Meet Joanne Baker-Smith Blog Post

I have to start this post by saying that I did not receive anything in exchange for this post. However, with that being said; sometimes I take a look around and say, “How can this be my life and I be so fortunate?” I not only had the opportunity to listen to this author read her book, but I got to meet her, take pictures with her and have her sign books that I purchased. I am so very blessed and grateful to have these opportunities!

Today, I was invited by a friend of mine to come to our local library and listen to the author Joanne Baker-Smith read her books. As a bibliophile, I was elated for the opportunity to listen to an author, but to actually get to interact with one was stupendous! The children were eager to listen to the book and interact with her as she read her book. Some authors/readers read a book and forget that young children are easily restless when being read to, if they are not interacted with. This was not the case with Joanne! She was AMAZING with the kids! She engaged with them and enlisted them in a game of find the word/letter based upon age. There were children from 2 years old to 11 and she was able to keep them all engaged for the entire time with crafts and games along with the story time.

She has written a few books in the Little Learner Series. Rosie the Reader is the first in the series. You can purchase your copy on Amazon here: https://www.amazon.com/Rosie-Reader-Little-Learners-1/dp/1986239802/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=little+learner+series&qid=1580577381&sr=8-1. Wren the Writer is the second book in the series and can be found here on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Writer-Little-Learner-Joanne-Baker-Smith/dp/1095594540/ref=sr_1_2?keywords=little+learner+series&qid=1580577381&sr=8-2.

These books are great to encourage early readers and writers to just keep on going. They are very well written and illustrated as well. One of the things I duly noticed about the books is that they contain diversity! Not all the students look the same in the illustrations, there are children that everyone can relate to!

The author, a very sweet, eloquent woman with a heart in education was born and raised in Queens, NY. This is very dear to my heart because that is where both my children were born and were raised until they were 5 and 7. Joanne has taught elementary school for over 12 years. These books were written to empower and give confidence to her students in their learning. These strategies help children beyond the classroom feel good about learning. I look forward to hearing more about the adventures of this author and her new books in the near future!