Label: School Visits

October 13, 2015

Seymour Simon recently visited Relay Elementary School in Baltimore, Maryland. His visit was covered on the district’s website, BCPS News! Check out the video here.

September 26, 2014

I’ve had a great time in the Blue Springs, Missouri elementary schools this week. I’d like to share just a couple of notes that have come in from students.

One thing I talk about when I visit schools is that I wrote and illustrated my first book, Space Monsters, when I was in second grade. That prompted this note from a Kindergarten class:

Dear Mr. Simon-Thank you for visiting our school yesterday and for sharing so much about being an author and a scientist.  We are also writing our first books in our kindergarten class, just like you did when you were little.  We can’t wait to check out your books and eBooks.

Mrs. Jennings’ Kindergarten Class

I also talk with students about the fact that since we are citizens of the Universe, we need to know how to write our entire address. That prompted this note, from two students named Ryleigh and Khloie who are using our StarWalk Kids eBook collection:

Hey, we love your books and pictures. Ryleigh’s favorite book: funny space monster riddles and jokes. Khloie’s favorite book is: earth quake !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WE LOVE YOU

Location: USA Earth

Thanks, Blue Springs students. I have enjoyed my week with you, too!

If I haven’t been to your school yet, don’t worry. I will be back the week of October 13!

Seymour

April 2, 2014

Yesterday I Skyped with kindergarteners at Van Meter Elementary School in Iowa. They are researching and writing their first reports, about animals. We had a good talk about how to begin a writing project. I asked them each which animal they were researching and to tell me one thing about that animal.

Their teachers, Lynne Caltrider, Christa McClintock, and district librarian/technology specialist Shannon McClintock Miller, are taking advantage of the many Internet resources available not only to teach these young learners how to research a topic, but also how to use EasyBib.com to create accurate citations in their work.

It was fun to share my process with these students. Whether you are five years old or an experienced writer like me, every writing project starts the same way - researching your topic and making an outline. And it finishes up with rewriting…and rewriting….and rewriting again!

We will be back online together in a few weeks, as the students share their finished projects. I look forward to seeing their work.

Photos courtesy of Shannon McClintock Miller 

March 10, 2014

Congratulations to all the students who entered the "My Favorite Seymour Simon Book" contest. We asked you to read my books, decide which one was your favorite, and give examples from the text to support your opinion. We received entries from 145 individual students and 11 first and second grade classes. That is really a LOT of participation from a single school! Good work, Franklin Elementary. We read every one of your entries, and enjoyed the writing very much.

According to the rules of the contest we randomly choose one individual winner in grades 3-5 and one classroom winner from grades 1-2.

The individual winner is Izzy from Mrs. Feeley’s class (5-FE). Izzy wrote:

My favorite Seymour Simon book is OCEANS.

I like the book Oceans because it tells lots of facts about ocean. For example, on page 2 it says "Echo soundings of the ocean floor show mountains more than twice as tall as Mt. Everest and 6 times deep as the grand canyon."

Why we like it? We think it is a great book because it taught us many facts we didn’t already know. We liked Seymour Simon’s book because he talked about animals we had never heard of before.

Example: We didn’t know that Sea Stars eat by turning their stomachs inside out through their mouths! First we said, "eww!" and then we said, "cool!" Also, we found out that some fish can turn into a darker color for camouflage at night.

Izzy and Mrs. Shaughnessy’s class will each receive a copy of their favorite book, which I will autograph for them.

Thanks again for all your great writing and very kind words about my books. It meant a great deal to me to read what you all had to say about my writing.

Seymour

February 25, 2014

Seymour Simon is preparing to visit Franklin Elementary School in Westfield, NJ next week. Their library media specialist, Mrs. Kennedy, asked if we would run a contest for their students. Seymour loves it when you use his blog in school, so students at Franklin Elementary - this contest is for you!

Do you have a favorite Seymour Simon book? Is there one that you have taken out of the library many times, or that you go back to when you have free time in the media center? For this contest Seymour Simon invites you to browse through his books in your school library or at a bookstore, or you can look under the "Books" heading on his website, and think about which one of his books you like the best. 

Once you have decided which Seymour Simon book is your favorite, you have to do three things:

1. Tell us the name of the book.

 2. Tell us why you think it is Seymour Simon’s best book.

3. Give at least one example from the text in the book that illustrates your point.

Here is an example. Let’s say that I pick NEPTUNE as my favorite Seymour Simon book. I might write:

Favorite Book: Neptune.

Why it is my favorite: I think it is very interesting to learn how we are exploring the very end of the Solar System. It is amazing to me that humans can learn about a world that is so far away.

Evidence from the Text: I like the way Seymour Simon describes the information we receive from the Voyager 2 probe, which we sent to explore Neptune. He writes: "By 2015, Voyager will reach the heliopause, the true end of the Solar System. Then Voyager will drift silenty through time and space, a testament to the human search for knowledge." I always feel a little sad when I read that. I want to wave and say, ‘Bye, bye and thank you, Voyager!’ I think that is very good writing by Seymour Simon.

Here is how to enter once you have selected your Favorite Seymour Simon Book:

A. Click on the yellow "Comments" link at the bottom of the blog to enter the contest by sharing your favorite book, why it is your favorite, and giving an example from Seymour Simon’s writing in the book to illustrate your point.

B. When you write your information, be sure to also tell us your name (first name only), your grade, and your teacher’s name. That way we can find you if you are the winner!

C. Be sure to post your entry by midnight on Friday, March 7th. The contest ends then. 

Rules:

• Two winners will be chosen randomly from all the correct entries. 
• Students in grades 3-5 may enter individually, and we will pick one winner. 
• Students in grades 1-2 may enter as a class and work with their teacher or with Ms. Kennedy to enter the contest; there will be one classroom winner. 
• Both winners will receive a copy of their favorite Seymour Simon book, personally autographed by Seymour Simon.
• Students who do not attend Franklin Elementary may also enter this contest. If we have at least 10 entries from other schools, we will randomly choose a third prizewinner from the non-Franklin entries. 

So, get to work and send us your entries today. Good luck!

February 20, 2014

I want to welcome the fourth graders from the Shanghai American School in China. I am so pleased that so many of you are reading and commenting on my blog!

I love it that your comments are full of questions, because that is how a scientist learns. We explore by asking questions, finding answers (or not), revising the question based on what we learned, and continuing to ask new questions. What we know about the world around us is always evolving and changing. That’s what I love best about science.

I would enjoy it very much if you would write to me about what you are studying in science this year and what you like the most about it. 

February 17, 2014

After much consideration, we have chosen five classes that I will Skype with on World Read Aloud Day. They span a wonderful range of ages and geographic locations - I am looking forward to reading aloud to each of these groups.

The first is Mrs. Brittin’s 4^th grade class at Warren E. Sooy Jr. Elementary School in Hammonton, New Jersey. Her class (@Brittin404) already interacts with me on Twitter, and I am looking forward to seeing them in person!

Learning Coach Amy Duncan (@teacheraduncan) tells us that when she asked the 5^th graders at her school, Emma Murphy Elementary in Metamora, Michigan, what author they would like to meet on World Read Aloud Day, they shouted "Seymour Simon!" Ms. Duncan added that she "thinks it would make a difference for these students to have a real and writerly conversation with the first expert that came to their minds." How could I say no to that?!

Mrs. Lambert’s 3^rd grade class at Harvard Elementary School in Tacoma, Washington are learning about blogging this year, and their first blog comments were posted on my website, SeymourSimon.com. These students read my blog regularly and sign all their comments "May the blog be with you." I love it that this request came from multiple students in the class, each writing about subjects that they were interested in.

Kristin Moffitt is the Literacy Coach at the American International School of Zagreb in the Republic of Croatia, and she asked her students to use their persuasive writing skills to invite me to Skype with them on World Read Aloud Day. She included a PDF with many letters from her students. They did indeed make some very good persuasive arguments, and they included terrific artwork, as well! (the student’s last name has been removed to protect her privacy).

And finally, Mrs. Hundt (@maryfranny), the Library Media Specialist at West Salem Elementary School in West Salem, Wisconsin, asked me to participate because most of the connections they have for the day are fiction, and she really wants to include more nonfiction, as she sees many students who gravitate toward it. She came to the right place, and I look forward to meeting the West Salem Elementary students.

Thank you to everyone who applied to have me Skype with their class on World Read Aloud Day. I wish it were possible to share the day with each and every one of you!

- Seymour

January 17, 2014

Congratulations to everyone who entered the My Awesome Science Word contest. There were many good entries—-it was fun to read about what word each of you selected, and why you thought it was interesting. 

As promised, there are two randomly selected winners - one individual student and one K-2 class. Each one of the winners will receive an autographed copy of my SCIENCE DICTIONARY. Check with Mrs. Abad to pick up your prizes next week. 

Here are the winners and what they wrote.

 Mrs. Shambo’s 1st grade class submitted this entry:

Our awesome science word is heart.

Our definition:  The heart pumps blood. The heart is the size of a fist.  

Why it is awesome:  The heart is awesome because it’s part of your body.  It pumps your blood and keeps you alive. 

Using it in a sentence:  The heart is a part of your body that keeps you alive. 

Here’s the winning entry from Paige M. in Mrs. Bobear’s 5th grade class:

My awesome science word is paleontology.

The definition of my word is a scientific study of fossils from dinosaurs when they were alive and the people that study them are called paleontologists.

I think this word is awesome because you can see the where their eyes were and also if you find all of the fossils, you can see the size of that dinosaur.

I want to do paleontology when I am older.

Congratulations to everyone who entered. I loved reading all your writing!

January 10, 2014

Seymour Simon is preparing to visit Greenfield Elementary School in Saratoga Springs, NY next week. Their librarian, Mrs. Abad, wrote to say how much her students would love to have a contest, and asked if we might have one for her school. Seymour loves it when librarians and media specialists use his blog in school, so students at Greenfield Elementary - this AWESOME SCIENCE WORD contest is for you!

Two lucky winners are going to receive personally autographed copies of Seymour Simon’s newly updated SCIENCE DICTIONARY, with more than 2,000 entries!

Did you ever spend time browsing through an encyclopedia or dictionary? You might not have been looking for a specific word but just leafing through, finding cool topics and reading about them. For this contest Seymour Simon invites you to browse through his online Science Dictionary and find a word or image that you really like. Here is the link where you can find his Science Dictionary online: http://www.seymoursimon.com/index.php/science_dictionary/

Here is what you need to know to enter Seymour’s Awesome Science Word Contest:

Take a look around in the online Science Dictionary and find a word that you think is an Awesome Science Word. Once you have decided on your word, you have to do three things:

1. Tell us what your word is and explain the definition in your own words.

 2. Tell us why you think your word is awesome.

3. Use your Awesome Science Word in a sentence to prove that you really understand what it means.

Here is an example. Let’s say that I look at the Online Dictionary and pick "fingerprint" as my Awesome Science Word. I would write:

Definition in my own words: A fingerprint is a pattern of swirls and lines in the skin at the tip of a human finger.

Why it is awesome: I think it is awesome that every single human being has their own fingerprint.

Using it in a sentence: Every person’s fingerprints are unique and that means that like snowflakes, no two are alike.

Here is how to enter once you have selected your Awesome Science Word:

A. Click on the yellow "Comments" link at the bottom of the blog to enter the contest by sharing your word along with your definition, why you think it is awesome, and your sentence using your word.

B. When you write your information, be sure to also tell us your name (first name only), your grade, and your teacher’s name. That way we can find you if you are the winner!

C. Be sure to post your entry by midnight on Thursday, January 16. The contest ends then. 

RULES:

• Two winners will be chosen randomly from all the correct entries. 
• Older students may enter individually, and we will pick one winner. 
• Students in grades K-2 may enter as a class and work with their teacher or with Mrs. Abad to enter the contest; there will be one classroom winner. 
• Both winners will receive copies of the printed version of the SCIENCE DICTIONARY, autographed by Seymour Simon.
• Students who do not attend Greenfield Elementary may also enter this contest. If we have at least 20 entries from other schools, we will randomly choose a third prizewinner from the non-Greenfield entries. 

So, get to work and send us your entries today. Good luck!

October 5, 2013

Thank you to the students and faculty at Altamont Elementary School - I enjoyed my visit to your school yesterday! We talked about everything from paper airplanes to outer space, and lots of animals, too.

  Congratulations to everyone who entered the Moth or Butterfly? contest. We had many good entries; each of you observed, did research, came to a conclusion and then wrote about it. Nice work!

As promised, there are two randomly selected winners - one individual student and one K-2 class. Each one of the winners will receive an autographed copy of my book BUTTERFLIES. Check with Mrs. Ahearn to pick up your prizes!

Here are the winners and what they wrote about which of these animals is a butterfly, and which is a moth:

Emily, age ten, from Mr. Whiteman’s Class, is the individual winner. Emily wrote:

I believe that insect A is a moth. I think this because a moth’s wings are to the side of his body, and it has very dull colors.

On the other hand, I think that insect B is a butterfly because, firstly, a butterflies wings rest upright on its back, and secondly, it has straight, clubbed antennae.

Mrs. Critelli’s Kindergarten Class were the classroom winners. They wrote:

We think that picture A is a moth because we learned that moths are nocturnal and picture A looks like it was taken at night. We also think it is a moth because it is smaller than the  insect in picture B. We learned that moths are smaller than butterflies. We also learned that moths don’t have knobs on the ends of their feelers and in this picture we do not see any knobs. These are the reasons we think picture A is a moth.

We think that picture B is a butterfly because we learned that butterflies have knobs at the ends of their feelers and in this picture we see knobs. We also learned that butterflies are larger than moths and the insect in picture B looks larger than the insect in picture A. Picture B looks like it was taken during the day so we think it must be a butterfly because butterflies are out during the daytime. These are the reasons we think picture B is a butterfly.

Thanks we had so much fun learning about butterflies and moths.

Mrs. Ahearn, Altamont’s school librarian, did a beautiful job of organizing everything for my visit this week. Thank you very much, Betty! Your kids were well-prepared and wonderful to work with.

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