Here's the trailer for my upcoming picture book, Old MacDonald had a Dragon (Available 9/4/2012). Enjoy!

Narrative Writing & Reading Lesson Plan

For interested teachers planning the upcoming school year, I just posted on my website a lesson plan that they can use to help them introduce and teach some core curriculum concepts of narrative writing (story creation) through the use of characters, setting, and plot. It also helps teachers teach the skills needed to meet language arts reading and writing core curriculum standards that require the ability to describe characters, settings, and major events in a story.

The lesson plan is called "Narrative Writing & Reading Core Skills Lesson Plan -Story Creation Magic: Character, Setting and Plot". Okay, I know that's a mouthful, but if you want you can just call it "Story Creation Magic"

You can find the lesson plan at www.kenbakerbooks.com/lessonplanwriting.htm. Feel free to share it with others.

Trailer for Cow Can't Sleep

Here's the trailer for my upcoming picture book, Cow Can't Sleep (Available 9/25/12). Enjoy and feel free to share.

Service in the Dominican Republic

This past week my family participated on the support crew of a week-long humanitarian trip in the Dominican Republic put on by a group of dentists and oral surgeons from Utah, Oregon, and Arizona. The dentists, oral surgeons, hygienist, and dental assistants did an awesome and selfless job of providing a variety of dental treatments to young children, teenagers and adults, who otherwise wouldn’t be able to afford such services. The family and friends of the dentists who made up the support crew also did a great job, doing a variety of different tasks such as teaching dental hygiene, sterilizing dental instruments, playing with the children who were waiting for their turns, managing the flow of patients, acting as interpreters, and an assortment of errands.

The highlight of the trip was interacting with the Dominican people. They’re so friendly and open, with a smile for everyone they meet. They are a humble, yet big-hearted and grateful people. They were a joy to get to know.

We were also able to spend a little time enjoying the beaches of the Dominican Republic. What a beautiful country.

Here are a few photos from the trip.

Werner Herzog Reads Curious George

Another tribute to Curious George-- kind of. A funny parody-reading of Curious George. Enjoy!

Curious George Saves the Day

I loved Curious George as a child. Decades ago,  before I was old enough to read , I remember frequently going to the children’s section of our public library and heading straight for the shelf with Curious George on it, tucking it under my arm. and taking the book home (Of course, I would always check it out first.). Curious George was a treasure to me then and still is today.

As part of her review of the top 100 picture books, Betsy Bird spotlighted Curious George today and shared a little known, yet amazing story of how an early sketch of Curious George saved the life of the book's creators, H.A. Rey and Margaret Rey when Nazi Germany invaded Paris..

What are some of your favorite picture books from childhood? What are some of your children's favorite picture books?

Review: Icefall

After seeing Icefall by Matthew J. Kirby garner so much national attention, I decided to read it the other week. Although, set in Viking times, it’s not your typical Viking warrior and berserker middle-grade fantasy. Yes, it does have Viking warriors and berserkers, but they’re really just supporting characters. This fantasy/historical fiction is a character driven story about a young girl who is deemed unimportant in the eyes of her father, a Viking king. Icefall takes us on her journey to prove her worth to herself and those she loves. Deeply colored with a backdrop of Nordic tradition and mythology, Icefall is a tale of mystery, friendship, and treachery that pulls the reader in with a cast of rich characters and great storytelling.