Trudy Ludwig -- Making a Difference in Kids' Lives, One Book at a Time!

09/21/22 • 39 min

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Meet beloved children's book author Trudy Ludwig, who truly lives up to the motto on her website: “Making a difference in kids’ lives, one book at a time.” Educators, parents, families, and children will recognize such beloved titles as The Invisible Boy; Quiet Please, Owen McPhee; The Power of One: Every Act of Kindness Counts; Just Kidding, and Sorry. This year has been a big year for Trudy, as she has two books coming out: Brave Every Day, which was released this summer, and Calling the Wind, which is coming out in October.

*Disclosure: I am an affiliate of Bookshop.org and I will earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase.

[02:23] Check out the full show notes for details about the origins of Calling the Wind, a picture book about grief, loss, and hope illustrated by Kathryn Otoshi.

We wanted the wind to actually be a character in the story representing grief, personified by the intensity of the wind. It ebbs and flows, comes and goes, and it's always there with you. I felt that kids really needed to have a story to help them understand grief and the grieving process, because in our Western culture, we really don't do a good job addressing grief. And I thought this would be a beautiful vehicle..to show the power of human connection and the process of healing in our grief.

[08:31] "Making a difference in kids’ lives: one book at a time." shapes the way she approaches writing for kids -- and the adults in their lives.

[09:31] Books have power to help kids navigate their social world on a daily basis and to serve as windows, mirrors and sliding glass doors.

[10:57] Neuroscience supports reading well written literature can boost empathy in readers.

[12:09] Kindness is an action verb.

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*Disclosure: I am an affiliate of Bookshop.org and I will earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase.

[02:23] Check out the full show notes for details about the origins of Calling the Wind, a picture book about grief, loss, and hope illustrated by Kathryn Otoshi.

[08:31] "Making a difference in kids’ lives: one book at a time." shapes the way she approaches writing for kids -- and the adults in their lives.

[09:31] Books have power to help kids navigate their social world on a daily basis and to serve as windows, mirrors and sliding glass doors.

[10:57] Neuroscience supports reading well written literature can boost empathy in readers.

[12:09] Kindness is an action verb.

Support the show

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Happily Ever Resilient -- Adventures in Learning with Dr. Stephanie Goloway

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Once upon a time, we invited author, teacher, professor, and bright spirit Dr. Stephanie Goloway to the podcast. A lifelong educator and advocate for play, storytelling, and the imagination, she has taught preschool, elementary school, special education, and college, as well as been a children's librarian and professional storyteller. Her fascination with the thinking learning process and the way it is supported by make believe and creative exploration is the thread that weaves together her diverse experiences. She holds a doctorate in early childhood from Walden University, where her research focused on the protective factors of resilience for children living with trauma and family substance use disorders and how fairy tales and storytelling aligned with these protective factors. She's professor emeritus of education at the Community College of Allegheny County in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. And she's the author of Happily Ever Resilient: Using Fairy Tales to Nurture Children Through Adversity.

Full show notes.

*Disclosure: I am an affiliate of Bookshop.org and I will earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase.
[02:09} Why use fairy tales as a vehicle for resilience? Dr. Ann Masten's Ordinary Magic shaped Dr. Stephanie's approach to building connections between resilience and multicultural fairy tales.

[04:25] Story Magic, Caring Magic, Making Magic, and Superhero Magic -- Connecting Fairy Tales and Learning Activities to Build Resilience Dr. Stephanie outlines how each type of magic connects to resilience and early childhood learning.

[14:15] Happily Ever Resilient: How do we use fairy tales to help foster resiliency? We focus on the research and the ways that fairy tales connect to early childhood learning.

[19:49] What early books and experiences influenced Dr. Stephanie's once upon a time and ever after adventures? Early books included Who Will Comfort Toffle? by Tove Jansson and Hans Christian Andersen. Stephanie's adult learning journey is rich and varied and shaped her book.

[28:19] No Experience Is Wasted: Dr Stephanie's take aways include: trust your heart, build connections, and maintain a sense of humor.

[31:32] Education Today: The Importance of Fairy Tales for Windows, Mirrors, Sliding Glass Doors, and Resilience We discuss ACEs, adverse childhood experiences, and ways fairy tales can lend themselves to intentional and connected instruction.

[37:10] Glass Slipper, Anyone? Building on Cinderella

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Next Episode

Adventures in Mentoring: I'm Just Me Movement Leaders Tina and Rodney Culbreath

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Meet Tina and Rodney Culbreath, two community leaders who turned their own childhood struggles and hardships into the I'm Just Me Movement, a thriving mentorship program that focuses on resiliency and growth for all of its participants. Looking to implement the Positivity Project? We have books and resource ideas for you (check out the full show notes). Tina and Rodney are a force for positivity and change and you're invited to share in their stories.
[01:18] I'm Just Me provides innovative mentoring programs through workshops, Live Life Forward programs, intervention groups, bullying and diversity workshops.

[03:30],Why mentoring? How does it make an impact? To learn more about mentoring opportunities visit imjustmemovement.org.

[11:42] How do mentors change lives? Rodney and Tina share their personal stories.

[18:27] Celebrating 9 Years of the I'm Just Me Movement October is the nationally recognized I'm Just Me Because National Month. On Oct. 2, I'm Just Me will have a bowling birthday bash for supporters in the Shenandoah Valley. There's also a ribbon cutting at 11:30 am on Oct. 13.

[20:40] Learn about Project Positive, an initiative created by students in collaboration with I'm Just Me Movement to cultivate kind and inclusive learning environments.

[27:32] Picture Book Connections for Project Positive, Character Counts, Social-Emotional Learning and STEM/STEAM Learning

Patchwork, Matt de la Pena/Corinna Luyken
Love, Matt de la Pena/Loren Long
All Because You Matter, Tami Charles/ Bryan Collier
You Matter, Christian Robinson
I Am Enough, Grace Byers/ Keturah A. Bobo
Imagine, Juan Felipe Herrera/Lauren Castillo
Drawn Together, Minh Le/ Dan Santat
Brave Every Day and

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Dr. Diane's Adventures in Learning - Trudy Ludwig -- Making a Difference in Kids' Lives, One Book at a Time!

Transcript

Trudy Ludwig Transcript

[00:01] Dr Diane: Wonder, curiosity, connection. Where will your adventures take you? I'm Dr. Diane, and thank you for joining me on today's episode of Adventures in Learning. Today, on the Adventures in Learning podcast, we have the privilege of welcoming beloved children's book author Trudy Ludwig, who truly lives up to the motto on her website: “Making a d