Posts in Dispatches from the Field

When the internet first exploded, lo these many moons ago, there was a whole lot of hand-wringing over the death of nonfiction books. Who’d bother reading a book when they could just google the answer? A lot of us, ... Read More  

Ignorance gets a bad rap, because most of us assume there's only one kind. But I have a theory: there are three kinds of ignorance, and one of them is worth cultivating. Read More  

I attended junior high in Yellowknife, which is not the most isolated place in Canada, but definitely felt like it sometimes. Fortunately, the school library was huge, and offered a portal to endless worlds I could visit in my ... Read More  

One reason Antarctica is so unique is because it's been isolated from the rest of the planet for about 20 million years: ever since the Antarctic Circumpolar Current formed. The ACC - you guessed it - is an ocean ... Read More  

I like to joke that my gardening aesthetic is "witchy neglect." I toss some plants in the ground and wait to see what grows. If it attracts bees, butterflies, or hummingbirds - and the wild bunnies don't devour it ... Read More  

Happy World Ocean Day! For the educators in the room, here are some resources that will help make it a great one: The official World Ocean Day website is a great place to start. Make sure to check out ... Read More  

As we celebrate Earth Day this year, amidst much turmoil and uncertainty, there is one word that that I want you to hold on to – hope. Yes, you heard me right. HOPE! Read More  

“So when are you going to write a real book?” Any children’s writers reading this are groaning right now, because this is a question we’ve all been asked at least once. Most of us respond with comically-exaggerated confusion and, “As ... Read More  

Now available - a FREE activity guide for use with your copy of The Boreal Forest! It includes suggestions for science, social studies, and language arts, and will help support a variety of elementary school curriculum outcomes. Not to ... Read More  

Two quick news nuggets to share: Thank you to Helen Kubiw at CanLit for LittleCanadians, who interviewed me and Byron Eggenschwiler after our book, Polar: Wildlife at the Ends of the Earth, won the Lane Anderson Award for best ... Read More  

Today, my guest is Tahrana Lovlin, brilliant woman and accomplished engineer... with an unusual specialty. Take it away, Tahrana! So I’m writing this because Lindsey asked me to and I’ve known her for almost 30 years (wow, crazy). And I’m ... Read More  

When I was a little girl, bedtime stories were the best part of my day. I'd snuggle up with Mom or Dad in the big green-upholstered armchair for another round of The Digging-est Dog or Stop That Ball (parts ... Read More  

I'm back from a whirlwind trip to Boston, where Tech Support and I took in the sights, and where I - with author-friend Rochelle Strauss and teacher-friend Chris Carlton - presented at the National Council of Teachers of English ... Read More