a poet, picture book author, and school library associate. She once owned a children's bookshop before turning a love of books into a love of writing. She is the author of four picture books - ALL ABOARD THE LONDON BUS, illustrated by Sam Usher, DRESS LIKE A GIRL, illustrated by Lorian Tu, and PICK A PINE TREE and PICK A PUMPKIN, illustrated by Jarvis. Find her online at www.patriciatoht.com, on Twitter as @PatriciaToht, and Instagram as patricia.toht. She is represented by Julia Churchill at A.M. Heath (London).

It’s a Scarecrow Fashion Show!

This is one of my favorite bulletin board ideas. A few years ago I’d been looking for a new way to involve parents in our class’ hallway display for November. I’d searched for hours and couldn’t find inspiration. I told Ann Marie about my predicament and she helped me come up with a killer idea. A scarecrow fashion show! I made a basic scarecrow template (both big and small) to send home with all of my students along with this note. I sent it during the second week of October and set the due date a few days before I would set up the bulletin board. I hung up some stage lights to showcase the scarecrows. As a really fun addition, I found some crows to fly by and gave them cameras to hold for our very own paparazzi. My class loved seeing their creations in the hallway and as parents came to school for our parent-teacher conferences they stopped to check out their kid’s handiwork in the hallway.

I liked the board so much that I did it again this year and I still love it! (So do the kiddos!) Check out the creative scarecrows the class made this year.

Pumpkin Properties

It’s so easy to have fun with science. In order to become proficient in this content area, students need lots of practice making observations. One skill we like to firm up at the beginning of the year is using senses to observe differences in physical properties. Because this topic contains some difficult vocabulary we discuss it often. We like to use many things readily available during this time like apples, rocks, leaves and pumpkins.

Pumpkins are especially enjoyable because you can use all five senses to explore the physical properties. We created this table (which is set up to print on legal-sized paper) for students to record their observations as they explore their own miniature pumpkins. (Check your local farmer’s market for a class set of these and ask about a teacher discount!)

We also get one big pumpkin and cut into it to help students come up with additional adjectives to describe a pumpkin’s smell, feel, and sound. When we get to the taste column students can taste different things like pumpkin seeds, pumpkin muffins or pumpkin pie

What do you do to help students understand physical properties?

Glow Stick Reading

During the last week of October my students get super excited about Halloween. One way to incorporate this enthusiasm into the classroom is to read ghost stories, like Ghosts in the House by Kazuno Kohara.

To  create a spooky atmosphere we turn out the lights, crack a glow stick and read by the luminescent green, orange, yellow or red light. It’s the perfect way to expose students to the great literature surrounding one of their favorite holidays.

A Very Busy Spider Has Laid Her Eggs!

This spooky take on the traditional fall treat will surely surprise your students when they walk into the classroom!

If you’d like to make some delicious spider eggs (some may call them popcorn balls), print out our recipe, courtesy of Betsy Killion, an amazing volunteer. Don’t forget to add a nice big spider to the top of the pile for extra fun. If you can’t find a big spider, grab some spider rings and put one on top of each egg.

Make sure to read Eric Carle’s Very Busy Spider while your students are munching their treats!

Verbs on the Vine

Faced with the challenge of teaching verbs to your first graders? After studying verbs for a week, I passed out pumpkin patterns and asked my students to think of a verb for their pumpkin to do. They came up with some amazing choices and then set to work decorating and making props. Here’s how it went. What a blast!

Designer Acorn Caps

For a cute fall display, try these Designer Acorn Caps.

Trace, print or copy our acorn template on construction paper or cardstock. We like to make the acorn bodies on brown paper and the caps on white paper. We feel that the white paper allows students more creative freedom in the design of their caps. Provide feathers, beads, stickers, buttons, pom-poms, sequins and other collage materials. Encourage your students to glue their choices onto the cap to create one-of-a-kind hats. Give them eye stickers or wiggly eyes to make a face on the acorn. Glue the cap on top and hang up your fashionable acorns!

Short Vowel Apple Trees

September is full of fun things: the smell of new school supplies, less heat and humidity outside, and (possibly my favorite) bright, crisp apples. I love to incorporate apples into as many content areas as possible.

In science we study parts of a tree and seasonal changes as evident in apple trees.

In social studies we discuss the contributions of Johnny Appleseed and examine maps of apple orchards.

In math we explore fractions, graph our favorite color of apples and our favorite ways to eat apples and make patterns.

In language arts we read tons of fiction and nonfiction books about apples. We also love to make our short vowel apple trees. I’ve created 3 different sets of apples to use with various skill levels to help with differentiation. Give your students whichever set you feel is most appropriate. Students color their trees and apples, then cut them out and glue them onto the tree labeled with the correct vowel sound. After they have completed sorting, students glue their trees onto a large sheet of construction paper to create an orchard. When my students finish their orchards they get the chance to earn a special apple treat: a scratch and sniff sticker, a cup of cider, dried apple slices, a bookmark, etc. In order to receive the treat they simply have to read all of the words on their trees. Some practice with peers before reading to me. You could also print these sets onto cardstock and use them as an activity in either small group settings or whole class instruction.

Do you have any fun ways to incorporate apples into your lesson plans?

Erin

Can’t Miss October Books

As you are pulling out your books for October, consider adding these to your list. Some are hilarious, others are informative and several are just plain fun. Plus we’ve included some ideas for reading follow-up. Let us know if you have some good October books we should be sharing with our classes!