This Thanksgiving season, I am thankful for opportunities to learn and to celebrate that learning with friends. One of my highlights of the year is the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) annual conference. Last year, due to health issues, I wasn't able to attend. So, I was even more excited to attend. Given that craziness of the past several months, I was hoping I could truly enjoy the time. It didn't take long, just a couple of conversations with friends over meals to begin to unwind. I love that learning happens at meals and not just at the formal sessions. it is especially nice that I never have to apologize for being enthusiastic about reading and writing and teaching.
This year, the conference was in St. Louis, Missouri.
I loved the signs at the airport and on the street welcoming us to St. Louis!
I am terrible at taking photos throughout the weekend and was lucky to get one selfie with my NCTE roommate, Jen Vincent (Teach Mentor Text). I wish we had more time to spend together but I always look forward to seeing her.
On Friday morning, I ran into Mindi Rench at the Penguin Random House Literacy Breakfast. I hadn't seen Mindi in a few years so getting to hang out with her made the morning even more special.
Throughout the course of the day, I ran into so many friends at the exhibit hall or at sessions. I need to figure out how to balance attending sessions and spending some quality time with friends.
Another highlight of Friday was a panel on nonfiction writing that I was fortunate to be able to moderate. Melissa Stewart, Deb Heiligman, and Candace Fleming engaged in a lively discussion about crafting nonfiction. I keep thinking about what they shared and the tips that they provided. I am looking forward to sharing them with teachers when I get back after Thanksgiving break.
Saturday morning began with a fabulous keynote given by author Jacqueline Woodson and then with an impromptu meet up at the Exhibit Hall with Michele Knott (educator and co-host for the #Road2Reading Challenge) and several nonfiction authors (Jen Swanson, Nancy Castaldo, and Heather Lang).
Left to right: Jen Swanson, Michele Knott, Nancy Castaldo, me, and Heather Lang
Another annual tradition is to attend the Children's Book Award Luncheon.
I love that we get to hear the winners of the Orbis Pictus Award and the Charlotte Huck Award speak, meet authors, and catch up with friends. The luncheon closes with the announcement of the new award winners.
Sunday is the final day of the conference and this year was super busy for me. I was moderating 3 panels. The morning kicked off with a panel on building classroom empathy through the books we share. Despite the early start time, the authors on the panel (Melanie, Erin, Josh, and Olugbemisola) came with lots of energy and ideas to share with teachers.
Front L to R: Melanie Conklin, Erin Entrada Kelly, Josh Funk, Back L to R: me, Olugbemisola Rhuday-Perkovich
In the middle of the morning, Barb, Cynthia and Christine engaged in a dynamic conversation about nonfiction reading and writing with a small audience of attendees. Sunday sessions can be difficult since people start leaving throughout the day. Despite our small group, I felt like I learned so much from everyone who was present and shared ideas.
From L to R: Me, Christine Taylor Butler, Cynthia Levinson, and Barb Rosenstock
My final session on Sunday was spent with 5 nonfiction authors (Sarah, Alex, Loree, Laurie, and Joan) who enthusiastically shared about their strategies and techniques for writing nonfiction and providing teachers with ideas to use in their classroom. I was so thankful that people were still around to attend. Thanks to the presenters before us, our session may have included Blood Mary shots.
From Left to Right: Me, Laurie Ann Thompson, Ammi-Joan Pacquette, Loree Griffin Burns, Alexandra Siy, and Sarah Albee
I can't believe that it has been nearly a week since NCTE '17, missing everyone, and looking forward to NCTE '18 in Houston, Texas. I am thankful the publishers who sponsored the authors that participated on the panels and for the dinner invitations to get to know and interact with some amazing authors and other participants in a smaller setting. I was also thankful to spend some time with Cynthia Alaniz, Lisa Morris-Wilkey, Kellee Moye, Cathy Blacker, Jennie Motes Smith, Glenda Funk, Michelle Hasseltine, and more. Unfortunately, there were too many folks that I missed seeing. Hopefully next year, but until then, I am thankful for social media as a way of connecting.