Pam Muñoz RyanBy Tiffany Moore

PersonalBackground

•Born and raised in Bakersfield, California

•Childhood included lots of reading and trips to the local library

•Currently resides in San Diego, CA

•Has 4 children

•Birthday: December 25, 1951

http://www.audiofilemagazine.com/features/A2065.html

Growing Up To Be a Writer

“One of the things that I think prepared me the most for being a writer was that I was blessed with a lot of big

blocks of unchoreographed time and a lot of benevolent neglect that gave me the opportunity to spend a lot of time

playing and developing my imagination.”

(Ryan in a Reading Rocket’s Interview)

Educational Background

• Washington Junior High• Editor of “Washington Hornet” newspaper

• Bakersfield High School

• Bakersfield Junior College

• San Diego State University

• Bachelor's Degree in Child Development

• Master’s of Education in Post Secondary Education

Professional Journey

• Ryan started writing after a professor in her master’s program encouraged her to try her hand at professional writing. In a Reading Rockets interview, Ryan commented, “Up to that point, I hadn't (considered writing). But, you know, once she planted the seed, I really couldn't stop thinking about it.”

• She stepped into writing by working on books for adults with colleagues• First children’s book- “One Hundred Is a

Family”

• Teacher and Writer

Over 30 Books and Counting!

This section highlights a few Award Winners!

Awards

• Pura Belpré Honor Book

• Tomas Rivera Mexican-American Children’s Book Award

• International Reading Association Notable Book

• NCTE Notable Children’s Book in Language Arts

• NY Public Library Top 10 Titles for Reading and Sharing!

Awards

• Jane Addams Children’s Books Award (2001)

• Pura Belpré Award

• ALA Top 10 Books for Young Adults

• Americas Award Honor Book

Awards

• Robert Siebert Honor Book

• ALA Notable Book

• Parent’s Choice Gold Award

• Orbis Pictus Award

• NCTE Notable Children’s Book in Language Arts

Awards

•California Young Reader Medal•Willa Cather Award

•ALA Notable Book Selection

In The Classroom

Summary: This book explores the possibilities of the imagination with phrases such as, “Hole is tunnel when you think you’ll reach another land.”

My Find: I discovered this book when I began studying my author’s works. Prior to reading this book, had not realized that Ryan wrote for audiences this young.

Applications: This book would be a great book to read with kindergarteners to address rhyming, but older students could appreciate the theme of using your imagination!

Mud is Cake

• Extensions: This book can be used with Kindergarteners to prepare them for word sorting (pre-requisite is rhyming). The teacher reads the book aloud to students, who point out rhyming words if able. If not, the teacher revisit pairs of rhyming words after the whole book has been read aloud for effect. Follow-up games include rhyming bingo, hot potato rhyming, or picture memory with other rhyming words.

• Objective 1.02: Develop phonemic awareness and knowledge of alphabetic principle: demonstrate understanding that spoken language is a sequence of identifiable speech sounds.

• demonstrate understanding that the sequence of letters in the written word represents the sequence of sounds in the spoken word.

• demonstrate understanding of the sounds of letters and understanding that words begin and end alike (onsets and rimes).

Summary: Rosa Maria prepares for her granddaughter’s seventh birthday with the assistance of a few unexpected helpers. In this comical story, Rosa Maria is outsmarted by the mice she despises. But soon she realizes, that she should love an accept them, returning kindness for kindness.

My Find: This picture book with bright illustrations would be enjoyed by students in the primary grades. However, teachers in upper elementary could share the book with their students to show them how Ryan writes about her Hispanic heritage.

Mice and Beans

• Applications: Kindergarten teachers can use this book to address sequencing as well as the difference between fantasy and reality. The teacher must first read the book aloud to the children. She may highlight the sequence during the reading.

• Extensions: After reading, the teacher could have the students retell the story in their own words, creating a LEA piece on sentence strips. Then the sentences could be mixed up and sequenced in a pocket chart. This could later become a center for follow-up practice. Fantasy and reality could also be discussed while looking at the LEA sentences.

• Objective 2.08 Distinguish fantasy from reality when reading text. Objective 2.09 Identify the sequence of events in a story.

The Author Study!

Our Author Study!• My author’s study will be conducted with students in the

sixth grade. It will focus on the books, “Riding Freedom,” “Becoming Naomi León,” and “The Dreamer.”

• The books can be linked together through the theme of self-identity. Each book features a strong protagonist who goes after what he or she wants, which leads to fulfilled dreams. In order to access their strength, the characters must first find out who they are and identify their goals/motives.

• “The Dreamer” and “Riding Freedom” can also be connected since they are both based on the lives of real people.

• Additionally, I would like my students to recognize Ryan’s use of figurative language throughout her books. How does she use figurative language to enhance the meaning of her texts?

Let’s Get Started!

• We will start the unit with a short brainstorming activity to get us thinking about the upcoming themes in our novel. • The students will be given several minutes to write down

words that describe their personality. • Then they will turn their paper over and list

words/phrases that express their goals and desires.

• This pre-reading activity is designed to get students thinking about what they are like and what is important to them.

• It is my hope that it will help them better understand the characters in our novels as well as the magnitude of the conflicts they face. I hope that it will help them utilize text to self connections as they move through the novel.

After Brainstorming

The students and I will start by reading “Riding Freedom.” The book is shorter and easier to understand. This will help us explore the author’s writing style and begin to think about the theme of self-identity.

After finishing a unit on “Riding Freedom,” we will move on to “Becoming Naomi León.” This book is longer and has more subplots to navigate.

We will finish our author’s study by reading “The Dreamer.” This book is more complex because of it’s philosophical nature, its foreign setting (with the inclusion of unfamiliar names of people and places), and the inclusion of complex social issues (particularly disagreements over the Mapuche people and the treatment of Neftalí by his father).

Objective Focus• Objective 5.01 Increase fluency, comprehension, and insight

through a meaningful and comprehensive literacy program by:• using effective reading strategies to match type of text.• reading literature and other materials selected by the

teacher.• discussing literature in teacher-student conferences and small

group discussions.• discussing and analyzing the effects on texts of such literary

devices as figurative language, dialogue, flashback and sarcasm.

• interpreting text by explaining elements such as plot, theme, point of view, characterization, mood, and style.

• recognizing underlying messages in order to identify theme(s) within and across works.

• exploring relationships between and among characters, ideas, concepts and/or experiences.

Summary: This piece of historical fiction represents the life of Charlotte Darkey Parkhurst, a girl who grew up in an orphanage. Eventually, she ran away and then made a living for herself by pretending to be a man. In the author’s note, Ryan explains that the book is mostly factual, but she “sometimes had to take a creative license” in order to make the book more suitable for the intended audience.

Riding Freedom Activities

• The novel will be taught through a DRTA lesson plan, consisting of a series of predictions and reflections. The historical context will be addressed during these discussions.

• Throughout the reading of this novel, the students will work on the “fleshing out the character activity” mentioned later.

• After reading, students will write a paragraph explaining the significance of the setting (particularly the time period). This will help students understand how to approach historical fiction pieces.

Summary: Becoming Naomi León is a realistic fiction piece about timid Naomi Soledad Leon Outlaw, who must learn to speak up for herself in order to preserve her life as she knows it. She lives with her great grandmother (Gram) and her brother Owen. However, her absentee mother returns and threatens to take her away from the life she knows. She must travel with her loved ones to Mexico to find her father and seek his help. While there, she discovers her heritage and learns to appreciate herself. Then she returns to the United States to fight to continue life as she knows it with Gram.

Becoming Naomi León- Critics

Acclaim!• Hazel Rochman from Booklist says, “In

true mythic tradition, Ryan…makes Naomi’s search for her dad a search for identity, and both are exciting.”

• Christine Heppermann from Horn Book says, “With its quirky characterizations and folksy atmosphere, this engrossing family drama…has its own uniquely affecting emotional core.”

Becoming Naomi León Activities

• This book will also be read in a DRTA fashion in a small group (some silent and some out loud).

• The students will “flesh out” the character Naomi León.

• This book has one primary problem (Naomi’s mother is trying to take her away from Gram and Owen). This leads to a clear plot line, which can be examined in detail. Students will create a plot line on a large sheet of construction paper. They will fill it in with notes pertaining to the introduction, rising action, climax, and resolution.

• After reading, the plot diagram can be referenced in a discussion about the obstacles that Naomi overcame.

Summary: “The Dreamer” is a fiction book, that is based on the life of Pablo Neruda. The book spans the life of Neftalí Reyes from a timid seven year old to an independent writer (alias Neruda) in college. Neftalí experiences a variety of challenges including illness, a challenging home life, trouble with peers, and opinions that differ from those in power during his time. These elements combine to form a motivating read, that children and adults will find enchanting!

The Dreamer Activities

• I will introduce the book by showing the students the Scholastic Book Talk for The Dreamer.

• We will read the book with a DRTA structure, and we will “flesh out” the character Neftalí.

• Since this book is more detailed, I want the students to take notes as they read. To do this, I would have them write a 1-2 sentence summary at the end of each chapter to keep track of important events.

Activity for Every Book

• Since the common theme for these books is self-identity, I want my students to “Flesh Out” the protagonist for each book (Naomi, Neftalí, and Charlotte).

• In the book, “Yellow Brick Roads: Shared and Guided Paths to Independent Reading 4-12,” the author includes a diagram that is helpful for character analysis. The students look at a skeleton diagram and label it with “Thoughts, Plans, What she said, Feelings, What she did, What she tried to do, Strengths, and Weaknesses.”

• The students will read the book with the teacher, following a DRTA lesson plan. Some reading will be done out loud in the small group, while some parts will be done silently. All reading will be paced by the teacher, with probing questions/predictions/reflections.

• At the end of each day’s reading, the students will work in partners to add 1-2 notes to their skeleton diagram.

• At then end of the book, students will come together as a reading group to talk about their notes. From there, we will talk about the conflicts the character faced and how he/she addressed those conflicts. This will also give us a chance to discuss the character’s dynamic nature.

Wrapping Up• 1.04 Reflect on learning experiences by:

• describing personal learning growth and changes in perspective.• identifying changes in self throughout the learning process.

• After reading the three books, I would like to have students choose the character that they most identified with and write about why they were drawn to that character.

• Then, I would like to have the students revisit the brainstorming activity that we completed at the beginning of the story. This time I will give them more time and have them complete a bubble map that describes there personality and a bubble map that explains their long-term goals and motives.

• Then, they will write short paper explaining who they are, what they want from life, and they will note any changes that occurred after reading the novels from our author study.

From the Author

Words of Advice

• “I want children to know…I’m not really a writer. I’m a rewriter, and it doesn’t come out like they read it the first time, and my job is a series of starting over and sometimes failures.”

Scholastic Video Interview 4 with Pam Munoz Ryan

Words of Advice

• “Book is door if you escape to where you’ve never been.”

• This darling quote from “Mud is Cake” shows Ryan’s desire to tap deep into the imagination as she did as a child.

I’m Glad You Told Me!

• A growing number of Ryan’s book stem from her Hispanic heritage, including:• Esperanza Rising• Our California• Nacho and Lolita• How Do You Raise a Raisin

• Many of Ryan’s books are also available in Spanish!

Teacher Resources

• Pammunozryan.com offers readers’s theater scripts for the following books:• Nacho and Lolita• Becoming Naomi Leon• Esperanza Rising• The Dreamer

Contact Her!Standard Mail:

Pam Muñoz RyanC/O Scholastic, Inc.

557 BroadwayNew York, NY 10012-3999

Note-Class letters should be mailed collectively in one

large envelope.

E-Mail:

PMunozRyan@aol.comhttp://elizabethvaradansfourthwish.blogspot.com/2010/09/interview-with-pam-munoz-ryan.html

Video Interviews

• 5 Questions with Pam Munoz Ryan (You Tube)

• Reading Rockets Interviews with Pam Munoz Ryan

• Scholastic Video Interview with Pam Munoz Ryan

References• Allen, J. (2000). Yellow brick roads: shared and guided paths to

independent reading 4-12. Portland, ME: Stenhouse Pub.

• Heppermann, Christine M. "Pam Munoz Ryan: Becoming Naomi Leon." The Horn Book Magazine 80.5 (2004): 598. Literature Resource Center. Web. 20 June 2011.

• Ryan, P. (1998). Riding freedom. New York, NY: Scholastic INC.

• Ryan, P. (2001). Mice and beans. New York, NY: Scholastic Press.

• Ryan, P. (2002). Mud is cake. New York, NY: Hyperion Books for Children.

• Ryan, P. (2004). Becoming naomi león. New York, NY: Scholastic Press.

• Ryan, P, & Sís, P. (2010). The dreamer. New York, NY: Scholastic Pr.

References• "Pam Muñoz Ryan (1951-)." Something about the Author. Vol. 197. Detroit: Gale,

2009. 156-161. Something About The Author Online. Gale. Appalachian State University - Belk Library. 19 June 2011

• http://0-galenet.galegroup.com.wncln.wncln.org/servlet/SATA_Online/boon41269/BH2177975066.

• "Pam Munoz Ryan." Contemporary Authors Online. Detroit: Gale, 2011. Literature Resource Center. Web. 20 June 2011.

• www.pammunozryan.com

• http://www.readingrockets.org/books/interviews/ryan/transcript/

• http://www2.scholastic.com/browse/video.jsp?pID=1640149541&bcpid=1640149541&bclid=57826465001&bctid=86953451001

• http://www2.scholastic.com/browse/video.jsp?pID=1640183585&bcpid=1640183585&bckey=AQ~~,AAAAAFv844g~,BASb5BU03X_L2cn86MC9qSzQHunGEilJ&bclid=1683701961&bctid=1688353635