[Podcast #237] 2024-2025 Book Reveal Talk! with Dawn Smith

Thrilled to add Melissa Wiley to the podcast icon! Having Melissa co-host the show has been such a gift to me and all of you. Plus that cheery smile!

It’s almost time for our annual Book Reveal! Every year we curate a new list of books to be part of our Mechanics & Literature programs.

Dawn Smith spearheads this undertaking and she joins us today on the Brave Writer podcast to describe how she picks which books to be on the list.

Dawn Smith
Dawn Smith

The reason the book release is so highly anticipated is because Dawn chooses books that she knows are going to:

  • elicit kids’ buy-in,
  • lead to big, juicy family conversations,
  • and give kids tools to tell their own stories.

Dawn explains the journey she goes on to put together the Dart, Arrow, and Boomerang programs and how she is intentional about centering what is activating, engaging, and flexible. 

Plus, stay tuned until the end to learn how to sign up for the book list announcement webinars and the giveaways you may win!

Show Notes

Provoke Kids’ Buy-in

The key to learning is buy-in. Dawn chooses books that kids will genuinely enjoy and be interested in. She doesn’t start with a list of concepts that must be covered. Instead, she picks books that she thinks will interest students, then she makes sure that all the necessary concepts are covered across the entire book collection.

Lead to Big, Juicy Conversations

Dawn chooses books that lead to big, juicy family conversations. The conversations might:

  • be about what was in the author’s mind when they were writing the book,
  • cover what adverbs the kids like and don’t like,
  • or just generate more questions, sparking more wonder and curiosity. 

Provide Tools

Tools are more fun and engaging than rules. Teaching the mechanics of reading and writing from a place of rules creates stress and disconnection. Teaching them from a place of tools of expression creates wonder and empowerment. Dawn puts together the Dart, Arrow, and Boomerang programs so literature is a space for creation and experimentation.

The book lists will be announced on May 30 and May 31. Sign-up to join the announcement webinars and you just might win one of the giveaways! 

Resources

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Produced by NOVA Media

Brave Writer Podcast

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