This has been a big and fun filled summer for Travels with Gannon & Wyatt and the Youth Exploration Society. The Adventure Bus set off from Florida in June, logging thousands of miles as it combed the country from Key West, back up through the eastern part of the U.S., across the midwest and over […]
March 17 (continued) Singing Makes Everything Better As the flatbed speeds down the interstate, the signing continues. The song the kids sing next is Happy Birthday. Ricky and Shae’s son, Canaan, turns five today. The rendition the kids belt out is as loud and enthusiastic any I’ve ever heard. Canaan is a kind and quiet […]
March 17 This morning several of the young girls from the elementary school are outside their dorm sweeping the walkway, picking up trash, even raking the plots of dirt out front, giving the area the overall appearance of well manicured space. I sit down on a wall nearby and chat with them. Ricky and Shae’s […]
March 16 U.S. Embassy Alerts The following morning I download my email while lying in bed. More warnings from the U.S. Embassy in Port-au-Prince. “Demonstration Alert – Downtown area of Port-au-Prince (Ministry of Interior near the National Palace in Champs de Mars; Grand Rue; St. Jean Bosco Church towards Bel-Air; Ministry of Social Affairs on […]
Haiti Journal, March 14 (continued) Windows down as we drive at 50+ mph on a two-lane highway toward the town of St. Marc, the nearest place to buy wood for the cafeteria ceiling. Large piles of trash sit in the street that we drive around without slowing. It could be that the piles have been […]
Here are seven great quotes on writing. When I speak at elementary and middle schools, I tell students that a big part of writing is “rewriting.”
Travels with Gannon & Wyatt is what educators call “realistic fiction.” That means the books are a mix of imagination and reality — fictional adventures in realistic settings.
Patti Wheeler and Keith Hemstreet visit elementary and middle schools across the country. Conducting research for this adventure series, Wheeler and Hemstreet have traveled to the far corners of the globe. During school visits, the authors tell captivating stories, discuss the writing process, read an excerpt from one of the books, show photos and video from around the world, and explain to students the importance of reading and writing.
We at Travels with Gannon & Wyatt are almost always working on multiple projects at the same time and this month has been about as busy as they come. Hawaii went on sale September 6, we’re wrapping up a third draft of Australia, beginning a first draft of Cuba, and recently hit the road to […]
March 11, 2014
Kona to Mauna Kea, Hawaii
Woke at 4 AM because of time change. Still dark. Lie in bed looking out the window. As the sun began to light the sky, Hualalai took shape. I stepped out onto the lanai. A thousand birds sang. The air was warm but pleasant. Little yellow lights like stars still lit the slopes of the 8,275 ft volcano, Hualalai. Somewhere behind it, the largest volcanoes on earth, Mauna Loa and Mauna Kea.
