Dr. Diane's Adventures in Learning

What happens when a Spooky Scout discovers that tonight’s camping trip falls under a full moon? Luna has a big secret, a backpack full of questionable supplies, and a story that reminds children it is absolutely okay to be a weirdo.

About This Episode

In Episode 211 of the Adventures in Learning podcast, I welcome author-illustrator Kimberly Shrack to celebrate her debut picture book, Spooky Scouts. If you're looking for something fresh for Halloween, this picture book offers a playful and not-too-scary option!

Kimberly shares how a “weirdo idea” from volunteering in her daughter’s preschool became a story about werewolves, friendship, courage, and belonging. We also talk about the challenge of writing and illustrating a picture book, why Luna’s story works beautifully for social-emotional learning, and how silly monsters can help children explore fear in a safe, joyful way.

This conversation is full of warmth, laughter, and encouragement for educators, caregivers, and young creators. Kimberly reminds us that the strange, embarrassing, wonderfully odd parts of ourselves are often where the best ideas—and the best friendships—begin.

Chapters

• 00:01 Welcome: A Halloween picture book with an unexpected twist
• 00:56 Meet Kimberly Shrack—and Frida, the spooky cat
• 01:20 The “weirdo idea” behind Spooky Scouts
• 03:32 Writing and illustrating her first picture book
• 04:57 Kimberly reads: The Spooky Scouts pledge and Luna’s secret
• 08:16 Moon screen, canoes, and a problem to solve
• 09:30 Page turns, tension, and the question: Is it okay to be a weirdo?
• 11:19 Modeling playfulness and letting your goofy fly
• 13:25 Anxiety, small joys, and being fully present
• 14:49 A sneak peek at BRAAAINS! (coming in 2027)
• 17:08 Spooky picture books that help children explore fear safely
• 18:51 School visits, thumb-sucking secrets, and brave young readers
• 22:40 Spooky Scout badges and primo weirdo ideas
• 23:27 Why educators need time for wonder and discovery
• 24:02 A teacher who gives children five minutes a day to “get weird”
• 25:04 What is currently bringing Kimberly hope?
• 27:31 Finding the hidden stories in picture-book illustrations

Classroom Connections

Spooky Scouts is a delightful choice for Halloween read-alouds, social-emotional learning, character education, and creative writing. Download the incredible classroom guide!

• “Is it okay to be a weirdo?” discussion: Ask children what makes them unique, what they sometimes feel embarrassed about, and why differences can help a community.
• Spooky Scout badges: Invite students to design a badge for a strength, interest, or “weird idea” they are proud of.
• Problem Solving: Pause when Luna finds the moon screen. Ask: What could go wrong? What would you pack in your backpack?
• Illustration detective work: Hunt for the hidden spiders and other background details Kimberly adds to the art. Ask children to invent their own background story.
• Fear and feelings: Compare silly monster stories with real worries. Ask: How can a funny story help us talk about something that feels scary?
• Five minutes of weird: Create a daily or weekly writing time where children can write freely, without worrying about spelling, grammar, or evaluation.

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Share this episode

If this conversation sparked wonder, gave you a helpful strategy, or offered a needed reminder of hope, please share it with a friend or colleague.

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*Disclosure: I am a Bookshop.org. affiliate.

What do paleontologists, exhibit designers, snow monkeys, haiku, picture books, and the fight against book bans have in common? They all begin with curiosity, and with the belief that young people deserve to ask big questions, see themselves in stories, and explore the world freely.

About This Episode

In Episode 210 of the Adventures in Learning podcast, we welcome Maggie Tokuda-Hall, author of Love in the Library; The Mermaid, the Witch, and the Sea; The Siren, the Song, and the Spy; and so many more unforgettable books for young readers.

Maggie joins me to celebrate the release of two new picture books: What Do People Do at the Science Museum?, illustrated by Qin Leng, and Bath Time for Snow Monkeys, illustrated by Yas Imamura.

We explore the joy of science museums (a subject close to my heart), the many people who work behind the scenes to make discovery possible, and why children need to know that a scientist can be an artist, a paleontologist, an exhibit builder, a greeter, a researcher, or anyone with questions and curiosity. Maggie also shares the story behind her gentle, playful snow monkey bedtime book, written in haiku and inspired by the quiet, connected moments of bath time with her own young child.

Then we turn to a conversation that is urgent for all of us who love books: the right to read. Maggie offers a powerful behind the scenes look at the founding and growth of Authors Against Book Bans, practical advice for educators and families facing challenges, and a compelling reminder that hope is not something we wait for. It is something we practice, protect, and fight for.

Chapters

• 01:26:What Do People Do at the Science Museum?
• 02:09:Science careers beyond the white lab coat
• 03:54:Behind the scenes: the people who make museums possible
• 05:28:Raising curious museum goers
• 07:12:Bath Time for Snow Monkeys: haiku, calm, and connection
• 09:22:Writing toward an illustrator’s vision: Yas Imamura
• 11:28:Haiku as story, heritage, and a mentor text
• 13:01:Maggie's adventures in learning
• 15:51:Influences, artistic admiration, and the joy of children’s literature
• 19:32:Diverse books, creative risk, and beyond the single story
• 23:50:Authors Against Book Bans: why the work began
• 30:57:Protecting the right to read: practical steps for educators
• 34:25:How families and community members can take action
• 37:46:Hope as a discipline and a warrior emotion

Featured Books by Maggie Tokuda-Hall

• What Do People Do at the Science Museum?, illustrated by Qin Leng
• Bath Time for Snow Monkeys, illustrated by Yas Imamura
• Love in the Library, illustrated by Yas Imamura

Organizations Mentioned

• American Library Association/United Against Book Bans
• PEN America
• School Library Journal
• Every Library
• Authors Against Book Bans

Classroom Connections

Maggie's two new picture books offer so many openings for learning through play, inquiry, literacy, poetry, and STEAM.

Ideas forWhat Do People Do at the Science Museum?,

• Create a “Who Makes a Museum?” class chart. Include scientists, researchers, educators, designers, artists, builders, greeters, exhibit technicians, writers, and visitors.
• Invite children to design their own curated museum exhibit about something they are curious about.
• Pair the book with a visit to a science museum, aquarium, children’s museum, natural history museum, zoo, or nature center. Allow the children's questions to help spark discovery.
• Ask: “What kinds of questions would you like a museum to help you investigate?”

Ideas for Bath Time for Snow Monkeys

• Read the book slowly and notice how haiku creates mood, movement, and stillness.
• Use the book as a mentor text for writing sensory poems about water, weather, animals, family routines, or calming moments.
• Explore the science of snow monkeys, hot springs, habitats, and animal behavior.
• Create watercolor, collage, or movement responses inspired by the book’s shifting palette and monkey expressions.

Join the Fight for the Freedom to Read:

We need everyone’s help to fight for the freedom to read. Here are some things you can do from Authors Against Book Bans:

• Stand: Stand with school libraries and tell your member of Congress to co-sponsor the Right to Read Act. 
• Call: Contact your representative and ask them to support the Fight Book Bans Act H.R. 6596
• Register. Show up. Vote. Vote in all elections and don’t forget the local ones! Voting in your local school and library board elections is one of the most effective ways you can protect the freedom to read. If you’re already registered to vote, get FIVE of your friends to register. Then grab those friends and head to the polls together.
• Act locally: Attend your local library and school board meetings. Learn how your community addresses and assesses book challenges and what books, if any, have been banned. Introduce yourself to your school and local librarians and ask how you can help. 
• Speak Out: Most school and library board meetings have time for public comment. Sign up to speak about why the freedom to read is critically important in your community and why censorship is both dangerous and damaging to everyone.

Support the show

Share this episode

If this conversation sparked wonder, gave you a helpful strategy, or offered a needed reminder of hope, please share it with a friend or colleague.

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Stay updated with our latest episodes and follow us on Instagram, LinkedIn, and the Adventures in Learning website. Don't forget to subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts!

*Disclosure: I am a Bookshop.org. affiliate.

The football game may be tied, but everyone knows what they have really been waiting for --the drum majors, dancers, booming percussion, shining instruments, and unforgettable joy of the band taking the field.

About This Episode

In Episode 209 of the Adventures in Learning podcast, Dr. Diane welcomes author and illustrator Shadra Strickland to celebrate her new picture book, Here Comes the Band, illustrated by John Holyfield.

This joyful conversation explores the rhythm, movement, color, sound, and community of the HBCU marching-band experience. Shadra shares how a halftime show sparked the “lightning bolt” idea for the book, how her own time as a high school band dancer shaped the story, and why John Holyfield was the perfect illustrator to bring its energy to the page.

We talk about growing up in Atlanta, the importance of telling stories rooted in culture and lived experience, and how picture books can offer children joyful windows into a world they may not have seen before. We also explore ways Here Comes the Bandcan inspire classroom music, movement, sound, art, and STEAM learning.

Most of all, this is an episode about community: the community found in a marching band, in classrooms, in friendships, in creative work, and in the stories that help young readers experience joy.

Chapters

• 00:53 The halftime-show moment that sparked the book
• 02:13 Shadra reads from Here Comes the Band
• 02:49 Sound, music, rhythm, and STEAM connections
• 04:03 Growing up in Atlanta and writing toward culture and joy
• 05:30 From high-school band dancer to picture-book creator
• 06:13 Family, school, and community roots in Atlanta
• 07:39 Discovering picture books through teaching
• 09:04 Why John Holyfield was the right illustrator for this story
• 10:39 The band as the true halftime show
• 12:44 New books and creative projects on the horizon
• 13:31 Teaching illustration and supporting emerging creators
• 14:31 The storytelling question: What are you sharing with a young person?
• 15:57 Visual details, musical instruments, and reading illustrations closely
• 17:23 What is bringing Shadra hope?

Links & Resources

Featured Book: Here Comes the Bandby Shadra Strickland, illustrated by John Holyfield

Other Books Mentioned in This Conversation:

• Nani and the Lion by Alicia D. Williams, illustrated by Anna Cunha
• Gifts from Crows, by Gideon Sterer, illustrated by Shadra Strickland
• The Doctor Bird by Matthew Olshan, illustrated by Shadra Strickland
• Be Big! by Shadra Strickland
• Jump In! by Shadra Strickland

Classroom Connections

Use Here Comes the Bandas an invitation to learn through play using the entire body. Here are a couple of ideas to try:

• Make sounds: Explore the “beep,” “tap,” “boom,” and “clang” sounds in the text using classroom instruments or found objects.
• Investigate rhythm: Clap, tap, stomp, or create repeating sound patterns inspired by the book.
• Study illustrations: Look closely at the band members, instruments, dancers, field formations, and audience. What details do the illustrations add that the text does not say?
• Move to learn: Create a classroom parade, design safe marching patterns, or invite children to explore how different instruments might move.
• Build instruments: Create simple instruments and investigate how their materials, size, and movement change the sounds they make.
• Celebrate community: Talk about the people who bring joy and energy to community events, even when they may not be the people everyone initially came to see.

Take Action

Here Comes the Bandis a celebration of movement, music, culture, creativity, community, and Black joy. Add it to your classroom, library, family bookshelf, or gift list—and then make some joyful noise together.

• Find a copy of Here Comes the Band through your favorite bookstore or library.
• Share this episode with a teacher, librarian, music educator, band director, artist, or picture book loving friend.
• Watch videos of HBCU bands performing their halftime shows. Create a simple class band or parade after reading and viewing.
• Subscribe, download, leave a review, and tell a friend about the Adventures in Learning podcast.
• Visit drdianadventures.com for full show notes, photos, and more learning adventures.

Support the show

Share this episode

If this conversation sparked wonder, gave you a helpful strategy, or offered a needed reminder of hope, please share it with a friend or colleague.

Subscribe • Download • Review • Tell a friend

Stay updated with our latest episodes and follow us on Instagram, LinkedIn, and the Adventures in Learning website. Don't forget to subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts!

*Disclosure: I am a Bookshop.org. affiliate.

What makes a day of the week your favorite? Swimming with Dad? Shabbat dinner? Chinese class? Fútbol with cousins? Grandma Day? What about trash day? In Our Favorite Day of the Week, ordinary routines become extraordinary windows into friendship, family, culture, and the joyful ways children see the world.

About This Episode

In Episode 208 of the Adventures in Learning podcast, Dr. Diane welcomes author Ashley Franklin and illustrator Rahele Jomepour Bell for their very first conversation together. We celebrate their new picture book, Our Favorite Day of the Week, a warm and joyful follow-up to Our Favorite Day of the Year.

Musa and his friends each have a favorite day—not because of a generic calendar rhyme, but because that day holds something meaningful: a family tradition, a beloved person, a community ritual, or a moment that makes a child feel fully seen. As the friends share their stories, young readers are invited to recognize that our routines may be different, but connection, belonging, and joy are things we all understand.

Ashley and Rahele take us behind the scenes of their creative process, talk about the importance of honoring children’s complex identities, and reflect on the power of picture books to offer both windows into other lives and mirrors in which children can recognize themselves. Our Favorite Day of the Week will be released on September 29, 2026. 

In This Episode

• Why Our Favorite Day of the Week belongs on classroom, library, and family bookshelves.
• How seven children’s favorite days become a celebration of family routines, culture, friendship, and community.
• The creative collaboration behind a picture book, especially when the author and illustrator have not met during the process.
• How Ashley Franklin approaches layered, authentic child characters and complex identities.
• How Rahele Jomepour Bell’s Persian and Iranian cultural influences, architectural memories, and love of detail shape her visual storytelling.
• Classroom possibilities: favorite-day graphs, personal narrative writing, family interviews, calendar exploration, and empathy-building community conversations.
• Sources of hope: children, creativity, and the stories young readers are eager to discover.

Chapters

• 00:00 Welcome: A picture book for every classroom bookshelf
• 01:13 Ashley Franklin and Rahele Jomepour Bell meet for the first time
• 01:41 Creating a sequel and finding the story’s voice
• 02:41 Seven favorite days, seven joyful perspectives
• 05:10 Classroom connections: identity, graphing, stories, and empathy
• 06:04 Cultural representation and the details that make stories feel true
• 08:47 Windows, mirrors, and everyday joy in picture books
• 10:10 Rahele’s artistic inspiration: Persian culture, architecture, and memory
• 12:00 Ashley on complex identities and writing children who feel seen
• 15:31 Finding the path to children’s books
• 20:06 What’s next: Our Favorite Time of Day and new projects
• 21:12 What is currently bringing Ashley and Rahele hope?

Book & Creator Links

• Featured Book: Our Favorite Day of the Week by Ashley Franklin, illustrated by Rahele Jomepour Bell
• Meet the Creators: Ashley Franklin and Rahele Jomepour Bell
• More Books Mentioned
  • Not Quite Snow White by Ashley Franklin, illustrated by Ebony Glenn
  • Our Favorite Day of the Yearby A. E. Ali, illustrated by Rahele Jomepour Bell
  • Last Stop on Market Street by Matt de la Peña, illustrated by Christian Robinson
  • We All Play by Julie Flett
  • You Matter by Christian Robinson

Classroom Connections

After reading Our Favorite Day of the Week  invite children to explore the stories and people behind their own favorite days.

• Favorite-day graph: Ask students to choose their favorite day of the week, graph the results, and notice similarities and differences in the class community.
• Personal narrative writing: Invite each child to complete the prompt, “My favorite day is _ because _.”
• Family and community interviews: Encourage children to ask a family member or trusted adult about their favorite day and the tradition, person, food, activity, or memory that makes it special.
• Calendar and culture study: Explore how calendars, weekly rhythms, faith traditions, family schedules, and community routines can shape our experiences of time.
• Windows and mirrors discussion: Ask, “Which part of this story felt like a mirror for you? Which part gave you a window into someone else’s life?”

Support the show

Share this episode

If this conversation sparked wonder, gave you a helpful strategy, or offered a needed reminder of hope, please share it with a friend or colleague.

Subscribe • Download • Review • Tell a friend

Stay updated with our latest episodes and follow us on Instagram, LinkedIn, and the Adventures in Learning website. Don't forget to subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts!

*Disclosure: I am a Bookshop.org. affiliate.

What does it take to turn former farmland into a thriving wildlife corridor—and build a conservation movement where women, local communities, rangers, and global partners all have a role to play? 

About This Episode

In Episode 207 of the Adventures in Learning podcast, Dr. Diane continues the Wild Tomorrow series with Tori Gray, Wild Tomorrow’s Development & Partner Relations Manager. Tori shares her journey from a 2017 intern to a conservation leader living and working in the bush in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. She takes us inside Wild Tomorrow’s growing Greater Ukuwela Nature Reserve, where habitat restoration, wildlife protection, local employment, and meaningful partnerships work together to create space for a wilder future.

This is a conversation about connection: connection to wildlife, to the land, to the people doing the daily work of conservation, and to the possibilities that emerge when we collaborate rather than compete. Tori reflects on the all-women Green Mambas restoration team, rhino protection and orphan care, the power of wildlife corridors, responsible conservation travel, and the advice she would offer young people hoping to build a career that protects the planet.

Wild Tomorrow works to protect, restore, and connect habitat in KwaZulu-Natal—part of a globally significant biodiversity region—while partnering with local communities and conservation organizations to protect threatened wildlife and wild spaces.

Chapters

• 00:50 From intern to Development & Partner Relations Manager
• 03:06 Growing a reserve: giraffe releases, land purchases, and rewilding
• 05:00 The Green Mambas: conservation, community, and women’s leadership
• 07:54 Why conservation begins with connection to nature
• 12:34 Stronger together: partnerships for rhino conservation
• 13:54 Rhino orphan care, anti-poaching, and prevention
• 18:04 From pineapple farm to wildlife corridor
• 20:47 Removing 300 snares—and a wild dog’s hopeful return
• 22:51 Turning snares into stories, art, and awareness
• 23:30 How a childhood love of elephants became a conservation career
• 26:34 Brody, the conservation corgi
• 27:08 What brings Tori hope

Highlights

• Tori began with Wild Tomorrow as an intern in 2017, shortly after the organization purchased its first 500-hectare property. Today, the Greater Ukuwela Nature Reserve has expanded to more than 5,000 acres of protected habitat.
• Wild Tomorrow’s Green Mambas are an all-women habitat restoration team whose work includes removing invasive plants and helping restore grasslands, woodlands, and forest systems so native vegetation and wildlife can recover.
• Through restoration, rewilding, anti-poaching support, community partnerships, and conservation education, Wild Tomorrow is working to connect larger protected landscapes and create more room for wildlife to move and thrive.
• Tori reminds us that conservation needs many kinds of skills. Whether your strengths are in science, fundraising, communications, education, tourism, project management, art, or relationship-building, there is a meaningful place for you in protecting our shared planet.

Links & Resources

Wild Tomorrow

• Wild Tomorrow: Protecting Threatened Wildlife and Wild Spaces
• Meet the Wild Tomorrow Team
• Volunteer with Wild Tomorrow in South Africa
• Children's Book Creators for Conservation Bring a Splash of Color and Creativity (aka Dr. Diane's trip with Wild Tomorrow)
• Learn About the Green Mambas
• Celebrating the Green Mambas
• Habitat Restoration at Greater Ukuwela Nature Reserve
• Wild Tomorrow Education Fund
• Support Wild Tomorrow’s Community Work

Listen to the Full Series

Explore the complete Wild Tomorrow series on the Adventures in Learning podcast:

• Episode 189: From Boots to a Wildlife Corridor—The Wild Tomorrow Story with Co-Founders John Steward and Wendy Hapgood (Part 1)
• Episode 193: People, Preschoolers, and Planet—Community Conservation with Wild Tomorrow’s Aphiwe Notshaya (Part 2)
• Episode 198: Rewilding, Restoration, and Hope—Kevin Jolliffe and the Wild Tomorrow Story
• Episode 199: Rangers, Resilience, and Hope with Sibiya Siyabonga | Wild Tomorrow, Part 4
• Episode 204: Hope in the Field—The Green Mambas of Wild Tomorrow

Take Action

If this conversation inspires you, please share it with a teacher, librarian, young conservationist, wildlife lover, or friend who needs a little hopeful news.

• Subscribe to Adventures in Learning wherever you listen to podcasts.
• Listen to the full Wild Tomorrow series and meet the people restoring habitat, supporting communities, and protecting wildlife in South Africa.
• Visit Wild Tomorrow to learn, donate, follow their work, or explore an immersive conservation experience.
• Talk with the young people in your life about the issues and animals they care about. As Tori reminds us, a lifelong conservation journey can begin with simply being “obsessed” with an animal, asking questions, meeting people, and following that curiosity.

Support the show

Share this episode

If this conversation sparked wonder, gave you a helpful strategy, or offered a needed reminder of hope, please share it with a friend or colleague.

Subscribe • Download • Review • Tell a friend

Stay updated with our latest episodes and follow us on Instagram, LinkedIn, and the Adventures in Learning website. Don't forget to subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts!

*Disclosure: I am a Bookshop.org. affiliate.

What happens when four kid detectives go undercover in Miami's graffiti underground to track down a protest artist who doesn't want to be found? You get Art Attack—the newest Sherlock Society mystery from Edgar Award–winning author James Ponti.

About This Episode

In this warm and lively return conversation, bestselling author James Ponti joins me to unpack his brand-new middle grade mystery, Art Attack (The Sherlock Society #3), out September 8, 2026. We dive into the world of street art, the ethics of graffiti as expression, and how James researched the scene—yes, including taking a real graffiti class in Miami's Wynwood Arts District. Along the way, we talk character growth across the series, the joy of Spirit Week mishaps, and why James believes kids deserve stories that respect their curiosity about justice, the environment, and their own power to make a difference.

You'll also hear sneak peeks about what's next in both the Sherlock Society and City Spies series—including wildlife trafficking in Miami and a globe-trotting spy mission from the Arctic to the Great Barrier Reef.

Chapters & Timestamps

• [00:00] Cold open: James reads the opening of Art Attack
• [01:26] Welcome back, James! Why graffiti? Why Miami?
• [03:13] Research in action: the graffiti class and "Funky Monkey"
• [06:53] Tags, spy names, and STEAM connections (art + mystery + voice)
• [09:33] Banksy, anonymity, and protest art for middle grade readers
• [12:46] Character growth across the series (kids AND Grandpa)
• [15:52] Spirit Week, embarrassment, and writing what feels human
• [18:58] What's next: Sherlock Society #4 (wildlife trafficking) + City Spies: Operation Oz
• [23:02] The children's literature community: collaboration over competition
• [27:54] Tackling big issues without preaching—trusting young readers
• [31:39] The read-aloud effect: empathy, vocabulary, and getting swept away
• [34:03] What's bringing James hope right now (hint: it's kid mail)
• [35:25] Book tour info

Links & Resources

James Ponti's Books (Sherlock Society & More)

• Art Attack (The Sherlock Society #3) – Aladdin, September 8, 2026
• The Sherlock Society #1 and #2 – earlier titles in the series
• City Spies series – including the upcoming Operation Oz (February 2027)

Previous Adventures in Learning Episodes with James Ponti

• Find James's earlier Adventures in Learning Podcast conversations (Episodes 69, 98, 119, and 175) in your favorite podcast app or at drdianadventures.com.

Book Tour & Events

• James is on tour this fall for Art Attack. Click here for tour dates. 

Call to Action

• Grab your copy of Art Attack this week and follow the Sherlock Society into Miami's street art scene.
• Subscribe, download, and share this episode with a teacher, librarian, or young reader who loves mysteries with heart.
• Want ready-to-use strategies to spark curiosity and lead with empathy in your school or organization? Explore my talks and workshops at drdianadventures.com.

Support the show

Share this episode

If this conversation sparked wonder, gave you a helpful strategy, or offered a needed reminder of hope, please share it with a friend or colleague.

Subscribe • Download • Review • Tell a friend

Stay updated with our latest episodes and follow us on Instagram, LinkedIn, and the Adventures in Learning website. Don't forget to subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts!

*Disclosure: I am a Bookshop.org. affiliate.

What if the right story can help a child feel seen, a quiet voice feel heard, and a classroom become a place of real connection? In Episode 205 of the Adventures in Learning podcast, Dr. Diane welcomes beloved educator, librarian, author, and a magician of a book matchmaker John Schu for a conversation full of heart, hope, theater, joy walking, and the life-changing power of books.

John has a remarkable gift for connecting readers with the stories they need, not just the books they will enjoy, but the books that might help them feel less alone. In this episode, he shares how his deep observation, empathy, and lifelong experience of feeling “on the outside looking in” shapes his work as a teacher, librarian, author, and champion for young readers. He also introduces the three words that guide him in every school visit: care, connect, and capacious.

We talk about John’s newest picture book, Lily-May’s Joyful Day, a tender companion to Ruthie Rose’s Big Idea. Lily-May’s story celebrates the quieter children in the room, the ones whose bags may not overflow with treasures, but whose hearts are full of ideas, wonder, and possibility. Together, we explore “joy walking,” a practice of slowing down, noticing the world, opening the suitcase of your heart, and making space for creativity to arrive. 

John also shares the personal connection between his joyful picture books and his powerful novel in verse, Louder Than Hunger. We talk honestly about the healing power of stories, why some books become lifelines, the importance of giving children access to the books they truly need, and how joy can be part of caring for our hearts through difficult work. We also take a joyful detour into Broadway, favorite current reads, and John’s upcoming book, This Is a Theater,  a love letter to everyone who helps make theater magic happen.

Chapters

• 00:00 Welcome, John Schu, America’s book magician
• 01:14 Katherine Applegate’s question: How does John find the right book for the right child?
• 02:00 Reading hearts, noticing children, and sharing stories
• 04:19 Care, connect, and capacious: John’s three C’s
• 05:48 From This Is a Story to Lily-May’s Joyful Day
• 08:01 How Louder Than Hunger shaped Ruthie Rose and Lily-May
• 12:53 When a book becomes a lifeline
• 17:03 Joy walking: disconnecting, noticing, and opening the suitcase of your heart
• 18:46 Bags of Y-O-U: helping students share who they are
• 20:05 Quiet children, big hearts, and classroom belonging
• 20:47 Broadway, connection, and the theater we need
• 25:55 A sneak peek at This Is a Theater
• 27:38 Mr. Schu’s current book recommendations
• 31:47 What is bringing John hope?

Why listen

• Hear John Schu explain how he matches children with books that may help them feel recognized, connected, and understood.
• Discover how Lily-May’s Joyful Day can support classroom community, quiet students, reflection, and joyful learning.
• Learn about “joy walking” and John’s classroom-ready Bags of Y-O-U activity.
• Listen to an honest, compassionate conversation about Louder Than Hunger, healing through literature, and the books that become lifelines.
• Leave with a fresh stack of Mr. Schu book recommendations and a renewed reminder to share your heart.

Links and resources

John Schu’s books

• Explore and pre-order Lily-May’s Joyful Day, illustrated by Holly Hatam
• The Gift of Story: Exploring the Affective Side of the Reading Life
• This Is a Story 
• This Is a School
• Ruthie Rose’s Big Idea
• Louder Than Hunger
• This Is a Theater, illustrated by Jaime Kim

Mentioned in the episode

• The Unlikely Tale of Chase and Finnegan by Jasmine Warga
• Max, a Little Axolotl by Joey Spiotto
• Orris and Timble Star Stories by Kate DiCamillo, illustrated by Carmen Mok
• School for Woodland Creatures by Lauren Castillo
• Adventures in the City of Storiesby Emma Otheguy
• Wombat Waiting by Katherine Applegate

Call to action

Take a joyful walk this week. Leave your phone behind (or put it on airplane mode) and give yourself time to notice what is around you. Bring a notebook if you can. Listen. Wander. Observe. Let your mind make room for new ideas.

And if you are an educator, try John’s Bag of Y-O-U invitation with your students. Ask them to decorate a small bag and place two or three items inside that tell something meaningful about who they are. Make time to listen as they share. You may discover that the quietest child in the room has the biggest story waiting to be heard.

Support the show

Share this episode

If this conversation sparked wonder, gave you a helpful strategy, or offered a needed reminder of hope, please share it with a friend or colleague.

Subscribe • Download • Review • Tell a friend

Stay updated with our latest episodes and follow us on Instagram, LinkedIn, and the Adventures in Learning website. Don't forget to subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts!

*Disclosure: I am a Bookshop.org. affiliate.

What does hope look like when it is rooted in the land, carried home to your children, and shared through song?In Episode 204 of the Adventures in Learning podcast, Dr. Diane continues the Wild Tomorrow series with two remarkable Green Mambas, Senzeleni Ngcobo and Philile Mdluli.

The Green Mambas are part of Wild Tomorrow’s all-women ecosystem-restoration team in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Their work includes removing invasive plants, helping restore native habitat, supporting tree planting, learning fire-safety and first-aid skills, and welcoming guests and volunteers into the work of rewilding. But this conversation is about much more than conservation. It is about work that creates independence, supports families, strengthens community, and makes a future feel possible.

Senzeleni and Philile share what has changed since joining Wild Tomorrow in 2018: being able to send their children to school, afford transportation and warm clothes, contribute to their families, and build homes of their own. They speak about learning to feel at home in the forest, gaining new skills, and teaching their children to care for plants, animals, and the planet. And throughout the episode, they share the music and laughter that bring joy to their days in the field.

This is Part 5 of the Wild Tomorrow series. In previous episodes, we heard Wild Tomorrow’s founding story from John Steward and Wendy Hapgood; explored community conservation with Aphiwe Notshaya; learned about ecosystem restoration with reserve manager Kevin Jolliffe; and joined Sibiya Siyabonga for a conversation about ranger life, resilience, and hope. This episode brings us directly to the women whose daily work is helping turn Wild Tomorrow’s vision into reality.

Chapters

• 00:00 Welcome to the Green Mambas
• 01:13 Meeting Senzeleni and Philile
• 04:13 What the Green Mambas do
• 06:36 Rewilding, invasive plants, and tree planting
• 07:30 Singing through the work
• 08:32 How work with Wild Tomorrow changed their families’ lives
• 09:54 From fearing the forest to feeling at home
• 11:07 Conservation in partnership with community
• 13:09 Learning new skills in the field
• 15:27 Lessons they are sharing with their children
• 16:08 What brings hope
• 17:12 A final song and “Siyabonga”

Why Listen

• Hear directly from two women whose daily work restores habitat and creates opportunity for their families.
• Learn how rewilding includes invasive-species removal, tree planting, wildlife protection, fire management, and community engagement.
• Discover a community-centered conservation model that recognizes women as leaders in restoration.
• Be reminded that hope can take many forms: meaningful work, new skills, children thriving, friendship, laughter, and song.

Other Episodes In the Wild Tomorrow Series

• Part 1: From Boots to a Wildlife Corridor: The Wild Tomorrow Story with John Steward and Wendy Hapgood
• Part 2: People, Preschoolers, and Planet: Community Conservation with Aphiwe Notshaya
• Part 3: Rewilding, Restoration, and Hope with Kevin Jolliffe
• Part 4: Rangers, Resilience, and Hope with Sibiya Siyabonga

More Resources

• Learn more about the Green Mambas, Wild Tomorrow’s all-women restoration team.wildtomorrow
• Read Wild Tomorrow’s celebration of the Green Mambas and their work in habitat restoration: Celebrating the Green Mambas.
• Visit Wild Tomorrow to support wildlife conservation, rewilding, and community-centered work in South Africa.
• Find full show notes, photos, and more episodes at Dr. Diane Adventures.

Call to action

Listen to the full episode, share it with someone who cares about women in conservation, and take time to learn the whole story of rewilding. Restoring land is not only about planting trees or removing invasive plants. It is also about investing in people, supporting families, building skills, and creating communities where wildlife and people can thrive together.

Siyabonga — thank you — to Senzeleni, Philile, and every Green Mamba whose work reminds us that hope is not abstract. It is something we build, plant, protect, sing about, and carry forward together.

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*Disclosure: I am a Bookshop.org. affiliate.

What if the best start to a school year is not a perfect one, but a caring one? In Episode 203 of the Adventures in Learning podcast, Dr. Diane welcomes back author Trudy Ludwig to talk about her new picture book, A Not So Perfect Start — the first title in her new The Caring Classroom series.

Trudy’s books have long helped children, families, and educators make the invisible visible, exploring topics like big feelings, anxiety, perfectionism, friendship challenges, empathy, belonging, and the courage to try again. On Episode 203, we explore how classrooms become true communities, why mistakes are essential to growth, and how books and play can help children practice the social-emotional skills they need to navigate a complicated world.

In this conversation, Trudy offers practical wisdom for the new school year, including suggestions for empower tools to help children respond to and navigate hurtful behaviors. Her central message is one every child (and grown up) needs to hear. We all want to feel valued, seen, and heard.

Chapters

• 01:42 Making the invisible visible through story
• 02:25 Introducing A Not So Perfect Start and The Caring Classroom
• 04:14 Being in a community vs. being part of one
• 05:49 The SEL needs educators asked Trudy to address
• 08:46 Anxiety, perfectionism, and emotional resilience
• 12:42 Literature, play, and practicing big feelings safely
• 16:41 Trudy’s “empower tools” for responding to hurtful behavior
• 20:59 Bringing A Not So Perfect Start into schools this year
• 22:11 Resources for creating a caring classroom community
• 25:34 When students write the next chapter
• 28:31 Why kids are bringing Trudy hope

Why listen

• Discover why A Not So Perfect Start is a timely read-aloud for preschool and early elementary students.
• Learn how stories can help children build emotional vocabulary, resilience, and a stronger sense of belonging.
• Hear practical ideas for using picture books, role-play, story walks, and student-created sequels to make social-emotional learning active and meaningful.
• Take away Trudy’s age-appropriate “empower tools” for responding to rudeness, meanness, and bullying.

Links and resources

• Listen to Trudy Ludwig’s first appearance on Episode 8 of the Adventures in Learning podcast
• Purchase A Not So Perfect Start and check out Trudy's catalog of books
• Find classroom activities and lesson plans for Trudy’s books
• Visit Trudy Ludwig’s website

Call to action

Start the school year by choosing care over perfection. Read A Not So Perfect Start with your students or family, then invite children to talk about the moments when they feel worried about making mistakes. Make space for them to name big feelings, practice an “empower tool,” create a class community agreement, or write the next chapter for one of Trudy’s characters.

A caring classroom is not a room where everything goes perfectly. It is a place where every child knows that mistakes are part of learning, and that they belong while they figure things out.

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Share this episode

If this conversation sparked wonder, gave you a helpful strategy, or offered a needed reminder of hope, please share it with a friend or colleague.

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*Disclosure: I am a Bookshop.org. affiliate.

How do we help multilingual learners move beyond giving the right answer to communicating like scientists, historians, readers, writers, and thinkers? In Episode 202 of the Adventures in Learning podcast, Dr. Diane welcomes Beth Skelton and Tan Huynh for a deeply practical, joy-filled conversation about making language instruction more explicit, more integrated, and more human for all learners.

Beth and Tan share strategies from their work with experienced multilingual learners, including the “input-output loop,” intentional chunking, sentence-pattern charts, and planning backward from the language students need in order to show what they know. Whether you teach early childhood, elementary, middle, or high school, this episode offers concrete ways to keep expectations high while giving every learner the tools they need to reach the mountaintop.

Along the way, we talk about collaboration, the importance of teaching students how to respond to academic prompts such as describe, contrast, and explain, and why compassion in education does not mean lowering the bar. It means building a better trail — with more ropes, poles, supports, and opportunities for every student to climb.

Why listen

• Learn how to integrate language development into the content you already teach.
• Explore strategies that help multilingual learners write, speak, read, and think with greater precision.
• Hear classroom-ready examples using science concepts, picture books, gestures, sentence patterns, and structured quick writes.
• Take away a powerful approach to collaboration as you lead with curiosity, connection, and “yes, and.”

Chapters

• 01:04 What multilingual learners need from schools
• 03:49 Why academic language must be taught explicitly
• 05:01 Helping students sound like scientists
• 07:34 Supporting experienced multilingual learners beyond the plateau
• 10:16 From reading a text to writing with purpose
• 13:19 Bringing intentional language into early childhood learning
• 15:17 The input-output loop: short chunks, meaningful processing
• 18:45 Sentence-pattern charts for content and language together
• 22:20 Keep the mountaintop high; give students more tools to climb
• 25:50 Teaching literacy instead of only assigning literacy tasks
• 30:20 Teaching students what prompts like “describe” and “explain” require
• 32:06 From social media connection to a powerful co-author partnership
• 33:32 “Yes, and”: collaboration that builds relationships
• 37:37 What brings Beth and Tan hope

Links and resources

• Look for Beth Skelton and Tan Huynh’s work, including Long-Term Success for Experienced Multilinguals and Integrated Literacy for Experienced Multilinguals.
• Listen to Beth's appearance on Episode 109 of the Adventures in Learning podcast.
• Listen to Tan's Teaching ML's Podcast.

Call to action

Listen with a notebook nearby, because Beth and Tan offer ideas you can try immediately. Choose one upcoming lesson, identify the language students will need to express the content, and build in one small input-output loop: a short chunk of learning, a chance to gesture, talk, draw, write, or reflect, and a clear pathway for students to put their thinking into words.

The mountain stays high. Our job is to make sure more students have what they need to climb it.

Support the show

Share this episode

If this conversation sparked wonder, gave you a helpful strategy, or offered a needed reminder of hope, please share it with a friend or colleague.

Subscribe • Download • Review • Tell a friend

Stay updated with our latest episodes and follow us on Instagram, LinkedIn, and the Adventures in Learning website. Don't forget to subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts!

*Disclosure: I am a Bookshop.org. affiliate.