Tag Archives: reading celebration

Mar21

Interview with Lia Ginno

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I always like to look high and low for new, interesting children’s authors. I really do love it when I find a new children’s fantasy author. She has a background in children’s development that gives her books that extra insight to support children.

Let me introduce you to Lia Ginno. Her unique, fantasy books deal with characters struggling to fit into normal and realizing often that they are fine the way they are. Her newest picture book, “Turmeric and Magic”, deals with a dragon trying to find her magic.

I had the chance to talk with Lia Ginno about her childhood reading, favorite author, and what writing means to her.

What is your favorite memory from reading as a child?

Lia Ginno:  I loved going into another world.

Who was your favorite author and how did they influence you?

Lia Ginno: I loved Enid Byton’s, Secret Seven series and Famous Five series. I think I was at an age when I could imagine such adventures with friends. I remember I had a group of friends and an old tumbledown building as our headquarters for a ‘secret club.’ Unfortunately we never ‘lived’ the adventures in the books, but we all read them. They inspired my imagination and the first book and a play, I ever wrote, was when I was twelve. Also, a local reporter in an interview compared my first Legend book to one of EB’s books. So, she had more of an influence than I realized.

What is writing to you in one sentence?

Lia Ginno: A book is a dream you hold in your hand as imagination, problem solves, and creates everything on earth.

“Turmeric and Magic” is a picture book that deals with the diversity in all of us. Tumeric is different from other dragons. She cannot fly and is allergic to fire and smoke. She dreams to be like other dragons. Being an avid reader, she discovers that there is a book that will teach you magic if you are determined to find it. She begins a journey to find the book. Will following her dreams lead her to the book? Can it help her magic to appear? This delightfully illustrated picture book will enchant and help children explore their unique differences that can turn into inner strength.

“Turmeric and Magic” is available at Amazon.com. This book is a Kindle Unlimited title. Links to Amazon.co.uk Kindle sales here.

For more information on Lia Ginno, visit her at her FB page here.

Apr1

Day 10: Last Day of The Lost Secret of Fairies FREE online Novel Study w/ essay test

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Final Day of The Lost Secret of Fairies Novel Study: Final Exam Day!

Welcome to the final day of The Lost Secret of Fairies free online novel study. As of just an hour ago, as I’m writing this, the California governor has announced that California schools will be closed for the rest of the academic year, and maybe some changes will happen in the fall in regards to reopening schools. I could tell this was going to be for the long haul, and I am happy to be completing the support for parents in my home state, throughout the US and from my statistics, throughout the world.

I wrote my books for children and used the writing of them as instruction when I was in the classroom. To include them for novel study instruction to help teach reading seems to complete the circle of learning they were created for. I’m happy to have brought you this online novel study for my first book, and I would love to hear any feedback you have about using it.

summer1The Lost Secret of Fairies Novel Study Essay Test

So, with that said, here is the final activity to go with the novel study, the final essay test. If your child or student has been completing all the activities, including the summary, character change response worksheet and the theme/message worksheet, your little one is all ready for the essay test. They should have all the time they need to complete it, and they can use the book and their journal notes to help find examples and support.

LSOF Essay Test

Grading Criteria

I’ve included a rubric for you to help grade their answers. They should include examples and details of support from the story, their own ideas, and language from the worksheets they used during the novel study. Other words, they need complete sentence answers, topic sentences and closing sentences. The essay test and all the responses this week have been teaching basic essay response language and structure for your child. These are all standards in most school systems in the US and the world.

Below is a Grading Rubric for you to use. Traditional, 1-4 grading is used on these rubrics. If you want to change that from D grade to A Grade, you can. 1=D, 2=C, 3=B, 4=A. But I feel if your child has made an effort, worked hard, includes the language in a complete sentence and uses supporting details, they should get a high grade. It is up to you. As the parent, high praise from you will mean a lot. 😉

For those wondering minds, a passing grade in school that children would be working toward is the 3 on the rubric. It can also be helpful to show your child the rubric so they know what is expected of them before the essay test.

Rubric for Lost Secret of Fairies Novel Study Essay Test

When your child/student has finished the test, and you’ve looked it over and graded it, I’ve included a link to a completion certificate below. You can sign it and give it to your child.

LostSecretNovelStudyCertificate

Congratulations! You’ve completed a reading novel study unit with your child, and they’ve become a better reader and writer!

And that’s about it, folks! I want to thank you and your child for continuing with the novel study, and I hope they enjoyed reading the book. If they would like to continue the series, here are the links below for the three books that continue Wanda’s journey and adventures in the World of Fairy.

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Book 2

The Lost Secret of the Green Man (Book 2)

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003LL3MQE

Barnes and Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-lost-secret-of-the-green-man-tiffany-turner/1112041152

Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/the-lost-secret-of-the-green-man-the-crystal-keeper-chronicles-book-2

iApple/iBooks: https://books.apple.com/us/book/lost-secret-green-man-crystal-keeper-chronicles-book/id543028109

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Book 3 

The Lost Secret of Dragonfire (Book 3)

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Lost-Secret-Dragonfire-Crystal-Chronicles-ebook/dp/B079J4R22D

Barnes and Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-lost-secret-of-dragonfire-tiffany-turner/1114782699

Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/the-lost-secret-of-dragonfire-1

iApple/iBooks: https://books.apple.com/us/book/the-lost-secret-of-dragonfire/id616637319

Lost Secret - High Resolution (1)

Book 4

The Lost Secret of Time (Book 4)

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Lost-Secret-Time-Crystal-Chronicles-ebook/dp/B07GJZBPPY

Barnes and Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-lost-secret-of-time-tiffany-turner/1129320107

Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/the-lost-secret-of-time

iApple/iBooks: https://books.apple.com/us/book/the-lost-secret-of-time/id1428309465

Thank you to everyone that have participated in the novel study! I welcome all the feedback and invite you to follow my blog as I continue to post more learning activities and homeschooling support for parents in the future weeks.

Take care, stay safe, wash your hands, and we’ll get through this together!

-Mrs. Turner

***Tiffany Turner is the author of the children’s fantasy series, the Crystal Keeper Chronicles. She has had 18 years experience teaching in California as a public elementary teacher. She is currently tutoring in the private sector and continuing to write full time. 

 

 

 

 

 

Feb26

Read Across America Free EBook Coupon

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Read Across America is Mon. March 2, 2015.

Read Across America is Mon. March 2, 2015.

A lot of readers are going digital. What better way to celebrate that than joining in Read Across America with a free ebook. So, this year I’m offering my first novel in the Crystal Keeper Chronicles as a free book up through March 3. Enjoy the adventures of Wanda as she discovers fairies are real, and full of problems.

The free coupon is available for downloads on Smashwords with formats for several different ereaders.

The Lost Secret of Fairies by Tiffany Turner

Wanda had always read about adventure. Now she was in the middle of one. The World of Fairies is real, and she is their new Crystal Keeper, human caretaker to the World of Fairies. But the Fairy World is in trouble. The fairies are falling ill from the pollution that ravages the world above. Wanda has to find the key to their cure, before it’s too late.

Coupon Code: FL57N

Plus, I’ll post on Wed. March 4  special promo package information. It will tell you how to find several free ebooks that can be picked up through free coupons. They are hidden at the end of a free book by one of my fellow children’s writers. We’ve gone in together to help celebrate reading, and now you’re in on the secret. So, make reading a part of your life now by going digital and Read Across America all next week. More details will appear on my blog on Read Across America Day, March 2.

Special gift package instructions will be sent out on March 2 to celebrate Read Across America.

Special gift package instructions will be sent out on March 2 to celebrate Read Across America.