Our Skype Visit with Stephen McCranie

After 22 years of teaching, I had a FIRST on Wednesday, November 7, 2012.  My fourth grade class had their first SKYPE session with an author/illustrator.  Through Twitter, I came across Stephen McCranie and saw that he was offering to Skype with classrooms.  I set up a time with him, and the countdown began.

I bought copies of both his Mal and Chad books, checked them out from our school library, and got my students reading them.  As the kids began to read the two graphic novels, the excitement about the books built.  The readers were reading them as fast as they could so that everyone could have them done by the time we Skyped with Stephen.  Well, we reached that goal and were ready to go...

We spend a half an hour with Stephen McCranie on the morning of November 7th.  I remember the class coming in so excited for this opportunity.  It brought me such joy to know that they were this excited to meet and spend time with an author/illustrator.  Stephen started out by sharing with the class the key elements of a graphic novel, showed them how they could make their own drawings, and then created an original drawing for our class. 

I think the highlight was the opportunity Stephen gave us to ask questions of him while he finished our class drawing.  I was so impressed with the questions they asked and the care they took to ask just the right one.  There were certain students in my class that really blew me away with their questions.  One student that normally doesn't share too much, asked him "What was the motivation to create the large cat in your book."  He had such a large smile on his face when he asked.  Definitely a highlight moment for me...

Now that we have had our first Skype session, I can't wait to set up more for my students.  It brings the books, the authors, and the experience to life.  Thanks Stephen!  We still talk about that morning and are counting down the days until Belly Flop (Mal and Chad #3) comes out!!!