MIDDLE GRADE DREAMS: Where Is Your Heart Compass?

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Middle Grade DreamsMIDDLE GRADE DREAMS: Where Is Your Heart Compass?

You middle grade dreams begin with something I like to call the heart compass.  The heart compass is that still, small voice that speaks to us during the quiet moments of our lives…IF…we are open and available to HEAR the message upon arrival.  This is what I used to write the adventure novel, Saltwater Taffy.

Have you ever been really super tired?  I mean, so tired that you can’t sleep?   Read more

MIDDLE GRADE FICTION: Thought-Watching, Not Clock-Watching

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Middle Grade FictionMIDDLE GRADE FICTION: Thought-watching, not Clock-watching

Middle Grade Fiction is one of my favorite posting headlines because sometimes, your thoughts as middle school students are simply fictional fantasies.  By fiction, I mean when you think about what you CAN’T do more than you think about what you CAN do.

Our MIDDLE GRADE years are filled with so many insecure thoughts about fitting in with the ‘in crowd,’ all we end up doing is wasting time by watching the clock, waiting for it to end.  The activity of watching the clock… Read more

MIDDLE GRADE FICTION: ‘I Got a New Pair of Shoes’

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middle grade fictionMIDDLE GRADE FICTION: “I Got a New Pair of Shoes”

This middle grade fiction post is about that new pair of shoes you just bought.  I mean, what is it about a new pair of shoes that can make us feel so amazing?   

The minute you lace ‘em up, you feel as if you can run faster and you suddenly forget all about your middle grade fiction fantasies.  

Yes, that cushiony feeling wrapped around your foot even makes you feel taller somehow.  Oh yes, let’s face it…a new pair of shoes can make a person feel down right special.

If a new pair of shoes can make you feel this way, I would like to introduce you to an energy that is ten, twenty, thirty, perhaps one hundred times the power of a new pair of shoes. Read more

MIDDLE GRADE FICTION: Bang, Bang, YOU’RE DEAD

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middle grade fictionMIDDLE GRADE FICTION: Bang, Bang, YOU’RE DEAD

Middle grade fiction, middle grade students, and middle grade literacy is the reason I became a children’s book author in the first place.  The problem I have is all the violence we are feeding our middle grade children.

Over the weekend, my wife and I walked into a pizza joint to eat dinner and this was the first thing we saw; little boys holding guns while playing the arcade games.  There is nothing wrong with arcade games, don’t get me wrong, but the image of this Tween holding a gun was…

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MIDDLE GRADE READING: You Are Not Alone

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Middle Grade ReadingMIDDLE GRADE READING: You Are Not Alone

Middle grade reading is perhaps the most important thing a middle school student can do.  This post on the Saltwater Taffy website was written to remind middle school children this very important lesson: You are no different than the classmate sitting next to you.

 

You are no different than the kid who bully’s you.

You are no different than the most popular kid at school.

You are no different than the smartest kid in class. Read more