For Teachers

Author Spotlight: Sandy Stark-McGinnis

By on March 20, 2019   /   Articles, Author Interviews, Fiction, For Librarians, For Parents, For Teachers, New Releases, Publishing & Promotion, Writing  

Full disclosure: Author Sandy Stark-McGinnis, author of the grippingly beautiful MG debut, EXTRAORDINARY BIRDS, and I share four things in common: 1. an agent (the incredible Patricia Nelson, of the Marsal Lyon Literary Agency); 2. an all-encompassing love for the iconic TV sitcom, The Golden Girls; 3. a penchant for cowboy boots (don’t judge); and, above all, 4. genuine friendship. Sandy and I “met” on Twitter last year and have been enjoying a back-and-forth flurry of messages—of support, encouragement, or just to vent—ever since. Today, I have the honor of interviewing Sandy, whose novel flies free from Bloomsbury on April 30. Enjoy!

MR: First off, Sandy, I need you to know how much I loved EXTRAORDINARY BIRDS. It gripped me from page one, and never let me go. I was also deeply moved by your main character, December—a truly remarkable heroine. Can you tell me a little about her, and what led you to tell her story?

SSM: December is a bundle of contradictions—that’s why I love her. She’s strong and knows how to survive, but is vulnerable and carries a lot of sorrow in her heart.

I had two inspirations that led me to write her story. One was students I’ve had through the years, and the other was a newspaper article that reported an incident where a mother, in a methamphetamine rage, physically attacked her young daughter. With December I wanted to explore how a child could endure an event like that. Where would she find the strength to keep going and find a better place, a place of healing?

MR: Obviously, birds are a major theme in your novel. December is obsessed with birds and flying, is fostered by a caring taxidermist named Eleanor, and keeps a journal/biography called Bird Girl: An Extraordinary Tale. What is it about the subject of birds that captures your heart and imagination?

SSM: Well, I thought birds and flight were perfect metaphors to use to explore how  December deals with her past.  And, I’ve always wanted to try and write a realistic story about a child who believes she/he can fly.

MR: Along these lines, December has an encyclopedic knowledge of birds, with facts and figures flying off every page. What kind of research did you have to do to make December’s interest in the subject authentic?

SSM: My researched focused on specific birds. December uses her knowledge of them to navigate her way through the world. So, the hard/fun part was exploring specific birds and their behaviors,  and using them to parallel December’s own interactions with people and/or situations in which she found herself.

MR: December is a foster child who has suffered extensive trauma and physical abuse in her young life. You handle this topic with great sensitivity and care. What was your approach to understanding the subject of abuse, as well as December’s mindset as a foster child? Was extensive research involved?

SSM: To get inside December’s head and heart, I focused on how she dealt with her own tragedy. I started from there and then spent a lot of time trying to find her voice and cadence, her perspective of the world based on her past experiences. Once I knew what motivated her, it was easier to capture her inner-life and how she responded to events that happened to her. When I had specific questions about foster care, I found someone who worked in the California system who generously took the time to answer any questions I had. Most of the inquiries had to do with making sure December’s experience was authentic.

MR: At school, December develops a strong friendship with Cheryllynn, a spunky transgender girl who stands up for December when she is bullied. December has never had a real friend before, and she has a hard time letting Cheryllynn into her heart. Can you tell us a bit about Cheryllynn, and her role in December’s story?

SSM: Cheryllynn is a heroine too. She, like December, is vulnerable and strong, but she’s more grounded than December. I think because she has roots—a home, a mom who is there for her—she’s able to navigate who she is and her own conflicts with honesty and a trust that December has to learn is possible.

MR: I know you’re a fifth grade teacher, as well as a mom to two young children. How do you balance work, parenting, and writing? What does your writing routine look like?

SSM: The only quiet time in my house is in the morning. I wake up at four o’clock—five o’clock on weekends—and write. I’m a morning person so it works well for me. Thirteen years as a competitive swimmer—getting up for practice before school every day of my high school years—trained me to have the discipline I needed to keep a consistent schedule.

MR: Can you tell us about your path to publication? Was it a straight shot or a long and winding road?

SSM: It was definitely long and winding. From the time I started writing Extraordinary Birds to when Patricia Nelson made an offer of representation was about five years (And in those five years, I sent out around fifty queries and revised many  times.) Then, Patricia and I took another year and a half for revision before Allison Moore at Bloomsbury made an offer.

MR: And finally, I know you’re a huge Golden Girls fan.  Who’s your favorite character, and why? Do you have a favorite episode?

SSM: Ugh. This is hard, but I think my favorite is Rose. She’s the character who always surprised me, and made me laugh the most.  And, she was a storyteller!  I don’t have a favorite episode, but anytime Rose started to tell a story about living in St. Olaf…Well, just hilarious!

MR: Thanks for chatting today, Sandy. It was a pleasure to have you on Mixed-Up Files!

SANDY STARK-McGINNIS is a debut author and award-winning poet whose work has appeared in Quercus Review, In the Grove, and Penumbra. She holds an MA in creative writing from San Francisco State University. Sandy lives with her husband and children in California, where she teaches fifth grade. You can find Sandy at her website and follow her on Twitter and Instagram. 

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Resource to celebrate Women’s History Month all year long!

By on March 8, 2019   /   Articles, For Librarians, For Parents, For Teachers  

I love discovering new resources to research the lives of amazing women throughout American history. As March is National Women’s History month, I set out to learn more about the history of the movement and ended up finding an incredible online source for research.
I uncovered the National Women’s History Museum, which for the time being does not have a physical building to visit, but offers a ton of information on their website, www.womenshistory.org

The history buff (aka nerd) in me got wide-eyed and downright giddy as I scrolled through the vast collection of historical entries, photos, and biographies. The stories abound!
I learned about how the 1913 Women’s Suffrage Parade in Washington, D.C., devised by Alice Paul, became a turning point for the women’s suffrage movement in the United States.

Photo credit: Library of Congress

The images of female athletes through the years are intriguing. The collection includes pictures of tennis great Billie Jean King, gold medalist runner Wilma Rudolph, the incredible multi-athlete Babe Didrikson and shots of young women playing sports over the years.

The Women of NASA exhibit shares the journeys of women involved in the space exploration and the race to the moon. Do you know what the National Aeronautics and Space Administration used to be called? Check it out: https://www.womenshistory.org/exhibits/women-nasa

Photo Credit: NASA/Carla Cioffi

There is even a tab for students and educators!

Near and dear to my heart is the Biographies section. I discovered the stories of Charity Adams Earley who led the first African American women unit of the army overseas during World War II. And then there is business leader Maggie L. Walker, the first female bank owner.

I also discovered that you can nominate someone to have their biography featured. I did just that, nominating Virginia Hamilton, the subject of my most recent book. Virginia was the most honored author of children’s literature, and the first African American to receive the Newbery.

So, here’s to the women of our great country, and to discovering their great stories and sharing them with young readers all throughout the year!

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Writing Tips from Writers

By on March 6, 2019   /   For Teachers, Teacher Tips  

Recently, I had the pleasure of visiting schools to do writing workshops. As a former teacher, I loved having a chance to work with students again on their writing. As an author, I had a new perspective on it.

With my life now devoted to writing, I realized certain things about teaching writing I hadn’t before. So I thought it would be interesting to hear what tips authors of books for middle grade readers had for teaching writing to middle graders. Here are their tips, as well as some of my own.

Tip 1:
Have students get all of their needed writing materials ready before beginning the writing lesson. I found that, when I have an idea, if I need to stop to locate a pen and paper, I might lose my idea. If you’ve gotten your class excited about a topic, you don’t want them to lose that momentum sharpening a pencil or locating their writing folder.

Natalie Rompella
Cookie Cutters & Sled Runners (Sky Pony Press)
The World Never Sleeps (Tilbury House)

Tip 2:
Appeal to 5 senses to expand descriptive writing. Close eyes and bring in unidentified sounds or freshly popped popcorn or something sticky.

Carolyn Armstrong
Because of Khalid (Tiger Stripe Publishing)

Tip 3:
Encourage young writers to read, read, read.  What better way to learn what good–or bad–writing is, build vocabulary and sentence structure, and identify different genres?

Marlene Brill
Picture Girl, Golden (Alley Press)
Dolores Huerta Stands Strong (University of Ohio Press)

Tip 4:
The follow up to that would be to write, write, write.  Not formal writing but journals and diaries to freely get feelings–and words–out and for students to use their words to express themselves.

Marlene Brill
Picture Girl, Golden (Alley Press)
Dolores Huerta Stands Strong (University of Ohio Press)

Tip 5:
Word swap: make a game of swapping out boring words with better ones to enhance writing.

Carolyn Armstrong
Because of Khalid (Tiger Stripe Publishing)

Tip 6:
Teach not just writing but revision. Let students know that ALL the books on shelves went through multiple revisions before they became books, so students shouldn’t judge their own work based on the books they’re reading. But instead, teachers should build in revision techniques and time for classes — even for essays — so students can see how their work slowly improves.

Samantha Clark
The Boy, The Boat, and The Beast (Paula Wiseman Books/Simon & Schuster)

Tip 7:
I always try to impress upon kids the power of revision. Just because you wrote a “first draft” doesn’t mean your piece is done. Rather, you have a starting point for revision! Now you can take your time and choose just the right words to make what you have written stronger. They are shocked to hear that some of my poems may go through 15 different revisions!

I keep a paperweight on my desk that says:
The difference between ordinary and extraordinary is that little EXTRA.
Revision gives us that EXTRA!

Eileen Meyer
The Superlative A. Lincoln (Charlesbridge, Nov. 2019 release date)
Sweet Dreams, Wild Animals (Mountain Press)

Tip 8:
Five Ws and the H will always help in any type of writing. Who are you writing for, what does your character want more than anything else, when does the story take place, where does it take place, why does this story have to be written and how does your character overcome obstacles to reach his or her goal?

Catherine Ann Velasco
Behind the Scenes of Pro Basketball and Behind the Scenes of Pro Baseball (Capstone Press)

Tip 9:
Writing success for the day can be small: even one word. It’s okay to spend a writing session on one sentence or even trying to brainstorm that one perfect word—authors do it all the time! Quality over quantity.

Natalie Rompella
Cookie Cutters & Sled Runners (Sky Pony Press)
The World Never Sleeps (Tilbury House)

Do you have a writing tip for middle grade teachers? Share in the comments section.

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