Hatboro-Horsham Teacher Willeena Booker Interviews Author

A story told in lyrical and poetic form, brings a very sensitive topic to the forefront of our hearts, and that is the topic of grief and loss. To every beginning an end must come and saying goodbye is never an easy thing to do, but for children, dealing with emotions of loss or grief can be even more difficult to comprehend and discuss. So begins the story of a young boy who has lost his father, and comes to confront and even accept deep emotions along his walk towards healing.

On October 17, teacher Willeena Booker will be featured with author Nikki Grimes on The Write Time, a production of the National Writing Project, the show that pairs incredible educators with outstanding children’s and young adult authors. The interview will also include Maryann Zujewski, Education Program Manager, of the National Park Service. Click here to register for free on Zoom to watch the session.

New York Times bestselling author Nikki Grimes is the author of more than 75 books for children and adults. Nikki Grimes was recently inducted into the Black Author’s Hall of Fame, October 2, 2023. Ms. Grimes is the recipient of the 2022 Virginia Hamilton Lifetime Achievement Award, the 2020 ALAN Award for outstanding contributions to young adult literature, the 2017 Children's Literature Legacy Award, the 2016 Virginia Hamilton Literary Award, and the 2006 NCTE Award for Excellence in Poetry for Children. Her distinguished works include the much-honored books Garvey's Choice, ALA Notable book Southwest Sunrise, Coretta Scott King Award winner Bronx Masquerade, and five Coretta Scott King Author Honor books, Printz and Siebert Honor winner Ordinary Hazards, Boston Globe-Horn Book Honor One Last Word, its companion Legacy: Women Poets of the Harlem Renaissance, and NYT Bestseller Kamala Harris: Rooted in Justice. Creator of the popular Meet Danitra Brown, Make Way for Dyamonde Daniel, Bedtime for Sweet Creatures, and Off to See the Sea, Ms. Grimes lives in Corona, California.

“This show is extra special,” remarked Christina Cantrill, Associate Director of National Programs at the National Writing Project (NWP), “as it connects the NWP’s annual Write Out event - a free two-week celebration of writing outside co-hosted with the National Park Service - to The Write Time broadcast. In this way it offers our community the opportunity to learn from Wileena as a member of the Write Out teacher leadership team and is a poet herself. Willeena, and her students, have been among our most active and creative Write Out participants over the past years, so we knew that she was the right teacher to do this interview for the National Writing Project.”

At a time when the United States is still recovering from one of the worst Pandemics in history, there is increasing attention to providing trauma focused teacher practice in the classroom as well as supporting students and communities that experienced grief and loss at an unprecedented rate. A Walk In The Woods is therefore perfectly timed as a poignant picture book about grief, loss, and resilience. It is a book classroom teachers and their students will love.

The Write Time with Nikki Grimes, Willeena Booker and Maryann Zujewski debuts at 7 p.m. EST on October 17 via Zoom at the NWP Teacher Studio. The archive will be later housed at: https://teach.nwp.org/series/the-write-time/