ONLINE EXTRA: Watch video of Michael Buckley's appearance at Hammond Hill Elementary.
At home, New York Times best-selling author Michael Buckley says he's the guy who changes a 2-year-old's diapers and can't load the dishwasher. But at Hammond Hill Elementary School, he's a celebrity.
His writing magic has charmed many pupils into becoming avid readers in the few years the school's used his Sisters Grimm series in reading classes. On Thursday, Buckley made his second visit to Hammond Hill in three years, which included a parade of characters from his stories.
"The response has always been overwhelming," said Buckley. "It's an author's dream come true to come down here."
During this visit, Buckley's character parade not only included the usual suspect of fairy tale notables from the Sisters Grimm series, but also the world-saving team of fifth-graders from NERDS , Buckley's latest series.
Buckley said he shared the idea of NERDS with pupils during his 2007 visit to the school. Their response prompted him to pursue the book, he said.
"I guess you could say this was the birthplace of NERDS ," he said.
While the lively characters in Buckley's novels have made the reading process easier, it's also Buckley's accessibility that's kept pupils interested in what an author does and the idea that reading can be for entertainment and not just homework.
When fifth-grade teacher Nikki Mock began reading The Sisters Grimm to her classes three years ago, she encouraged pupils to contact Buckley and ask about how he created his characters and where he found his ideas. The response was a visit to the elementary school by Buckley in 2007.
The school has used the momentum since that visit to foster a love for reading in pupils, rather than let them think reading for an assignment is enough.
"We're finding out what books motivate students," said Janet Vaughan, Hammond Hill principal. Buckley's influences of comics and graphic novels are also more available as pupils have begun to feel at ease sharing with teachers and librarians what they want to read.
"I find students reading the books as they're walking to class," Vaughan said. "We've just seen such a transformation."
Cross-curriculum lesson plans are also easily incorporated with books. NERDS includes geography lessons as the fifth-grade characters travel to save the world. Each chapter includes coordinates so pupils can follow the characters' progress. Buckley also touts the message that nerds grow up to be the popular adults of the world has also fostered more acceptance of pupils' differences, Vaughan said.
The Sisters Grimm series is about traditional fairy tales with a twist, so younger classes are able to tackle the classics. But their understanding of the traditions will allow them to get the inside jokes of Buckley's series as fifth-graders when he changes expectations, such as Little Red Riding Hood going from a protagonist to an antagonist.
All of Buckley's books are currently on a two-month wait in Aiken County libraries, but they can be reserved online at www.abbe-lib.org
Reach Julia Sellers at julia.sellers@northaugustatoday.com.
