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Dana Meachen Rau worked as a children’s book editor for a number of years before launching into her writing career. Since then, she has written more than 200 books for children. Her books have include picture books, early readers, nonfiction, and biographies for preK to middle school.
Selected Works:
Corn Aplenty (2000, Step Into Reading, Random House Children's Books)
Rocks and Minerals (2009, Cherry Lake Publishing)
Ace Your Creative Writing Project (2009, Enslow Elementary)
Bookworms Series (Marshall Cavendish, Benchmark)
Look for Ladybugs (2006, Scholastic/Children's Press)
Spring Out
Excellent Product Award Winner, iParenting Media, 2006
The Amazing Body: The Five Senses
Finalist, Association of Educational Publishers Distinguished Achievement Awards, 2005
What’s Inside Me?
Best Books of 2005, Science Books & Films Magazine, 2005
Our Solar System Series
Teacher’s Choice Award for Children’s Books, Learning Magazine, 2004
A Star in My Orange
Top 10 Sci-Tech Books of the Year, Booklist, 2002
A Box Can Be Many Things
Children’s Choice, International Reading Association and the Children’s Book Council, 1998
Program Info
Program Descriptions:
Here are some of the programs I have developed for young readers. Suggested times and grades are listed for each, but these can be customized to fit your needs.
For all Primary Grades:
AN AUTHOR’S BACKPACK
In this presentation, we will discuss the “invisible backpack” an author wears her whole life. This backpack is a place to collect creative sparks—the experiences, characters, and ideas that we can transform into stories! Using fiction and nonfiction examples, we’ll talk about the collection process and how to make seemingly random ideas into words readers can enjoy. The books we’ll discuss include A Box Can Be Many Things and A Star in My Orange for younger children, and Rubber Duck and Black Holes for older children.
ALL AROUND EARTH
In this more science-based presentation, we’ll learn more about our home planet as we talk about how an author is like a scientist, using the power of observation to learn more about the world. Using some of my nonfiction books about Earth, we’ll discover Earth is full of circles and cycles. And we’ll learn how Earth reuses its resources, and so should we!
For PreK to Grade 1:
IDEAS APLENTY
With my latest early reader for preschoolers, Corn Aplenty, we will celebrate corn! We will talk about how I turned an idea into a story and touch on the concepts of patterning, sequencing, and comparison. And we will discuss things that grow—not only corn, but friendship, too!
LOOK FOR LADYBUGS!
Using my early reader Look for Ladybugs and my nonfiction book Crawl, Ladybug, Crawl, we will talk together about the difference between fiction and nonfiction. I will discuss how an author works, by taking real facts and making them into a story. Look for Ladybugs also includes many Boehm concepts that the children are learning at this age. We will “play” with ladybugs and practice these directional concepts.
PATTERNS AND SHAPES IN NATURE
My nonfiction picture book A Star in My Orange and my series The Shape of the World introduce children to the power of observation and looking for shapes around them. This presentation touches on science topics and the mathematical concept of sorting based on attributes. We will discuss how the world is made of shapes, and create a picture from shapes ourselves.
For Grades 2 to 5:
RESEARCH, REWRITING, and REWARDS
This program will focus on the process from idea to finished bound book. We will discuss the role of the author, especially in regard to nonfiction, and the challenge of making true topics read like stories. This will include getting ideas, research techniques, development of plot, and the important task of rewriting. Then we will cover the roles of other hands in the process, including the illustrator, editor, designer, and printer.
Program Pricing:
My fee for school visits within Connecticut is $700 a day, which includes four presentations. (Please add travel expenses if the school is more than 50 miles from my home.) Library and nature center visits are $250 for an hour-long session, which includes a craft activity. (Please add travel expenses if school or library is more than 50 miles from my home.) Both types of visits can also include a book signing.
Special Features:
My presentations involve engaging the children in dialogue and pulling out their ideas in relation to the topic being discussed. I work best in a classroom with one to two classes (max of about 50 kids). I find that in this smaller setting, children can better see my books and other “props” I bring. However, I can certainly accommodate larger audiences as well.
Audience Levels:
Preschool; Lower Elementary; Upper Elementary
Contact Info
Contact Email:
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Home City:
Burlington
Home State:
Connecticut
Contact Phone:
(860) 673-9287
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