Mary Ann Hoberman & Alice Schertle, NCTE, NYC 2007

Two fabulous poets...

Michael Emberley and Robie Harris

NCTE, 2007

David M. Schwartz

David was in Maryland for a math presentation, and we got to visit and catch up. He gave me his newest book, Where ELSE in the Wild? It is so creative... concrete poetry and learning about animals. CHECK IT OUT!

Allotta Pallotta - Karl

It is always a special moment when you meet an icon in your profession.  As an elementary school educator, meeting and spending time with authors can heavily influence your creativity with students in the classroom.  However, when you have studied under the guidance of Dr. Deb Marciano, those encounters with the “stars of story-time” seem to happen often with a more profound effect.

As a student teacher during my last semester at The Pennsylvania State University, I was adjusting from life as a college student to the responsibilities of an elementary school teacher.  The preparation, planning, and endurance needed to survive the morning, let alone the entire day and week, was required to balance comfort and classroom effectiveness.  It also required rest.  On one particular night, though, rest was not part of the plan.

On this night, at approximately 10:30PM the phone rang, startling me awake.  It was Deb on the other end of the line stating, “Meet me at The Diner in 15 minutes.  It’s important.”  “No Deb, I’m sleeping – I’ll talk to you tomorrow.” “ No,” she replied. “Meet me in 15 minutes!”

I soon found myself on my way to meeting her downtown.  When I arrived, she was sitting with another individual.  Flying in from the New England states to work with local schools outside of State College was Jerry Pallotta – author of many non-fiction best-selling children’s informational books including fact-filled alphabet books, colorful math-related stories, and books about interesting/unusual sea-life.  He had a late flight and was able to contact his close friend, Dr. Marciano – looking for a good place to get a late-night snack – Ye Olde College Diner – home of the world famous “Grilled Stickies” on State College’s infamous College Ave.  It was the first time I met him and was only vaguely familiar with his books. 

What initially began as an aggravated reaction to an interruption of my sleep soon became a lasting discussion with a famous children’s author.  Yes, I remember being tired the next day, but the memory of meeting one of Deb’s author-friends was significant for my future students.  For the next seven years, I used his books to help support my instruction and it impacted my third graders’ learning in a positive way.  I am currently in my third year as an elementary school administrator, and like many schools, we try to give our students opportunities to meet authors of important books. I met Jerry again, last year, and he remembered meeting me with Deb long ago in State College, over those Stickies!

I cherish his book Deb gave me for graduation, signed: “K is for Karl – Happy Reading”.  I have purchased his books for my three children, too.

When our school needed a presenter for this coming year, my first suggestion was Mr. Pallotta – remembering the conversation we shared over a decade ago and the influence his non-fiction books have on learning. He will be visiting us this April, and If anything, Deb’s insistence that I meet her that night reinforced the old teacher adage of “the need to be flexible.”  Little did I realize at the time that this brief encounter would support my lifelong career as a learner, teacher, and leader.  As Mr. Pallotta may be considered an “icon” to his readers, Dr. Marciano is an “icon” to the future teachers she leads.

Karl T. Funseth, Assistant Principal   Mill Creek Elementary School    Warrington, PA 18976   kfunseth@cbsd.org

Overdue Update:

Greetings,

Much of my time this semester has been spent creating a blog of resources that my students will be able to access even after graduation. So please join the browsing, and email me with particular web sites or resources (not necessarily web related) that you love. You can send me names and addresses of places that provide free materials for teachers, virtual field trips, museums, etc.  I will post them with your name credited.

This is a great opportunity for my former students to join a community of lifelong learners, networking across states and time.   So check out Elementary Essentials for Teachers (http:elementaryessentialsforteachers.blogspot.com), and drop me a line to add your favorites!