5/12/09

What can go wrong in a simple game of hide-and-seek? That question became a starting point for the students of Shady Spring Elementary School to challenge their imaginations and to learn more about the process of publishing by writing and illustrating their own book.

The result is a hardbound book called “Hide and Seek Gone Wrong!,” which students from six classes collaborated to produce. The book tells the tale of Ariel, Sparkles, Baya and George, four animal friends who love to play hide-and-seek. During one game, however, nothing goes according to plan, and the comrades embark on a wild adventure.

The idea for each grade level to contribute a piece of a progressive story was suggested to the school’s Reading/ Writing Committee by Bonnie Wesselhoff, an involved Shady Spring parent. Soon after the idea was pitched, an eager group of teachers formed a subcommittee called the “I Love to Write” Team and began the journey to produce a finished book.

The hard work the students devoted to the project is evident in the advanced writing and creative plot of the story. Not only did the assignment create a book filled with imaginative twists and turns, but it also taught important English concepts about the structure of a story.

A Shady Spring student reads aloud from “Hide and Go Seek Gone Wrong!” at the school’s literary festival this spring.

When asked what she wanted her students to learn from the project, fourth-grade teacher Juanita Gaston said, “Teamwork, compromise, and the process involved in writing a story.”

Third-grade teacher Katie Ruskey added, “[Kids] just think you write it, draw it, and it’s done. I know my class is learning about the time it takes to actually publish a book.”

The production was divided into sections, one of which was assigned to each class. Ariel, Baya, Sparkles and George were the first elements to be created when the kindergarteners from Lauren Dorsey’s class brainstormed characters. The characters were given to Christi Drako’s first-grade class, which had a little trouble deciding on a setting but finally decided on a deserted island. Lisa Van Flycke’s second-grade students concluded that an out-of-control game of hide and seek would serve as the conflict of the story, and Ruskey’s third graders found the solution. Gaston’s fourth-grade class actually wrote the draft, which then made its way to Ann Marie Lippa’s fifth graders, who edited for the published final version.

A Shady Spring student reads aloud from “Hide and Go Seek Gone Wrong!” at the school’s literary festival this spring.

Each participating classroom was provided with a blank book in which to illustrate the story. The text was divided into the appropriate number of sections by each teacher and students had the opportunity to illustrate their own pages, working individually or with a partner.

 “The children loved being able to divide and chose the pages up between each other,” said Ruskey.

Cusick concludes that the students enjoyed making the book and “loved the final project!”

The progressive book project was so popular that other Shady Spring teachers have recently requested to participate in similar assignments. Soon even more students will have the opportunity to look at a final product and know they were essential to its completion.

<< click here to see the book >>

Story by Dani Replogle, senior at Towson High School and intern in the Office of Communications. Photos courtesy of Shady Spring Elementary School.

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