Local Author and Illustrator Returns to the Lower School
In May, Sarah Brannen, author of Paige of Beacon Hill, visited first-grade classes to talk about her book and writing process. This October, she returned to Buckingham Place to discuss her work with the new crop of first graders and to talk to the now second-graders about journaling.
Brannen first visited the first-grade classrooms to talk about her writing and illustrating process. She told students that Paige of Beacon Hill went through 36 drafts before reaching its final form. Her collaborative process also involved another local author and artist, as well as the proprietor of Beacon Hill Books & Cafe, who contracted Brannen to write a book about a squirrel.
Then, making her way to the second-grade classrooms, Brannen saw some familiar faces as she discussed her latest book, Monarch and Mourning Cloak, a picture book and poetry collection about two common butterfly species. This visit was a perfect tie-in to the current curriculum in second grade, where students are studying monarch butterflies in multiple subjects.
To prepare for her latest book, Brannen took up nature journaling, recording and drawing plants and animals she encounters daily. She brought her butterfly journal to share with students as an example, then gave them empty books to fill with practice drawings and observations. Students grabbed shells, feathers, acorns, and more, and set to work documenting their findings through drawings and words.
Thank you to Sarah Brannen for once again visiting the Lower School!
