Dear Friends Families,
I’m so excited to announce the Lower School will be hosting a visit from celebrated author and illustrator Jonah Winter on October 19th! Mr. Winter will speak with Lower School students during the Community Period in the Meetinghouse. Parents are invited to attend the presentation and stay for a brief Q&A session with author afterwards.
- 2:10-2:50 Presentation to LS Community
- 2:50 Students return to classrooms for dismissal
- 2:50-3:10 Parent Q&A
Jonah Winter is the author of more than thirty celebrated nonfiction picture books including Diego, illustrated by Jeanette Winter; Jazz Age Josephine, illustrated by Marjorie Priceman; Sonia Sotomayor: A Judge Grows in the Bronx, illustrated by Edel Rodriguez; The Founding Fathers! illustrated by Barry Blitt; and Lillian’s Right to Vote: A Celebration of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, illustrated by Shane W. Evans.
Winter approaches his books with humor and wit, but the underlying motivation for exploring each of his subjects stems from a motivation closely aligned with Friends Seminary’s commitment to peace and justice.
In an interview with the Pittsburg Post-Gazette in 2008, Winter says about his role as a children’s book writer,
“I see it as my job to educate children about historical figures who are either under-reported in the curriculum or else who, like Muhammad Ali or Roberto Clemente, were mavericks in standing up to a racist culture and carving a path for other members of their respective cultures. If I can make a difference in raising the tolerance and knowledge levels of today’s children, then I feel as if I’m doing my job.”
Recalling the impetus for his book Peaceful Heroes, he noted to Booklist Online:
“I write about things that are important to me and important to the world, and I can think of nothing more important to me or to the world than world peace. I wrote this book [Peaceful Heroes] to counter the centuries-old notion that “heroes” have to use guns or bombs to be heroic…Today’s children need a new set of role models, a new set of “peaceful heroes.” Sure, kids will continue to learn about George Washington and General Patton—there’s nothing I can do about that. But my goal here is to provide them with an alternative to the more traditional military heroes. Martin Luther King Jr., Gandhi, Paul Rusesabagina, Clara Barton, a fireman. I would love to open children’s minds to the topics of world peace and peaceful public service. We need a new generation of children enlightened and courageous enough to want to help “save the world.'”
Once again, the Friends Seminary Library will be partnering with McNally Jackson to offer personalized copies of Lillian’s Right to Vote: A Celebration of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 for purchase. To order a copy for your family, please click here. All order must be submitted by October 10th. Books will be signed on the day of Winter’s visit and will be distributed to students shortly thereafter. Additional titles will be available for sale at the Parents Association sponsored Book Fair later in the year.
Most of Winter’s books are available in the library; stop by to check one out! To learn more about the author himself, including facts and some pretty funny myths, please visit www.jonahwinter.com. For more information about how each grade level is preparing for Mr. Winter’s, please visit the individual grade level pages located in the top navigation bar.
