Robert Young

I just returned from a wonderful visit to Arizona, where I got to go face to beak with hummingbirds, walk the paths of 16th century explorers, and enjoy the wonders of the desert. Is there a book in there somewhere, who knows, but there’s lots of ideas.

Before leaving, I was the proud recipient of a packet of letters from an interested and excited couple of classes of fourth graders at Santiam Elementary School, which I will be visiting soon. I enjoyed reading every letter and am looking forward to the day we meet.

I appreciate the kind words about my books and especially the questions asked. Some of the answers can be found on my website, some I’ll answer below, and some I’ll answer during my presentation.

Here’s a few answers:

I have an older sister (Sherry), one son (Tyler), and one dog (Toby)

Toby on a kindergarten class visit

Tyler and I at the Gergeti Trinity Church in northern Georgia (near the Russian border)

I didn’t know I wanted to be a writer until I was in my 30s. First, I got several stories and plays published in magazines. My first book, The Chewing Gum Book, was published in 1989. I was 38 years old. Since then, I’ve had 26 more books published.

I did not illustrate any of my books, but some of my photographs appeared in my books. The publisher chooses the illustrator. And yes, they get paid.

Gum has been a life-long love for me, since the days I had to sneak it into school to chew it. I still chew if everyday (sugarless only!), and even collect it. The back cover of the Chomp! book shows a small part of my chewed gum collection.

Salem middle school students showing her stuff

Tried making my own gum. Not so good…

Favorites

Color: Green

Food: Nectarines, Cheese, Kale

Sports: Baseball

Activities, Hiking, sailing, ping-pong, biking

Music: Rock, Classical

Number: 9

Month: September

Place to live: Oregon

Place to visit: Machu Picchu, Uganda

Rafting the Nile River in Uganda (me in yellow helmet on left)

I just finished writing three different books about wolves. My agent is trying to find them a home at a publishing company. Several ideas are bubbling in my head about what to do next. Hmmm…we’ll have to wait and see.

Next project – the moment of decision

A recent visit from my son, Tyler, and his new bride, Milena, provided a local school with an international experience. Milena is from Colombia, Tyler recently worked in Saudi Arabia. Are these places, a world apart, alike in any way? Kids in Todd Grassman’s fourth grade class developed questions about everyday life (What do they eat? What’s their school schedule? etc.) and posed them to the visitors. We tracked responses on a Venn diagram.

What did we discover? Although there are many differences (climate, animals, language…) there are also many similarities between the countries ( soccer, X-box, pizza…). And then, to top it off, we compared the U.S. and found out that there are lots of similarities with all three of our countries.

Imagine that!

What a great experience I had during my recent trip to the east coast. I returned to the school district where I began teaching and did an Author Experience with each of the fourth grade classes at the Thomas Conley School. Thomas Conley was once principal of the elementary school and was the man who hired me in 1974. He was a great guy to work with, and I had a lot of respect for him as an educator and a person.

The fourth graders I met with were curious and enthusiastic, the best kind of students (and writers).  Happy writing!

Another fun visit to Guy Lee Elementary School in Springfield, Oregon. Man, I like this place, and the kids, too!

We talked about the fabtastic A.C. Gilbert, inventor, toymaker, magician, Olympic champion…I could go on. As you know, I love questions, so here’s one for you G.L. fourth graders: What do you think the most important thing people should know about Mr. Gilbert? And, why do you think that? What’s your reason?

Also, if you have any questions about Mr. Gilbert, fire away. Click on the Comment box and write your questions there. I’ll do my best to answer them.

A.C. and Me

Looking forward to meeting you. I’m especially excited to hear what questions you are going to be exploring. Questions are some of my very favorite things. They are the basis for both reading and writing. If you’d care to share your questions with me, feel free to add them as Comments to this post. I’m headed to San Diego this week, but will be back in time for our visit. See you soon!

Question: What do you think these signs are about? You’ll find out!!