The technology had been tested, the room was rearranged. The students had prepared questions and I had previewed said questions. I was signed into Skype and we anxiously awaited 11:50 when we would call Kate Messner, author of The Brilliant Fall of Gianna Z, and have our very first Skype author visit.
My seventh grade girls were practically bouncing in their seats. Actually, some of them really were bouncing! B even composed a little song/chant (she does that sort of thing and is rather good at doing it on the spot) that went something along the lines of "We're skyping with Kate Messner" and had some little cheers in it.
Finally, the moment arrived. The little symbol next to Kate's name turned green, and I hit the video call button. There was a minor glitch until I got our video working so she could see us, but then we were off and chatting.
I suddenly had a totally different class. Several of them had that deer- in- the -headlights look about them. "So, who wants to ask the first question?" Silence. "Okay, Y. How about if you start us off."
And so it went, with me prompting the kids and only a few volunteering. They did ask great questions, and Kate was wonderful. She had questions of her own for the kids as well. We learned a lot about writing and editing and publishing.
And it was just plain fun!
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