You have been contacted by a major publishing company to write a new best selling children's book for children ages 4 to 8 years. You were hired because of your vast knowledge of books, your imagination and creativity and many years of experience as a reader.

Use the following web sites to research different types of children's books, award winning literature and tips on the creative writing process. As you visit each website, complete the data sheet. You will see this sign each time you need to write.

 

Newberry Award Winning Books
http://www.ala.org/also/newbery.html

Caldecott Award
http://www.ala.org/also/caldecott.html

Child Authors
http://www.yahooligans.com/content/ka/almanac/books/bks00010.html#CHILDRENASAUTHORS

Now that you know what components children and publishers are looking for in good stories, you will need to think about beginning your own writing.

Choosing a Main Character

Every good storyline has a memorable main character, whether it be a human being or a creature from the animal world. Check out the websites below to visit different characters in their story settings. As you visit each character, consider if you would like the main character of your story to be an animal or a human.

Popular Human Characters
http://www.yahooligans.com/content/ka/almanac/books/index.html

Animal Characters
http://www.Animabets.com/charbook/contents.html

Jan Brett's Characters
http://www.janbrett.com/index.html

Other Animal Characters
http://www.cuddlycollectibles.com/newpage22.htm

Record various types of characters on your datasheet.

Now it is time to make a choice. Choose a character you will be able to write about and use in a story. Your story can be somewhat realistic or complete fantasy no matter which kind of character you choose.