Grade 2 students on the Bolles Lower School Whitehurst Campus hosted author Katey Howes for a virtual lesson in Copeland Library September 13-14.

Howes used her books “Be a Maker” and “Magnolia Mudd and the Super Jumptastic Launcher” as inspiration for the lesson, organized by lower school librarian Jennifer Moore. The second graders learned about her journey of becoming an author, which began in third grade when Howes started writing poetry. She shared pictures of her early works and told the students that they, too, could become an author – or any other type of maker.

Howes discussed the many different ways the students could be makers – from building snowmen and block towers to creating stained glass and costumes – before reading her book, “Be a Maker,” aloud to each class. The students listened thoughtfully while Howes told the story of a girl who has a big day of making – from drawing blueprints to building a lemonade stand to making a difference by donating the money she raised to help build a local park.

Howes pointed out that her illustrator included tiny spiders on each page of the book because spiders are ”nature’s best makers.” The book concluded with the following thought: “In a day of making choices, are you proud of what you made?” Howes let the students sit with that question before moving to the next portion of the lesson, inviting them to reflect on where they find ideas and sharing how they can write notes and journals to keep track of them.

Thank you to Howes for inspiring our young Bulldogs to go out and make a difference with their creativity and compassion! To view pictures from the lesson, visit our online photo gallery.