Tips, in general:

1) Model reading. Let them see that it’s part of your day.

2) Stop and read a line out loud. Pick a line that isn’t inappropriate, of course, and read it to them because you love the sound or the image, or because you think it’s smart or timely, and discuss it.

3) Read aloud to your child even when he/she is too old for it. This is crucial. It helps you talk about the world through books – which is easier sometimes on hard topics than talking about your do-wrong cousin, for example. Also, words love to be said out loud. It will develop your child’s writerly ear.

4) Build that reading/writing community as I said above – book groups, book swaps, writing groups, read alouds, storytelling .... This way reading and writing aren’t solitary.

5) Have books in your house – on loan from the library or buying the ones you love most – and have a place where those books roost and a place where your child can wallow in them.

6) Make sure your child has a journal – it’s a grand tradition for both genders. Writing in journals gives you an unfair advantage in life – take it!

7) Encourage your child to keep a reading journal as part of the journal so that they can reflect on what they’ve read and define their likes and dislikes, and, in general, become a more critically minded and discerning reader.

There’s more, of course, and I’ll be adding to this page, so revisit it in the future ... To send on your questions, click here.

For more on how to get N.E. Bode into YOUR CHILD’S CLASSROOM, click here.

For writing exercises, click here.

For how-to host an Anybody Party with fun games, click here.

For Anybody goodies, click here.

To get an inscribed book plate for your child's copies of The Anybodies and The Nobodies, click here.

Other websites of interest:

guysread.com

clubophelia.com

sharoncreech.com

adrianfogelin.com

AWARDS

for a few
of our favorite schools...

Most Amazingly Inventive EVER! Hardee Junior High a school-wide read with hallways that made the book come alive, including a cricket attack! (Fearless leader: Louise Jones)

Biggest Brightest Audience

Rampello Project (Fearless leader: Carol Hogue)

Most Gracious (and what a talent show!)

Dowdell Middle School (Fearless leader: Joshua Newhouse)

Bravest Boldest Art

Mulrennan Middle School complete with floor-to-ceiling tornado! (Fearless leaders: Nancy Moran)

Most Quirky and Compelling Group of Kids

Burnett Middle School (Hello, Dallas!) (Fearless leaders: Nancy Phillips)

Most Brilliant Quick-Draw Questions

Marvelous Martinez Middle School (Fearless leader: Jeanette Whitman)

Best Novel Sketchers

Adams Middle School (Fearless leader: Abigail Dyer)

Spunkiest Funniest Questions

Eisenhower Middle School (Fearless leader: Erin Devlin)

Most Generous
It's a TIE: These two schools had HUGE book drives through www.booksindeed.org!
Swift Creek Middle
(Fearless leader: Ava Lee)
and
Holy Comforter Episcopal School
(Fearless leader: Laura Powell)
Both in Tallahassee, FL

Most Fabulous Listeners
St. Bernadette's, Drexel Hill, PA
(Fearless leader and someone to whom I dedicated The Slippery Map: Sister John Marie)

Best Combination of Manners and Sass!
(a boomerang school that keeps me coming back for more!)
Sanford School, Hockessin, DE
(Fearless leader: Ms. DeSantis)

Most Dedicated to their Writerly Dreams!
Stonehurst Hills, Upper Darby, PA
(Fearless leader: Ms. Mahoney)

Biggest Readers!
North Star Elementary, Hockessin, DE
(Fearless leader: Ms. Schweizer)

Most Dedicated Parents!
Pocopson Elementary, Pocopson, PA
(Fearless leader: Theresa Gambardella)

Best Wowzy Audience
(complete with yeehaws!)
Lakeland Highlands Middle School
(Fearless leader: Ms. Page
and her two fabu assistants!)

ALL of the Oscars
(Best Script, Best Actors, Directors, etc...)
Renaissance Academy
(Fearless leader: Dr. Caffrey)

Beachiest Peachiest
Oakgrove Middle School
(Fearless leader: Ms. Titus)

Most Brilliantly Creative
Liberty Middle School
(Fearless leader: Ms. Meginnis)

Most Brilliantly Illuminating Questions
Legacy Middle School
(Fearless leader: Ms. Thrailkill)