What Happens at the Campground...

...becomes rich story material for Maine author Tamra Wight's Cooper and Packrat series. 

Today marks the release of Mystery of the Bear Cub, Book 4 in the series.

The ecological mystery-adventure series, published by Islandport Press and illustrated by Carl DiRocco, features Cooper Wilder and his family who own Wilder Family Campground. In each book, Cooper's campground responsibilities or his love for exploration and geocaching lead him to a moral conflict wrapped up in a mystery to be solved. In Mystery at Pine Lake (Book 1), the friends are on a mission to identify the person responsible for harming the loons' nest on the lake. Cooper and his friends find evidence of poaching in Mystery of the Eagle's Nest (Book 2). Mystery of the Missing Fox (Book 3) has the growing group--alert to trapping--coming to the rescue of the stolen fox kit.

In writing the Cooper and Packrat series, Tamra draws on the experiences of her family-owned campground, Poland Spring Campground. Her own wonders and curiosities about the wildlife in her backyard and the campers who visit the campground provide her with plenty of realistic inspiration to write her fictional stories.

Life at the Wilder Family Campground becomes a real mess in Book 4 when the town makes a shift towards recycling more waste at Cooper's recommendation. Cooper's inspired and eco-friendly idea comes with unanticipated challenges for the campground and other small businesses in the area. Before long, someone is dumping trash illegally in the area around the campground and trouble arises with foraging bears. Cooper's sense of responsibility to solve this problem kicks into high-gear, and he and his friends resolve to make things right: for the town, for the campground, and for the bears.

For my readers and me, "Wilder Family Campground" is a particularly familiar setting. Last year, when our summer program featured academic programming to support the part of the curriculum about state history, we read Mystery of the Eagle's Nest. In a truly special and unique arrangement, Tamra hosted our group for an author visit at Poland Spring Campground down the road (literally) from where we read and grow and learn every day. Tamra took time away from writing and serving campers to treat our readers to a tour of the campground, and in an instant, the Cooper and Packrat books came to life. We hiked the trails of the campground, looked out at the campground's own eagle's nest (and strained to try to see evidence of eaglets), and heard Tamra present about writing, wildlife photography, and the research involved in writing the series. The students settled in for lunch in the fire ring and a read aloud with the author herself. The experience of stepping inside the setting of a series the students love is one they still talk about and has made them eager to continue reading.

There is a spot in our classroom library ready and waiting for my copy of Mystery of the Bear Cub, but I know it will likely be empty a while longer because my readers will be anxious to get their hands on this next adventure. And with big ideas and tough questions for them to grapple with alongside Cooper and Packrat, I'm anxious for them to read on, too.

I'm anxious for you to meet Cooper and Packrat and read Mystery of the Bear Cub, also, so I'm giving away a signed copy of one of Tamra Wight's Cooper and Packrat books. To win, comment on this post and include the title of the book you would most like to have and an email/Twitter handle where I can contact you. I will randomly select a winner the day before Tamra's book launch event on October 18 and will have your book signed to whomever you choose. Happy Reading!

Author Visit: Elly Swartz

I had the great fortune of hosting author Elly Swartz at my school last week.

Finding Perfect was our class read aloud through the winter months, and my fifth graders responded strongly to Elly's characters and their stories. They were curious and interested in Molly's anxiety and exhibited a genuine desire to understand her internal conflict, even if different from their own struggles. The students were tickled to hear that Elly would be visiting to talk with them about a book they had grown to love.

Over the last year or so, I have also been lucky to have several conversations with Elly related to writing process and identity. Familiar with Elly's transparency and candor while being relentlessly inspiring and encouraging in her conversations about writing, I knew the students' writing lives would be enriched by the opportunity to talk with her personally.

The result was a completely full and especially joyful day for all readers and writers involved.

While visiting Oxford Elementary, Elly addressed my two fifth grade classes separately and presented a large group session with the three sixth grade classes combined. With each group, she invited any and all student questions, addressing everything from what happened to characters beyond the last page to writing quirks that are part of her process. Students' faces radiated with engagement. The dynamic was instantly comfortable, and my students could easily read that Elly was genuine in her interest and respect for what they had to say.

A look over one student's shoulder during
the Unfolding Identity Project.

Elly shared the Unfolding Identity Project with readers as part of her presentations. In keeping with the themes of Finding Perfect, Elly encouraged the students to look at the many layers of their identity and to consider what lies below the surface of those around them, too. As a teacher, I enjoyed listening to the students support one another in generating descriptors for themselves. There were so many opportunities for affirmation embedded in this activity.

Finding space for celebration as a more frequent part of the writing journey has become a specific focus for me and my writing workshop and was a direct outcome of my conversations with Elly. All year long, I have embedded more opportunities to scaffold students in recognizing smaller successes in our writing processes. During her time with my students, Elly followed up on this big idea of celebration, asking students to share one celebration about themselves as a writer so far this year, and every student shared a celebration.

Elly Swartz gave my students an up-close and personal experience in her visit to Oxford Elementary. The students loved everything about Elly's visit: the stories she shared about her personal writing journey, the picture book she brought that she had loved reading with her own children, the "secrets" about revising Finding Perfect and allusions to her forthcoming book, Smart Cookie (Scholastic, 2018). But also, they loved Elly--a writer among writers, a reader among readers. Through her authentic conversation about reading and writing and the care she showed for my students on this one day, Elly became part of our literacy community.

Celebrating This Week

Ruth Ayres has started a movement to encourage us to find celebrations in our lives, and each Saturday she hosts a blog listing where you can read her celebrations and the celebrations of others. Thanks, Ruth, for nudging us all to pause for celebrating in the midst of our regular hurried-ness.

1. Successful Book Conversations

This week I noticed marked change when meeting with two of my literature groups. After weeks of wondering what it would take for students to launch, they have turned the corner to successful, engaging, student-led discussions. Their enthusiasm for their texts (Saving Zasha by Randi Barrow and Number the Stars by Lois Lowry) created passionate conversations. I delighted at listening in as they shared opinions and interpretations with vibrant animation. I even found enjoyment in their confusions as they constructively puzzled through together. It's a true celebration to watch their progress and to shower them with compliments about how hard they are working.

2. Student Kindness

Any day can become a trying day in my classroom with the flip of a switch. Many children have social struggles, and it is difficult to predict or anticipate what might instigate a volatile reaction. Today I celebrate the outreach I saw from three girls in my classroom as they took a healthy risk by reaching out in friendship to another girl who is known to be difficult. They were friendly, inviting, and patient with her. And it was touching to see her respond to their acts of kindness. While it's unfamiliar territory for her, she is navigating new friendships well. I'm hopeful that this "tolerance bug" might grow to be more widespread.

3. Enthusiasm About Writing, pt. 1

The students are abuzz about their side writing project, and I won't complain. I suggested to the students that we have a family gathering before going away on winter break, and that it would be a good idea to share writing with our families. The students agreed to selecting a piece of writing from their notebooks to bring to publication for our "Cookies & Cocoa" celebration. I'm most moved by the boy who came back to school the next day to assure me he had talked to his mom & dad about being late for wrestling practice because he really wants to come to the celebration.

4. Enthusiasm About Writing, pt. 2

I have done more writing this week than I expected I would. Thanks to #nerdlution, I've posted four new blog posts. I wrote in my notebook daily and actually have a running list of ideas I want to get to the next time I'm just stuck. I have started more than one writing project this week. And, I guess I'm getting a little braver about sharing my writing, too.

5. Courage

For what exactly I'm not ready to share, but I've been overtaken by an alternate persona who seems to believe that sometimes it's better to act quickly on an idea before your fearful self can talk you out of it. It is very out of character for me--I tend to overanalyze, and I like to assure that my i's are dotted and my t's are crossed to assure success before I leap. It's not like me at all to operate with confidence and a risk-taking spirit, but I think maybe I might grow to like this "me." Or, at least I'll let her come out and play a little more often.