A visit from Paul Janeczko

There could not be a more perfect way to wrap up Poetry month than with a visit from a published poet. On Tuesday we were fortunate enough to have Paul Janeczko visit our school. Impressively he has written 50 books ranging from adult fiction to non-fiction, from reference books for teachers to his well known anthologies of poems for children. One of his newest books, Firefly July, was recognized with a Caldecott Honor medal. Mr. Janeczko shared the process of having the book published. It was fascinating to see the rough print of the book that the author and illustrator must then edit. I loved the story he told about how the illustrator, Melissa Sweet, found a spot in one of the illustration that was missing something, and how she added to the picture. 

The students listen enthralled as Mr. Janeczko read some poems from his collection of anthologies. It was so fun to hear background stories of the poems and listen to the expert manner he recited the poetry.