I’m not going to ask you the obvious question of whether you were a huge fan of reading as a kid, because I think the answer is probably a resounding yes. What I’d like to know is, what started you on that journey? Was it one particular book, or…?

I think the seeds for me to become a reader for life were planted throughout my childhood. Both of my parents are avid readers. I grew up in a house where the daily newspaper’s arrival was a big deal each and every day. I grew up on the comics and the sports section. All of my elementary teachers read aloud to our class pretty much daily. The book I remember most from my childhood was Gary Paulsen’s Hatchet, which was read aloud by my fourth-grade teacher, Mrs. Collins. I’ve had ups and downs in my reading journey, but I think the foundation that my reading life was built on made it so that reading has always been there for me when I need it.

A lot of educators are passionate about sharing great books with students, but few have made it their life’s work to help other educators understand how to do it. Was this always something you intended to do when you began your teaching career, or did it happen organically?

I didn’t even know that this world existed until I joined social media in 2011. The idea that grown-ups talked about children’s books was completely foreign to me. I’m glad I found my people. They have brought so many wonderful stories into my classroom.

And in turn, you’ve brought those wonderful stories into other people’s classrooms by sharing your enthusiasm on social media. You post on a variety of platforms, but you are also still a full-time teacher. How do you find the time (not to mention the energy)?

I never know how to answer this question! I don’t golf or watch much Netflix, so that helps. I also have a “no-phone-in-bed” rule, so I get a lot of time to read before bed.

I’m really curious why you never became a school librarian. It seems like a natural progression for someone with your passion for kidlit.

I have tremendous respect for school librarians. They are heroes. I am so glad they do what they do. I’ve never once thought about becoming a librarian. I’m not sure I could pull it off. I struggle to learn 28 names a year; I have no idea how they learn hundreds.

Well, there is that, true. I recently told a new teacher-librarian she should follow you because your videos show educators and library staff how to “hand-sell” books to kids. This is such a huge part of our jobs, yet so many new educators struggle to do it well. That’s why I think what you’re doing is so valuable. Are you seeing your book talk modelling emulated in your students when they share books they’ve read? I bet their critique skills are top-notch!

I am. We talk about books all the time, so they naturally get caught up in the excitement, and as a result, they become pretty good book talkers themselves. When talking about books, I don’t do anything fancy. I just share my excitement for the book and why I think it is awesome.

Honestly, I think genuine enthusiasm for the books is what gets the kids hooked. They want to see what we see. It doesn’t hurt if you are a great oral reader, either. Nothing worse than being forced to listen to a poor oral reader slaughter a great read-aloud. And we need to do all we can in this day and age to get kids excited about literacy…which brings me to my next question.

I recently read this comment on Threads by @bigdeenergy_ about students’ willingness to read and write in schools today, “It’s not even a literacy crisis anymore, it’s literacy abandonment. We are witnessing an intense refusal to properly engage with words. We (unfortunately) live in a world designed so that people don’t HAVE to read or even formulate their own thoughts.”

I sat with this a bit, reflecting on how important our work is as educators and librarians, now more than ever. By reading aloud with students daily, we give them opportunities to “properly engage with words,” and show them how words can be magical in “formulating their own thoughts” as they think critically about what they’ve heard and seen. You’re a wonderful model for how that works when it’s done well.

I don’t really agree with the quote. Maybe I’m lucky, but the kids I’m around beg me for more time to read each and every day.

I think that speaks to how well you do your job. I don’t believe it is as “doomy and gloomy” as the author of the quote says, but I’m hearing from a lot of educators in upper elementary and secondary schools right now who are struggling to get students to read or write anything of depth. They credit the Pandemic with starting the decline, and then the increase in social media use and AI with increasing it. What would you tell those educators who are struggling to get their students re-engaged with reading and writing?

Give kids time in school to read what they want, surround them with great books, and read aloud to them multiple times a day, and they will read a lot more. It isn’t rocket science. 

I’ve always been a promoter of author visits in schools as another way of hooking kids on great books, and I know authors were a part of Nerd Camp Michigan as well. When an author or illustrator interacts with kids in person, what kind of ripples do you see afterward? How do you think that connection changes a student’s relationship with reading?

I just think it is fun to have the authors of the books we love come and hang out with us. The more fun we can make the world of reading, the more kids are going to want to read.

Definitely. And since great books and author visits come with a price tag, and school budgets are under even more pressure these days, do you have any successful, creative strategies you can offer to increase access to books, author/illustrator visits or literacy events?

Stop spending so much money on things like turf football fields and scripted curriculums. Books don’t cost that much. The money is there.

In Ontario schools, the money for books has been shrinking as the funding for libraries and library staff has been reduced (along with many other things, sadly). That’s why Ontario library lovers are working hard to advocate and find new ways to get books in kids’ hands. Are you familiar with any of the readers’ choice awards for Canadian children’s literature, like our own Ontario Library Association’s Forest of Reading award program? How about our “I Read Canadian Day” in November, where we celebrate Canadian children’s authors?

I am not.

Well, we will have to remedy that! How important do you think book awards are as a way to engage student readers now that we have social media as a tool for book promotion?

I think they are helpful to get books in front of the people who buy the books that our kids read, but I don’t think they matter too much to most kid readers.