MILLSTONE — Any child who attends the Millstone Township Elementary School is likely to know all about Michael Dooling, the author and illustrator of children’s books of a historic nature.
Dooling visited the school on Feb. 27, and during two assemblies, he taught pupils about reading, writing and drawing.
The children were well-prepared for the author’s visit. Signs welcoming Dooling were hung at the school’s entrance. Students asked the author a lot of questions and were quite responsive to him throughout the assembly.
When Dooling asked the children to raise their hands if they had read any of his books, most of the youngsters put their hands in the air.
“They did a lot of homework before I came, so they are very familiar with my books. I enjoyed talking to them, and they were a great audience. I hope they all grow up to do what they love to do,” Dooling said. “One thing I told them was that ‘Whatever you love to do, do it all the time and you will get good at it.’”
Dooling loves what he does. He has illustrated more than 60 books and has authored four more. His upcoming book, “Fossil Hunter,” is scheduled for release in 2016. He brought a fossil that he created to share with the children.
In 2014, Dooling released “George Washington’s Army and Me.” His next project will be “Samuel Morse and The Telegraph.”
Reading specialist Meredith K. Weibel began familiarizing everyone at the school with Dooling last year. His visit was her idea.
“I think Mr. Dooling’s visit will give students another lens with which to view their own reading and writing … and illustrating,” Weibel said. “I am hoping that some will be inspired to do more …”
Weibel began to plan the event a year ago, with support from Principal Stephen Wisniewski, the Millstone Township Elementary School Literacy Committee and staff members.
“Our Literacy Committee and our staff have really worked hard to make this a meaningful and memorable experience for our students,” Weibel said. “We aimed for rock star status!”
In preparation for Dooling’s visit, Wisniewski purchased copies of the following books for each classroom library: “The Amazing Life of Benjamin Franklin,” “The Great Horse-Less Carriage Race,” “Mary Anning and the Sea Dragon” and “George Washington’s Army & Me.”
“The books have been used in various ways to enhance and support the literacy, science, and social studies curriculums,” Weibel said. “Art and library exposed the students to additional titles.”
Wisniewski thanked Weibel, the Literacy Committee and staff members for making the author’s visit a success.
“The children learned that the process we teach them is actually used by professionals in their creations,” Wisniewski said.
“The enthusiasm for Mr. Dooling’s visit sends an important message to our students,” Weibel said. “Books are important. This will hopefully create a powerful connection between our students and reading, and generate excitement for literacy. I am so excited for Mr. Dooling’s visit. I can’t think of a better way to help us cultivate a culture of literacy and grow readers and writers.”