Panel discussion with Rosemary Wells: Early Childhood Literacy Development

Parnassus Books, in partnership with The Westminster School for Young Children and The Ensworth School, is honored to host a roundtable discussion of early childhood literacy development with bestselling children's author and illustrator, Rosemary Wells. The event will be held at the Ensworth School on Wednesday, April 15th, at 6:30pm.

Rosemary Wells will be joined by children's book blogger and writer, Julie Danielson; Julia Green Elementary School librarian Sarah Martin; and Ensworth teacher Robin Smith. The conversation will be moderated by Book'em Executive Director Melissa Spradlin. Each panelist has had different experiences in the landscape of children's literature -- writer, critic, librarian, teacher, scholar, blogger -- and so will bring unique perspectives to the moderated conversation. 

 

Rosemary Wells was born in New York City and raised on the New Jersey shore. She grew up in a home that was always filled with books, dogs, classical music, and other things her parents held in great esteem. At two years old Rosemary began to draw. When she was not outdoors, she was always drawing. At nineteen, she attended Boston Museum School. Rosemary worked seven years in publishing before her first book was published in 1968, an illustrated edition of Gilbert and Sullivan’s A Song to Sing, O! Rosemary Wells’ career as an author and illustrator spans more than 40 years and 120 books. She has won numerous awards, and has given readers such unforgettable characters as Max and Ruby, Noisy Nora, and Yoko. She has also given Mother Goose new life in two definitive editions, and created an unforgettable world for grown-ups and kids alike in Voyage to the Bunny Planet.

 

 

Julie Danielson holds an MS in Information Sciences and blogs about picture books at Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast. The co-author of Wild Things! Acts of Mischief in Children’s Literature, she also writes a weekly column and conducts Q&As for Kirkus Reviews. She reviews picture books at BookPage, writes for Chapter 16 here in Tennessee, and has written for The Horn Book and the Association for Library Services to Children. She has been a judge for the Bologna Ragazzi Awards in Italy, as well as the Society of Illustrators’ Original Art Award, and she teaches a graduate course on picture books for the University of Tennessee's Information Sciences program.   

 

Sarah Martin earned an undergraduate degree in education from Lipscomb University and an MLIS at Trevecca Nazarene University. She has worked for Metro Nashville schools since 2004 as a 3rd and 4th grade teacher and as a school librarian. During the summers, she works with the Middle Tennessee Writing Project summer camps, and is a member of the Tennessee Association of School Librarians. She is currently the school librarian at Julia Green Elementary School, where she hosts an annual Readathon which inspires literacy and connects the school with the broader Nashville community. 

 

Robin Smith is a second grade teacher at Ensworth. In addition to teaching, she is a book reviewer for The Horn Book, Kirkus Reviews, and BookPage. She has served on numerous book evaluation committees including the Coretta Scott King Jury, Caldecott and Geisel Committees. Currently, she is serving as chair of the 2016 Geisel Committee, which evaluates books for new readers.  

 

As executive director of Book'em, Melissa Spradlin knows the importance of helping all children develop a love of books and reading from an early age. Success and choices in life begin with strong literacy skills. Every child in Nashville should have books of their own to cherish and people who read wonderful stories with them. Book’em is a not-for-profit organization that creates a more literate Nashville by helping economically disadvantaged children, from birth through high school, discover the joy and value of reading through book ownership and enthusiastic volunteers. Each year, Book'em distributes more than 30,000 books to young Nashville readers.