10 minute author study with desk plan to show follow-up questions.
DESK PLAN FOR AUTHOR STUDY
I have some very interesting facts to share with you today about the author of the book we are discussing today.
Born in Camden, New Jersey in 1949 and
lived in Oaklyn and Cherry Hill until the middle of sixth
grade.
Moved to Springfield, Illinois, parents
were avid readers and they gave that love of books and reading to him and to all
his brothers and sisters.
He didn’t think about being a writer at all
back then, but did love to read and is certain there's a link between reading
good books and becoming a writer. He doesn't know a single writer who wasn’t a
reader first.
His family spent summers at a cabin on a
lake in Maine. There was no TV there, no phone, no doorbell—and email wasn’t
even invented. All day there was time to swim and fish and mess around outside,
and every night, there was time to read. Those quiet summers helped him begin to
think like a writer.
During his senior year at Springfield High
School his English teacher handed back a poem in which two things were amazing
about that paper. First, he’d gotten an A—a rare event in this teacher’s class.
And she’d also written in large, scrawly red writing, “Andrew—this poem is so
funny. This should be published!”
That praise sent him off to Northwestern
University feeling like a pretty good writer, and occasionally professors there
also encouraged him and complimented the essays required to write as a
literature major.
Then a professor who taught at a nearby
college saw some of his writing and liked it enough to invite him to teach
creative writing at a series of summer high school workshops she had organized.
And that was when he learned how hard it is to be a teacher, and also how
rewarding and fun it can be.
After graduating from Northwestern he
earned a Masters of Arts in Teaching at National Louis University, and then
taught in the public schools north of Chicago for seven years—fourth grade for
two years, eighth grade English for three years, and high school English for two
years
He got married his first year of teaching,
and during my teaching years his wife had a career in professional theater in
Chicago.
School enrollments began declining in the
area and he was fired a couple of times—they called it “Reduction in Force.” he
was rehired both times, but it didn’t seem like teaching was a career he could
depend on at that time.
They moved to New York City to so that he
could develop a truly stable career as a singer-songwriter. It didn’t work out
that way, of course, but during that year-and-a-half, he did learn how to sit
and think and write things down—a discipline that’s important for every writer.
After the songwriting came his first job in
publishing. He worked for a small publisher who specialized in how-to books, the
kind of books that have photos with informative captions below each
one.
After that he was hired by Alphabet Press,
and then Picture Book Studio, then began writing picture book text.
QUESTIONS FOR FOLLOW-UP
1. What impact did Andrew Clements teacher have on his life?
2. Why do you think it took him six years to write the book Frindle?
3. Who would like to have a spot to go on vacation where they do not have a doorbell to disturb them?
I have some very interesting facts to share with you today about the author of the book we are discussing today.
Born in Camden, New Jersey in 1949 and
lived in Oaklyn and Cherry Hill until the middle of sixth
grade.
Moved to Springfield, Illinois, parents
were avid readers and they gave that love of books and reading to him and to all
his brothers and sisters.
He didn’t think about being a writer at all
back then, but did love to read and is certain there's a link between reading
good books and becoming a writer. He doesn't know a single writer who wasn’t a
reader first.
His family spent summers at a cabin on a
lake in Maine. There was no TV there, no phone, no doorbell—and email wasn’t
even invented. All day there was time to swim and fish and mess around outside,
and every night, there was time to read. Those quiet summers helped him begin to
think like a writer.
During his senior year at Springfield High
School his English teacher handed back a poem in which two things were amazing
about that paper. First, he’d gotten an A—a rare event in this teacher’s class.
And she’d also written in large, scrawly red writing, “Andrew—this poem is so
funny. This should be published!”
That praise sent him off to Northwestern
University feeling like a pretty good writer, and occasionally professors there
also encouraged him and complimented the essays required to write as a
literature major.
Then a professor who taught at a nearby
college saw some of his writing and liked it enough to invite him to teach
creative writing at a series of summer high school workshops she had organized.
And that was when he learned how hard it is to be a teacher, and also how
rewarding and fun it can be.
After graduating from Northwestern he
earned a Masters of Arts in Teaching at National Louis University, and then
taught in the public schools north of Chicago for seven years—fourth grade for
two years, eighth grade English for three years, and high school English for two
years
He got married his first year of teaching,
and during my teaching years his wife had a career in professional theater in
Chicago.
School enrollments began declining in the
area and he was fired a couple of times—they called it “Reduction in Force.” he
was rehired both times, but it didn’t seem like teaching was a career he could
depend on at that time.
They moved to New York City to so that he
could develop a truly stable career as a singer-songwriter. It didn’t work out
that way, of course, but during that year-and-a-half, he did learn how to sit
and think and write things down—a discipline that’s important for every writer.
After the songwriting came his first job in
publishing. He worked for a small publisher who specialized in how-to books, the
kind of books that have photos with informative captions below each
one.
After that he was hired by Alphabet Press,
and then Picture Book Studio, then began writing picture book text.
QUESTIONS FOR FOLLOW-UP
1. What impact did Andrew Clements teacher have on his life?
2. Why do you think it took him six years to write the book Frindle?
3. Who would like to have a spot to go on vacation where they do not have a doorbell to disturb them?