Living Hope Lutheran School

Nancy snapped a photo of me in front of the east entrance of Living Hope Lutheran School

Students and teachers at Living Hope Lutheran School, located east of Shakopee, showed a lot of enthusiasm and interest as Nancy and I set up the book display in the commons area. I'm always happy to sign books before my program when students have pre-ordered them.

Being handed several orders for books to sign before my program begins makes Nancy and me feel especially welcome.

Kindergarten, first-grade, and second-grade students and their teachers watch as I begin my Farm Heritage Program, which includes the story If I Were a Farmer:Nancy's Adventure.

These students paid close attention and participated with enthusiasm when I asked them to help out by holding up their two fingers to teach a calf to drink from a pail (above) and by waving to Nancy (below).

At the end of my program, the children asked questions and told stories of their farm experiences.

 After we handed out the books to children who had pre-ordered them, they eagerly shared them with their friends nearby. Nothing could make me feel better than watching them enjoy the illustrations and story.

These children seem to share my interest in maps showing where the action takes place.

Next, Nancy and I moved our equipment to do a program for third and fourth grade students, who eagerly awaited us in a room nearby.

These students listened intently to my Farm Heritage Program, which included my story A Farm Country Picnic

 Their smiles and quiet curiousity encouraged me to include a ten-minute piece on how and why I got started writing the books, which is a segment I usually only include for grades five and up or for adult programs.

After the show the students responded with thoughtful questions.

It's always a pleasure for me to visit schools where students have learned to enjoy being part of an audience and still feel free to express their curiosity and enthusiasm as they do at Living Hope Lutheran School.

Whenever we arrive at a school and I see smiles on the faces of teachers and students, I know it's going to be a good experience for me and the students. And it was, but to top off the day, as we were loading our vehicle to leave, the principal, Mr. Schmidt, stopped to introduce himself and express his appreciation for our visit.

Nancy and I want to thank Principal Schmitdt and all the teachers at Living Hope Lutheran School for having me visit, and we especially thank our neighbor and friend, Wendy Baumler, for arranging our visit. Nancy and I had fun, and we hope some learning took place as the students had some fun too. 

Photographs by Nancy A. Fredrickson