NIU Children's Literature Conference

On March 11th I attended the Children’s Literature Conference at Northern Illinois University, and the theme of this year’s conference fit in perfectly with this class. The conference was titled Literature 3.1: The Book and Beyond, and the focus was on integrating books and technology.

The first speaker of the day was Laurie Halse Anderson, who was absolutely captivating and did an amazing job of engaging with the audience. She discussed using technology to extend the story and build relationships among reading communities. She manages and updates her own website, www.madwomanintheforest.com, which she uses as a platform to engage with and further educate her readers. There is a tab on the website titled “Blog and Media” where readers can follow and comment on her blog, post on a discussion board, watch videos and interviews Anderson has posted herself, or access videos readers have made for her books. She gives readers the option to follow her on Facebook, Twitter, and You Tube, and also provides an RSS feed where they can get updates of any new posts. Anderson will also do Skype sessions with classrooms and libraries, allowing students to speak with her personally about her books.

Anderson seemed like she truly cared about utilizing technology to stay connected with her readers, and she expressed that while she doesn’t consider herself on top of technology, she does make an effort to stay current with new media trends. Because of this, she provides a way for teachers, librarians, and readers to extend the learning experience, and use media and technology to dive deeper into the books they are reading. If I were teaching or doing a book discussion on one of Anderson’s books, I would start at her website so that readers could learn more about the background of the author. Through her site you can see that she is very down to earth and open with her readers, as she talks about and shares pictures of her new cabin, her dogs, and her family. She provides a biography of her life, and even talks about her writing process and how she does research for her books. Looking at these resources would help readers to get to know the author better, and would give them a jumping off point for reading her books. Also, prior to reading the book, I might show some of the book trailers readers have created for the book we are reading. My next stop would be the individual page for the book we are reading on her website. Each page includes many resources that would be so helpful to teachers and librarians. For instance, the page for Forge (which is an awesome book!) includes a summary of the book, reviews and awards, a hypothetical music playlist she has created for the book, links to documents and articles that provide background and history on the topic of the book, a bibliography of her research in writing the book, and a teacher section, which includes a teaching guide, vocabulary, and activities to do with the book. After the book has been read, I might have students use digital publishing tools to create their own book trailers or booktalks for the book we are reading. (Or I can have them create a comic for it as we have been doing in class : ) ) I would definitely contact Anderson (she provides her contact information on the site), and try to set up a skype interview to follow up the reading of the book.

The last two speakers of the day were Mac Barnett and Jon Scieszka. They spoke together, as Barnett has joined Scieszka in his Guys Read venture, and they were hilarious presenting as a duo. Both authors were very fitting for the theme of the conference, with them both using media and technology to allow readers to further interact with what they are reading. Mac Barnett has done some really neat things with his books, creating challenges and tasks to push reader’s imaginations. In his book The Clock Without a Face the twelve numbered jewels of a clock tower have gone missing, and readers must use the clues in the book to find them. However, Barnett really buried these clock numbers around the country, and the clues in the book lead readers to real places where they can go to dig up the numbers. He said that readers really have gotten into it, and that all of the numbers have been found with the exception of number 12 : ). Another book of his, Billy Twitters and his Blue Whale Problem, has a secret hidden behind the dust jacket of the book. Beneath it, readers are given an address where they can write in for their very own blue whale. When readers write in, they are sent a letter from a mock lawyer saying that their whale was on the way, but is being held in a bay by a conservation group, and that lawyers are hard at work to clear up the matter. With the letter they are sent a photo of their whale, as well as its name and a phone number where the whale can be reached. When readers call their whale, they reach a voicemail with whale noises, and are then able to leave their whale a message. Barnett shared several letters readers sent in to request a whale, as well as the voicemails they left for them (they make your heart melt… ). I thought this was so awesome. It is allowing kids to become a part of what they are reading, and encourages them to use their creativity and imagination.

Together Scieszka and Barnett are starting their own kids series called Spaceheadz. In the series several aliens have taken the form of students, and need the help of a real kid to save the earth from destruction. Scieszka and Barnett have really taken advantage of media and technology with this series, with the Spaceheadz having their own website and the characters having their own facebook pages, twitter accounts kids can follow, and you tube videos. The authors use these media tools to make the book interactive, and get kids “doing and creating” as they are reading. Both authors are very big on integrating media and technology tools into reading, and feel like it is a way to really engage those resistant readers who might not otherwise pick up a book.