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June 2, 1999
Book by GFWfirst-grader winsnational awardBy GUY PRIEL Journal Staff Writer GIBBON -- Learning the connection between writing and reading is the goal for first-grade students at GFW Elementary School. For one student, the connection is really genuine because he has received national recognition for what started out as a simple class project. Alex Platz, 7, a student in Mary Hillman's class, wrote and illustrated a book entitled "Farm Machinery" as part of a required project known as Writer's Workshop in which every student publishes at least one book. He received a certificate of participation from the Fifth Annual Reading Rainbow Young Writers and Illustrators Awards Contest. The certificate was signed by actor Le Var Burton, best known for his roles as Kunta Kinte on the television version of "Roots" and as Lt. Geordi La Forge on Star Trek: The Next Generation. Burton is the host of the PBS children's show "Reading Rainbow." "It is quite an honor to have a recognized writer in our class," Hillman said. "We are very proud of him. He did an excellent job and worked really hard." Combining reading, writing and drawing at the same time can be difficult for some students, but Alex did a great job merging those skills, Hillman said. "I wrote another book about race tracks. But I like farm equipment, so I wrote about that for this book," Platz said. Platz lives on a farm near Lafayette. He really enjoys everything about farming, which was the basis for his book. "Everyone in the first grade publishes a book as part of our curriculum for the language arts program," Hillman said. "They end up being special books because there is so much work involved. They are also very personalized books." "With books submitted to 'Reading Rainbow,' there are no computers allowed in the entire process, everything must be done freehand, especially the drawings," Hillman said. The process of producing books is actually very detailed, involving at least two steps. In Alex Platz' case, the book was actually written three times. "The students write the books and then illustrate them once on a dummy form," she said. "Then, I type the books on the computer, and the students will illustrate them again." The students then develop a cover for their books, and the pages are stapled and glued together or are bound with rings. "His mother, who volunteers in my class, actually retyped the book and submitted it to Reading Rainbow, meaning he had to illustrate the book a third time," she said. The goal of the writing contest, according to Reading Rainbow spokesman Thomas Ericson, is to promote children's love of literature and appetite for learning. "It is a voluntary process and usually parents or teachers make the decision to submit something for the contest," Ericson said. "The books are then judged by a panel and the top three are selected. All participants receive a certificate." In Platz' case, his mother made sure the book was completed and submitted for the contest. "The teacher told me that Alex had a good book and he would have a good chance of receiving recognition and I should submit it," Donita Platz said. "The teacher told me it would take more time to prepare for submission than he would have at school." Hillman gave Donita Platz all the materials for the book, and Alex would work on one or two pages a night. "The only thing I did was type the book into the computer, because I told him that it had to be his project," she said. "the school laminated the cover and bound the book so I could submit it." Although she encouraged her son to work on the book at home, his enthusiasm for the project propelled his efforts. It also helped that an older brother also urged him to finish the book. "I never knew the writing program existed until I saw a commercial one day while watching Channel 2," she said. "And to get a certificate signed by Le Var Burton is quite an honor. I am proud of him."
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