A Kindergarten Smorgasboard What's Happening Wednesday: Personalized Books!

Happy Hump Day! So here's whats happening on this Wednesday...
Just found out I have torn cartillage and ACL damage in my knee. Surgery on July 17th. First. Surgery. Ever. SAD MR. GREG.
I was playing around on spreadshirt.com yesterday and this happened....

True story. Now you can purchase your very own #smittenwithsmorgie t-shirts! Go ahead...you know you want to!

In April, my friend Debbie Clement spent the day at my school. Debbie is a phonemonal author and songwriter. Her music program with our students was simply the best assembly ever. Hands down.
During her visit to classrooms, Debbie was using my personalized and autographed copy of her book, You're Wonderful, when a kindergartener asked her a question and an idea was born.
Skip ahead a month and that idea came to life.
My 'staches and I celebrated our year together and they each received A PERSONALIZED and AUTOGRAPHED copy of the book Tall Girraffe. EPIC. Each of my 'staches took home a book with their name in it. A book they love to read. A book that contains their name. The power of that moment was incredible.

I recently asked Debbie about the experience in a fun little interview! Here's what she had to say!

1. Tell us a little about yourself my friend.

First of all, let me start off by saying THANK YOU, loud and clear. I am so grateful for all of your support over the last couple of years.... first in cyber-town and now in real life! It has been such a great joy to get to know you. I look forward to our future collaborations. The more we work together the more EPIC our school visits become.

I am just finishing my 18th year as an independent 'Arts Enrichment Consultant' while owning my own consulting company-of-one: Rainbows Within Reach. For the ten years before this most recent chapter, I was a Resource Teacher in a private school serving young children with special needs. I provided all types of experiences in the Arts over that decade. The importance of music to young children was impressed on me during that tenure. We could get children to sing, when they were hesitant/incapable of speaking.

I resigned from that amazing center after being promoted to an 'all administrative' position. I took a leap into the unknown in an effort to bring music into the lives of more children. I started off singing the classics and playing the guitar. Then I started with my own little ideas, giving myself permission to write little ditties from my imagination. That's when the big-time fun truly began. At this point I have written and recorded over 100 original songs for children, onto seven different CD albums! Who knew? Every new project is a thrill!

My most recent evolution is to turn three of my songs into the traditional picture book format. So now I wear the hats of music-lady, author, illustrator AND publisher! Yup. We both like hats, Mr. Greg! I have made the illustrations for two of my three books from fabric, as small quilts. I'm gradually creating digital files of my songs in Mp3 format, with support materials. Those are available for purchase and immediate download at Teachers Pay Teachers.

On the near horizon I have a couple of *AWESOME* videos coming out, filmed on behalf of the Zaner-Bloser publishing house. They will be released this summer and I am so excited for your readers to see and use them {FOR FREE} in their classrooms this fall! I'll be sure to let you know when I have the links to share!

2. What does it mean to you as an author to see your books in the hands of children?

It is an absolute DREAM-COME TRUE! When I see my books in a classroom (or public library) my heart starts a little conga beat. When I see my books in the hands of children, usually beginning readers, I literally want to do cartwheels. As a self-published author, having taken a loan out against our house to get my first book printed, seeing them in the hands of eager readers is the fulfillment of every goal I've ever set for myself.

Most teachers and librarians *discover* me as a result of my giving a workshop at a conference or possibly from one of my rabid fans. There is no marketing team. So seeing the fruition of my efforts ~~ in person ~~ brings tears to my eyes. That's why an interview such as this means so much to me! I'm so grateful for your shining the spotlight on my efforts, Mr. Greg. It means the world!

3. What is the highlight of a school or classroom visit to you?

Planning a school visit is an absolute delight. Making the arrangements to suit each setting is something I look forward to designing together. Pulling into a new building and seeing my name 'up-in-lights' makes me realize that our plans have taken root. People are anticipating our time together! It never gets old!!

Walking into a building to a 'welcome' banner makes me smile from ear-to-ear. Seeing how individual teachers direct their students in response to my work is seriously THRILLING! To realize that my arrival has been anticipated and prepared for with student work? PRICELESS!!!

Kindergarten Art Response to Debbie Clement Picture Books: NY, TN and OH School Visits
4. How can I as a teacher build on your visit?

Each teacher has their own unique way of planning and preparing their students for my arrival. In a perfect world, the children will have had numerous opportunities to sing and read my songs prior to my arrival. Having a set of my books in the hands of the teachers makes our time together that much more meaningful and concrete an experience.

Mr. Greg took this picture, the day following my visit to his school.
He made the connections for me to visit another Nashville Kindergarten!
We are comparing the actual fabric quilt to the book's illustration.
The concept of authors and illustrators being actual PEOPLE is very surreal for young children. Talking about how those are 'jobs' and that books are actually people's ideas that have come to completion is very nebulous indeed. The reason I 'dress' in my happy array of colors and patterns is that I am making every effort to DRESS as the illustrations I made for my first picture book. Often times when I hold the book in front of my ensemble-costume, the kinders say in total amazement, "OH, YOU'RE THE BOOK!" The lights turn on and the dots are connected. Literally.

The most unique thank you I've ever received. Read more here.

One of the best 'follow-ups' to my school visit is when teachers direct their students to create writing as thank you cards. They are prompted to recall their favorite parts of my presentation as pencil meets paper and I'm thrilled to receive snail mail!

5. Talk about the spark for this idea, to place a signed and personalized book in the hands of each child in my class.

Last summer after my keynote in Vegas at "I Teach K" I met Heather from the Washington DC area. We built an amazing visit that included EACH of their 178 kinder-kiddos receiving my book, "Tall Giraffe." I seriously felt like Oprah, delivering each book to the new recipient. So I'd had that experience for the first time, just this fall.

While visiting in the classroom next to the Mustached Monsters, I had a student pick up your copy of "You're Wonderful" and he asked a little bit indignantly, "Why does it say 'Mr. Greg' in this book?" His question went off like an alarm. I realized that this child had never had, nor possibly seen, a *PERSONALIZED* book!?!?!?!

The really incredible thing about our visit this year? We had the luxury of time to talk and plan and debrief! I could share that observation with you. Driving together through the storm and traffic the next day? The brain-storming began! What would it take to get a PERSONALIZED copy of 'Tall Giraffe' into the hands of each of your Mustachioed Monsters? And the rest is history as they say. How I wish I could have been a fly-on-the-wall when you handed them out!
6. Is Mr. Greg your favorite?

Surely you're not asking me to pick favorites? Not a professional like you? In all honesty? It is so truly fantastic to get invited BACK to work with a school visit coordinator the 'next' time. The first time is just that: the first time. After the coordinator has had the opportunity to 'see-me-in-action' and understand what my presentations can mean to the curriculum and the day-to-day lesson plans, the next school visit just becomes that much more EPIC! I vote for EPIC whenever possible. We'll let your readers reach their own conclusions about my favorite: wink-wink.

I am grateful for each and every SHOUT OUT in social media! Every pin starts a new ripple.

I invite all Smorgasboard Readers over to my blog!
I work hard to share the excellence I observe on my school visits.

Join my 153,000 Pin Followers, Click the pic!

And now for a giveaway!!
One person will win a personalized, autographed copy of Tall Giraffe from Debbie. 5 people will win a free digital file of the song Tall Giraffe!



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