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Health & Fitness

The Read and Write Stuff

Palisades children's author Gerry Renert reads to local kids and finds the majority appreciate the importance of reading and thankfully have the enthusiastic support of their parents.

I’m a three-time EMMY-nominated children’s TV writer/producer and most recently a published children’s book writer of both printed books and storybook apps on iTunes. I’ve read my first title, Nathan Saves Summer, at reading festivals, bookstores, summer camps and schools. Not long ago, I read it to a group of Palisades kids, ages four to eight years old.

Nathan is the story of a Hippo who dreams of being a lifeguard for a group of animals who vacation at a very small pond. Unfortunately, Nathan’s large size prohibits him from achieving his dream, but the local animals don’t want to hurt his feelings, so each summer they allow Nathan to, once again, try out for the position. This summer, though, one animal finally comes out and tells Nathan that, “he’s just too large to be the pond lifeguard.” Deflated, Nathan retreats to the cliff above the swimming hole to ponder his future and his lost dream. Suddenly, he sees a tiger cub splashing in the pond below, looking as if it’s in danger. Nathan springs into action and jumps into the pond below, only to displace all the water from the pond and turn the once idyllic swimming spot into a giant empty pit of dirt. Through a quirk of fate, Nathan’s action eventually ends up creating an even better swimming place for the animals, who finally give him the respect he deserves and the permanent job of area lifeguard.

With a story like this, before I read to the children, I generally start by asking a series of silly, off-beat questions about Africa, lifeguards, snorkels, Hippos in Flip Flops, to get them engaged enough in the material to pay closer attention. When I’m finished reading, I always ask the audience for their questions, which generally include queries like: “Why would a Hippo want to be a lifeguard?” or “How big was Nathan’s lifeguard stand?”

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After reading to the Palisades group, I expected more or less the same types of questions, but instead was pleasantly surprised and astounded. One child told me he was writing a children’s book with his friend, Josh, and wanted to know how many pages it should be. Another child asked me, if he wrote a book, would he have to draw the pictures or could someone else do that? The questions became more and more about the process of writing, creating a story and ending a story. Mind you - these kids ranged from being in preschool to 3rd grade, and yet I felt I was on stage at a Writer’s Guild Q & A session.  I almost expected one child to have me recommend a literary agent to her.

Granted, the Palisades is filled with many parents who work in the entertainment industry, so overhearing talk about writing, story, plot is not totally unfamiliar to them. What impressed me the most, though, was that it was obvious these children had parents who cared about reading and its importance. In fact, several parents were in the audience, helping to interpret and amplify on what I was reading to their children. Educators throughout the country talk about the importance of constantly improving our school system, and they’re definitely right, but many also talk about the need for parents to motivate their children to both read and appreciate the value of the written word. The latter was never clearer to me than it was that day, with those twenty Palisades children.

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