3rd Grade Student Art

This past week I visited the Blue Riboon Award-Winning Pontiac Elementary School in Elgin, SC, and presented cartooning programs during their arts day celebration. Students were very excited to draw Hamster Sam, Miles the inchworm and Eli the cotton boll from the book. Then they applied what they learned to create their own characters. I am frequently presented with artwork from students who wish for me to have their creations, and this visit was no exception. Seen here is what I consider to be remarkable artwork from a young 3rd grade student. Yes, 3rd Grade! "Justin" drew his own version of Hamster Sam in a (Charlotte NBA) Bobcats uniform along with "Eli" and "Miles"; and then added his own characters. I am amazed by the control he seemed to have with his pencil, and the steadiness of the lines- especially in the oval & circle shaped eyes. Of course, I am always happy to see all of the student works- no matter what skill level they exhibit. They have grins a mile wide when proudly showing me their art; which makese me smile too! But I had to share this young boy's artwork; for someday he may employ me for his comic!

Teacher Workshops

I recently led a series of workshops in cooperation with the education team at the Gaston County Museum of Art & History in Dallas, NC. "Bringing Cartooning and Puppetry to the Classroom" was a workshop series made possible through state and local arts grants, and was attended by about 20 Gaston County educators. Participants were teachers in grades K-12, and a majority were art teachers. Quite a broad spectrum of grade levels; but we managed to explore activities and create lesson plans that focused on how to integrate the art of cartooning/comic books and puppetry into the classroom. I presented cartooning techniques, and we explored the process of creating comics, and then how to incorporate the use of primary sources into the comic, in a similar way that my Hamster Sam book combines comics and historical images. Teachers worked in groups and independently throughout the workshops to create their own comic activity, and I was blown away (as I always am) by the level of creativity that teachers possess. And the cool thing is, teachers have wonderful ways of transferring their ideas into lessons that involve the students. Program director Jeff Pruett and Educator Arlena Meek from the museum shared ideas and resources for gathering primary sources, and led the group on a tour of 2 different museum exhibits to demonstrate the potential that historic documents, photographs, and artifacts have as primary sources. From all indications, (I 've not read the feedback forms yet) the group was excited about the content of the workshops, and their seemed to be a heightened level of enthusiasm as the program came to an end. I always benefit from these workshop settings as well; the sharing of ideas and excitement for learning always makes for a creative boost of energy that I really enjoy. Museum director Elizabeth Dampier along with Arlena and Jeff are to be commended; they constantly look for innovative approaches to education, and like Hamster Sam, they "Think outside the Cage!". Visit them at: http://www.gastoncountymuseum.org/ And a final word of appreciation to all of the teachers out there; thank you for what you do!!!!!

Poster Art Tease...

In preparation for 2 statewide conferences coming up, I have been busy doing production work on a "Hamster Sam Discovers South Carolina" Poster that will be given to those who attend my sessions. I am presenting at SCIRA next month, and at SCASL in March; and those educators who are brave enough to discover their 'inner cartoonist' will be rewarded with this brand new hot-off-the-presses poster of the state of South Carolina for their classroom or media center! Here you can see some of the illustration work featuring geography and our state mammal, the whitetail deer in his natural habitat: The Ski Slopes! Yes- odd as it may seem; this is how I view the world; through cartoon-colored glasses. If you are attending either of these conferences; please come and say hello.

Hamster Sam takes Bronze Medal in Moonbeam Children's Book Awards!

I am thrilled to announce that "The Secret Adventures of Hamster Sam: Attack of the Evil Boll Weevils!" has just been honored with a Bronze Medal in the 2008 Moonbeam Children's Book Awards, in the category of comic/graphic novel. I am especially excited, as this is my first book. Here is a quote from the national press release:
"This year’s award-winning books present a diverse range of subjects and formats, and the winning publishers are widely dispersed geographically. Moonbeam medals were awarded to authors and publishers from 30 U.S. states, four Canadian provinces, and four countries overseas. The cause of promoting childhood literacy knows no boundaries, and the award winners illustrate that point well, coming not only from long-established publishers and university presses, but from small presses, foundations, museums, and self-published entrepreneurs."
There were over 1,000 entries in 31 categories this year. To learn more about the award winners and the organization that presents the awards, please visit this web address:
http://www.independentpublisher.com/article.php?page=1250
All of the medal winning books from the awards will be on display during the American Library Association's Conference in Denver this coming January. This will be great in terms of exposure for the book. Promotion and publicity like this are vital for book producers like myself to gain a larger audience. Hurray for Hamster Sam!

Teen Program

In keeping with the "Cartooning Programs" theme, I wanted to share some pics from a summer teen program I did in Florence, SC at the beautiful new public library (hint: don't walk on the grass!). Teen Librarian Julie Vaught and crew were forced to stop the program briefly to set up additional tables and chairs for the parade of teens who were flooding in to join the fun. There really was no difference in the amount of enthusiasm shown by a group of teens, compared to my elementary school crowds. Clearly, comics have captivated this normally restless age group, as you could hear a pin drop throughout the program. The one thing that I did notice with teens is that some of them already have a clearly defined drawing style, and have their own characters they have been working on.

Cartooning Programs!

I had a blast this summer presenting cartooning programs in schools, museums and shown here; libraries. Imaginon in Uptown Charlotte is the result of the combined forces of the Children's Theater and the Public Library of Charlotte-Mecklenburg County. It is an awesome "kids-only" library and a performance space with several theaters, a cool teen area and a studio to get your hands on real stop-motion animation equipment to create your own movies! If only such a place existed when I was young. I had the opportunity to present my mini-cartooning camp at Imaginon for kids 8-12 who had pre-registered. Some of these young artists had pretty impressive skills, and one had a portfolio filled with pages and pages of drawings. They were definitely interested in creating their own comics and stories. It was really cool. Here are some photos taken by children's librarian and all around nice guy Bill Corder. Please contact me for information about my programs and workshops, I'd love talk to you about a visit to your school or library! 'Till next time....keep your pencils sharpened!

Welcome to the Studio!

Hello educators, parents, young readers and newcomers to the world of Hamster Sam Comics! Welcome to the studio...the drawing board...the place where you can "think outside the cage!" My name is Dave McDonald, and I'm a cartoonist and the author/illustrator of a new graphic novel for young readers titled, The Secret Adventures of Hamster Sam: Attack of the Evil Boll Weevils! If you just can't wait to find out more about it; you can rush on over to hamstersam.com and find out what the scoop is! But be warned: Kids who have read 'Hamster Sam' have been known to not only fall over laughing...but (gulp!) have actually discovered that they enjoy reading!
The book was released last Spring, and I've since been traveling to schools, libraries and museums with different cartooning programs and workshops. I even present a staff development/teacher workshop that goes along with the book. I'll post "show & tell" reports from some of my visits here so you can see how much fun I have! Young artists- send me your drawings of Hamster Sam or Miles the inchworm, and I'll post them here(first name only will be credited for safety reasons). Perhaps I'll even do a "behind the scenes" feature to show you how I create and draw Hamster Sam and make my comics! Plus, since everyone I talk to about Hamster Sam is asking, "When are you going to write the next book?", this will be the place to get updates on the next adventure....so stay tuned people! All for now, my friends...