From a cognitive standpoint, I'm very aware that you have no room for error in a picture book. Every word counts.
Interpretation
Every word in a picture book is crucial and cannot be wasted.
This quote by Kate DiCamillo emphasizes the importance of precision in writing, especially in the context of children's literature, where each word must contribute to the overall impact and meaning of the story. It reflects a deep understanding of the craft of storytelling, illustrating that in the art of picture books, clarity and conciseness are essential for engaging young readers effectively.
In practice
A children's writing workshop could use this quote to inspire participants to choose their words carefully.
If you sit down and read with your kid, either having your child read to you or you reading to your child at a regular time each day, it deepens the relationship. You don't have to talk about stuff; the story will do that work for you.
I want to remind people of the great and profound joy that can be found in stories, and that stories can connect us to each other, and that reading together changes everybody involved.
If you want to be a writer, write a little bit every day. Pay attention to the world around you. Stories are hiding, waiting everywhere. You just have to open your eyes and your heart.
I was lucky enough to have a mother who took me to the library - the public library - twice a week, Wednesdays and Saturdays. And also bought me books. And also read aloud to me.
There is no right or wrong way to tell a story. You have to find your own way. You can get your idea from listening, looking, or imagining. Stories are everywhere. All you have to do is pay attention.
Reading should not be presented to children as a chore, a duty. It should be offered as a gift.
We will not find the solution to problems of violence, alienation, ignorance, and unhappiness in increasing our security, imposing more tests, punishing schools for their failure to produce 100 percent proficiency, or demanding that teachers be knowledgeable in the subjects they teach. Instead, we must allow teachers and students to interact as whole persons, and we must develop policies that treat the school as a whole community.
In the old days... it was a basic, cardinal fact that producers didn't have opinions. When I was producing natural history programmes, I didn't use them as vehicles for my own opinion. They were factual programmes.
One trend that bothers me is the glorification of stupidity, that the media is reassuring people it's alright not to know anything. That to me is far more dangerous than a little pornography on the Internet.
A week of camp life is worth six months of theoretical teaching in the meeting room.
Learning will be cast into the mire and trodden down under the hoofs of a swinish multitude.
A child needs freedom within limits.
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