From the time I was a student myself, and through the twenty five years my children have attended school, I’ve always admired teachers and librarians. Working as an Ed Tech these last five years has only made me love them more. They put so much of themselves into their classrooms, their lesson plans and their relationships with students and peers. They quite often work late, and go into their classrooms on the weekends because it’s quieter then and they can accomplish more. They chaperon dances because their students ask them to. Teachers and librarians wipe tears, advise on friendships and counsel on “dating”. They create a writing club, coding club, guitar club, or sewing club, and give up their lunch time to oversee it . . . all because there seems to be an interest.
Me on the left and my best friend Holly, in sewing club.
Me on the left and Holly, learning to sew.
Sometimes, it’s the little things that impress me most, how they’ll personally buy books, paper, staples, or pencils for their room, because the budget has been frozen. And no, pencils aren’t expensive. Unless you go through 5 packs of 50 every three days.
More than anything, my author self enjoys meeting educators on their own turf, in their element, within their classrooms and libraries. I learn something new every time. Get inspired every time. Make new friends every time. And I always hope to give back something, too. Every time.
But alas, the duties of my campground and my own teaching job, keep me from getting out into the educational world as much as I’d like. Even finding time to connect on Facebook and Twitter can be challenging, especially if I want to get some writing done! I’m blessed to teach in a district which encourages me accept a few school visit invitations each year, and I take advantage of that. But I also don’t want to be away from my own students too often. They may be middle-schoolers, and they don’t often show it outright, but they miss me when I’m away.
Truth be told, I miss them, too.
So, I’m constantly searching for new and fun ways to connect with my readers and to support the educators who support them, without having to leave the classroom too often. And if I can include my own students and school in the process, it’s a win-win!
Recently, when Shannon introduced a book trailer project to our students, and we realized how much fun they were having with it, we had an ah-ha moment. What if we created a contest using book trailers? What if we tied it into the release of Cooper and Packrat’s third adventure? What if our students were judges?
And what if, knowing how valuable books are to educators, the winning classroom received a set of 15 copies of Mystery of the Missing Fox?
I’ve created a special page for Cooper and Packrat’s Book Trailer Contest – so we could keep all comments and FAQ in one place. Islandport Press, Shannon, and I hope you’ll enter for a chance to win a classroom set of Mystery of the Missing Fox.
We can’t wait to see what you come up with.