Patricia Polacco Visits TVS!
November 1, 2017
Patricia Polacco - Her Life
- Her family immigrated to the United States from Russia, the Ukraine, and Ireland.
- She and her "rotten red-headed older brother" grew up listening to their grandparents tell family stories.
- She has dyslexia and didn't learn to read until she was 14.
- Her artistic abilities have always amazed people, even when she was young.
Click here to find out more great information about Patricia Polacco's life.
Patricia Polacco - Author and Illustrator
She is called the "Queen of Personal Narrative" because her stories come from her own life, from the lives of her family, or from the lives of friends and individuals she knows.
Some of the things she shared with us during her presentations:
"I'm always working 5 books ahead of what you see."
"I get my inspiration from watching and observing everything around me. Inspiration comes from being fascinated by everything around you."
"I became a storyteller because I grew up listening to stories NOT watching them. Our family didn't have a tv. Be the kind of kid of who takes REAL adventures - not the ones that keep you stuck to a screen."
"I could make the picture in my head, which is how I learned to draw. Then I put the pictures together with the story and that's how I started writing books."
Click here to learn more about Patricia Polacco as an author and illustrator.
Her First Book - Meteor
The family still has the meteorite as the headstone at her grandparents' burial site.
Not only did she share the legend of this meteor with us, but after explaining the rules for wishing on this piece of falling star, she let students touch a piece of the actual meteorite that she travels with and make their own wishes.
Here are some of the things she shared with us before we touched the meteor:
"Wishes spread out from you to other people. You MUST be unselfish to make wishes on the meteorite."
"You were born with the power to change other people by the way you treat them, not just by the wishes you make."
Click here to learn more about her first book and to hear about the legend of the meteor.
Telling Family Stories
A couple of the stories she has created from her life stories:
Thank You, Mr. Falker, a book about the teacher who helped her learn how to read and how to navigate the world with dyslexia.
Chicken Sunday, a book about the Washington family, her closest childhood friends growing up in Oakland, California.
A couple of the stories she has created from her family stories:
The Keeping Quilt, a story based on a quilt in Patricia's family that has been passed from generation to generation.
Pink and Say, based on the experience of her great-great-grandfather during the Civil War. What a wonderful experience it was to hear her read this powerful story to our 4th & 5th graders!
Click here for more about family stories she has turned into books.
Our Very Own Art Piece!
She drew it in black and white so that copies could be made and distributed to all of our students and they could color their own if they wanted.
What a privilege it was to have her visit our students!
The TVS Lower School Library
Welcome to The Kingdom of Books!
Where Reading Rules and Readers Reign!
Kirsten Murphy, LS Head Librarian
Karen Hebert, LS Assistant Librarian
Email: murphyk@trinityvalleyschool.org
Website: www.tvslibrary.com
Phone: 817-321-0100
Twitter: @thequest4books