A writer inspired by nature and human nature

Archive for the ‘Education’ Category

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Write a Limerick!


SPIDER Limerick 3 BAS 2016

 Write a limerick?

Why not! I thought it would be fun to share a limerick this week and invite you to write one too. Mine is about me and a spider.

When teaching (grades 4-8), I found that starting a new school year by writing poems and sharing them was an exciting way get students hooked on writing. I must admit it—limericks are so much fun! In the classroom we learn about using some of the tools in our writer’s tool box—tools like assonance (repeating vowel sounds) and consonance (repeating consonant sounds) to create a musical message. And of course, we had Scholastic rhyming dictionaries and thesauruses close at hand. It’s always exciting to discover alternative words (synonyms) that have just the right sounds and syllables to perfect our poems.

Whether you’re a teacher, a parent or simply want to share the love of reading and writing, get the kids together and give it a try. Read on to discover what inspired me to write my spider limerick and have lots of fun writing and reading with the kids!

Click the link to find out all about it How to Write a Limerick http://www.poetry4kids.com/blog/lessons/how-to-write-a-limerick/

More about Bette’s Spider Limerick

Before I wrote this limerick, I had been watching several spiders weave their webs on the outside screens of our back porch all during the spring and summer. Spiders are fascinating creatures to watch from a safe distance. But, up close and personal they frighten me. The photo for the limerick was taken by me (safely inside the screen). Nature and my own human nature inspired me to write this one:

There once was a tall timid writer
Who spotted an intrepid spider
She jumped up and screamed
Then she suddenly beamed
“Why, I’ll write a fine book about spiders!”

~ Bette A. Stevens

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Written

on 08/13/2016

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SENSATIONAL SUMMER: A Monarch Butterfly Poem by Bette A. Stevens


Illustrations for Sensational Summer are from Bette's award-winning children's picure book, AMAZING MATILDA.

Illustrations for the poem “Sensational Summer” are from Bette’s award-winning children’s picture book, AMAZING MATILDA.

Much like a Monarch butterfly, the summer is quickly flying past us here at The Farmstead in Central Maine. In fact, it won’t be long before these amazing butterflies begin their great southern migration to Mexico, where they’ll aggregate (cluster in dense tree cover) to keep warm, enabling this generation of monarchs to winter over before they mate and begin the next generation’s migration north for the 2017 season.  Matilda (a Monarch butterfly and the main character in my picture book AMAZING MATILDA) and I wish you and yours a sensational summer! ~ Bette A. Stevens, Maine author/illustrator 

We invite you to take a look inside AMAZING MATILDA, A Monarch’s Tale and check out other books by Bette A. Stevens

AM HighResolution BW Border

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Written

on 07/31/2016

Amazing Matilda


Another AMAZING 5✰ REVIEW for MATILDA! ~ Bette A. Stevens, Maine author/illustrator http://www.4writersandreaders.com

Category:

AMAZING MATILDA by Bette A. Stevens, Children's Literature, Children's Picture Book, Education, Fiction, Maine Author, My Books, Nature, Reading with Children

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HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY!


MOTHERS DAY 2016 Butterfly basWishing everyone a Happy & Blessed Mother’s Day.
~Bette A. Stevens, Maine author/illustrator

Author Bio

Inspired by nature and human nature, author Bette A. Stevens is a retired elementary and middle school teacher, a wife, mother of two and grandmother of five. Stevens lives in Central Maine with her husband on their 37-acre farmstead where she enjoys reading, writing, gardening, walking and reveling in the beauty of nature. She advocates for children and families, for childhood literacy and for the conservation of monarch butterflies (milkweed is the only plant that monarch caterpillars will eat).

Stevens’s children’s book, THE TANGRAM ZOO and WORD PUZZLES TOO! was first published in 1997 by Windswept House Publishing, Mt. Desert, ME; a second edition was self-published by the author in 2012.  AMAZING MATILDA , Stevens’s second children’s book, self-published in 2012 won a 2013 Purple Dragonfly Book Award (Honorable Mention for Excellence in Children’s Literature – Ages 6 and older category) and also placed #9 on The 2013 Gittle List for Self-published Children’s Picture Books. Stevens has written articles for ECHOES, The Northern Maine Journal of Rural Culture based in Caribou, Maine. In 2013, the author published her first book for the YA/Adult audience: PURE TRASH, a short story of a boy growing up in rural New England in a family whose poverty and alcoholism mark him as a target for bullying by young and old alike. This short story is a prequel to Stevens’s début novel DOG BONE SOUP released January 2015.

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Written

on 05/07/2016

Reading to Big Kids..Don’t Stop, Be Readin’…Hold on to that Feelin’


IMG_4052May is NATIONAL GET CAUGHT READING MONTH—perfect time to discover and share why reading aloud with kids of all ages is so important! ~ Bette A. Stevens, Maine author/illustrator http://www.4writersandreaders.com

Michelle R. Eastman's avatarMichelle Eastman Books

I posted this piece a while back…

With my son’s 4th grade year coming to an end, I find this information more timely than ever.

DSC_9435

I love picture books, and I often write about them.  In my post, Top 10 Reasons Picture Books Rock, I touch upon the importance of continuing to read aloud to your child even AFTER he/she is able to read independently. Please note that although children may be ready for early readers and chapter books, I implore parents to continue reading picture books with/to your children. There is no better way to connect at the end of a hectic day than to get lost in a picture book together. This ritual is one you can continue well into their teen years (yes, really, I promise). A child should not be denied this sacred time with you, just because he has “grown up”. Reading and/or…

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Articles of Interest, Education, Inspirational, Parenting, Reading with Children

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Some Impressions of Our Planet Video…


LOOKING FOR A LITTLE INSPIRATION?
Inspired by the wonder of it all… ~ Bette A. Stevens, Maine author/illustrator http://www.4writersandreaders.com

Chris The Story Reading Ape's avatarChris The Story Reading Ape's Blog

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Written

on 04/25/2016

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Award-winning Monarch Butterfly Book only 99¢ thru April 26th—AMAZING MATILDA by Bette A. Stevens


Celebrate Earth Month 

April is Earth Month. It’s a perfect time to celebrate with a copy of AMAZING MATILDA by Maine author/illustrator Bette A. Stevens’s award-winning children’s picture book for ONLY 99¢ through APRIL 26. Download this “Gem of a tale” at YOUR AMAZON today http://www.amazon.com/Amazing-Matilda-ebook/dp/B00AU9ZISA/

AM EARTH MONTH 2 promo 99¢ Apr 20-26Words from a reviewer

“I immediately fell in love with Matilda, an amazing, sweet, curious character. What a lovely story with a subtle and yet deep and understandable message for young (and those who are not so young ) readers. This book is one of “must have” books in your library. I already purchased a Kindle version for myself and I ordered two more copies in print for my library.” ~ Vida Zuljevic

Already have your copy?

Matilda says “It would be great if you would share this post with your friends so that kids everywhere can find out about the life lessons my book has in store for readers ages 5-11. Kids will learn important lessons about the value of patience, persistence and friendship as they read Matilda’s amazing adventure again and again. Grownups love Matilda too!”

MATILDA for New Cover 2015About Monarch Butterflies

Monarch Butterfly conservation is in the news. AMAZING MATILDA is too! Her story line and illustrations follow the monarch life cycle and highlight milkweed, an environmentally threatened plant and a critical food source for monarch caterpillars.

ABOUT THE BOOK

Matilda doesn’t want to leap onto ledges or bound across fields. She only wants to fly. “How can a creature without wings every hope to fly?” Matilda’s friends wonder as they laugh at the tiny caterpillar who only wants to fly. Meanwhile, as Matilda munches and crunches on milkweed leaves and progresses from egg to butterfly, her friends begin to recall how they felt before they were able to do all of the things they had dreamed of doing. With a little help from her friends, Matilda learns that if she keeps trying, she can do anything that she really wants to do.

LITERARY AWARDS—Excellence in Children’s Literature:

  • 2013 Purple Dragonfly Book Award (Picture Books 6+)
  • THE GITTLE LIST 2013 (Top 10 Self-published Children’s Picture Books)

AMAZING MATILDA, A Monarch’s Tale by Bette A. Stevens is available in print ($9.49) and eBook ($3.99) versions
Grab a copy of the eBook (Don’t forget to tell your friends) and Celebrate Earth Day with the kids while this award-winning picture book is ONLY 99 CENTS April 20-26 at Amazon.com http://www.amazon.com/Amazing-Matilda-ebook/dp/B00AU9ZISA…

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Inspired by human nature, author Bette A. Stevens is a retired elementary and middle  school teacher, a wife, mother of two and grandmother of five. Stevens lives in Central Maine with her husband on their 37-acre farmstead where she enjoys reading, writing, gardening, walking and reveling in the beauty of nature. She advocates for children and families, for childhood literacy and for the conservation of monarch butterflies-an endangered species (and milkweed, the only plant that monarch caterpillars will eat). Stevens is the author of AMAZING MATILDA, an award-winning picture book; The Tangram Zoo and Word Puzzles Too!, a home/school resource  incorporating hands-on math and writing; and PURE TRASH, the short story prequel to her début novel, DOG BONE SOUP, a captivating Boomer’s coming of age novel.

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Written

on 04/24/2016

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National Get Caught Reading Month


IMG_4052Reading with children is a great investment in their future and the world’s! ~ Bette A. Stevens, Maine author/illustrator http://www.4writersandreaders.com

Written

on 04/22/2016

Encourage a Young Writer Day


#EncourageAYoungWriterDay every day! ~ Bette Stevens, Maine author/illustrator http://www.4writersandreaders.com

Annette Rochelle Aben's avatarAnnette Rochelle Aben

EAYWD

It has been said, that on every April 10th, we celebrate National Encourage a Young Writer Day, funny thing is, I’ve been unable to track down the origins of this auspicious day. Oh sure I found celebrations dating back to 2013, 2014 and 2015, yet nothing to indicate who started this tradition So guess what? This gives us the opportunity to initiate a tradition of our own right here and now!

It IS up to us to encourage young writers and not just for a day but each and every day.  Young writers have an illustrious history of contributing to our literary world. After all, Anne Frank was a mere 13 years old when she penned her poignant diary, giving us a glimpse into a world many of us, thank goodness, would never experience.  And Stephen King, it is reported, sold his first story for the…

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Children's Activities, Children's Literature, Education, Inspirational, Literacy, Reading with Children, The Classics, Writing, Writing Challenges, Writing Tips

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A Letter to Fourth Grade Fans


Dear Mrs. Glynn & Fourth Grade Students,

How exciting it was to check my mailbox last week and find all of your wonderful Thank You Letters. They really made my day. Your notes and illustrations are fantastic. There is nothing that makes an author happier than hearing from her fans. I’m so glad that you enjoyed AMAZING MATILDA. I definitely enjoyed meeting all of you, reading my book and having a book talk. You had so many great questions to ask me about writing and you offered excellent insights into the book’s messages.

I took a picture of your letters and thought you’d like to see it. So, here it is!

MATILDAonAMAZON_20131106_99

Letters from fourth grade fans in Hartland, Maine. ~ Photo by Bette A. Stevens, Maine author/illustrator

I keep a file called MY SMILE FILE and all of your amazing letters waiting for me there. That way, on gloomy days when I need a smile, I can read your letters and think of ALL OF YOU—Mrs. Gynn and her amazing fourth grade students!

I included both of my children’s books in the photo. You’ll find copies in your school library. Yes, I will be back to read to you again. My favorite genre is historical fiction. Nature and human nature (people) are the things that inspire me to write my books. I’ll be posting this letter on my web/blog http://www.4writersandreaders.com

Happy reading, writing and all of those other amazing things that you all do,

Bette A. Stevens, MAINE AUTHOR ILLUSTRATOR

Inspired by nature BAS Dec 2015

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Written

on 03/31/2016

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