Students get to hear author, illustrator

Students at Sivells and Dawson elementary schools are in for a special treat next Monday and Tuesday.

Book illustrator Loren Long and author Bill Bildner will be at the schools to present programs those two days.

The pair will offer programs at Sivells Elementary School on Monday at 8:30 a.m. , 9:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m.

On Tuesday they will be speaking with students at 8:15 a.m., 9:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m.

Illustrator Loren Long was reared in Lexington, Ky. He pursued graduate level studies at the American Academy of Art in Chicago after graduating with a BA in graphic design/art studio from the University of Kentucky.

After graduation Long worked as an illustrator for a greeting card company in Cincinnati before beginning his career as a freelance illustrator.

Since then, Long has received numerous accolades for painting style. He has been awarded two gold medals from the Society of Illustrators in New York, and has been frequently selected for their annual exhibition and book.

His work has also appeared in many other major annual exhibitions such as American Illustration, Communication Arts, Step By Step Graphics and Print.

He has recently concentrated on illustrating books for young readers where his work has garnered much recognition and praise.

Author Phil Bildner was reared in the New York City suburb of Jericho, Long Island. He attended the Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Md., where he received his undergraduate degree in political science.

Bildner then attended the New York University School of Law and was admitted to the bar in both New York and New Jersey.

He went to work for a large Manhattan law firm; however, after working there for about a year, Phil realized a career in the field of law was not for him.

His first love was always teaching and working with children, so he decided to pursue a career in education. Bildner went back to school and earned a master's degree in elementary education from Long Island University.

At the same time, Phil also began teaching in the New York City Public Schools. For his first five years as a teacher, he taught fifth and sixth grade in the Tremont section of the South Bronx.

Because of the poor conditions at the school, Bildner often had to teach without classroom basics - paper, pencils or chalk for the blackboard.

As a result, he had to devise creative and innovative ways to conduct his class. He incorporated music and song lyrics into his language arts curriculum, and his inspired approach brought musical groups such as the Dave Matthews Band, Barenaked Ladies, Blues Traveler, and Lauryn Hill and Wyclef Jean of The Fugees to his classroom.

For six years, Bildner taught English and American History to the sixth, seventh and eighth grades.

As a published author, he shared his experiences as a writer with his students. Using his picture books as models, many of his students created their own picture books.

As a year-end project, the students picked a topic in history or an historical figure, researched it, and shaped it into their own book to be shared with the class.

Last year marked his first full year away from teaching and the classroom. Early in the year, Bildner celebrated the release of his first teen novel, Playing the Field, and then in the fall, his latest picture book, The Greatest Game Ever Played, a football story, hit store shelves.

This year has been equally exciting. Bildner and Long launched their highly anticipated middle grade chapter series, Barnstormers: Tales of the Travelin' Nine.

Book I came out in February and Book II launched in September. Incredibly, Book I made it to the New York Times Bestseller List.

In addition, Bildner's second teen novel, Busted, reached store shelves in August.