About the Author
I have been writing stories ever since I was in grade school. The first one
I remember was a made up legend about the creation of thunder, lightning,
rain, and hail. That was third grade and when my love of weather began.
Growing up in Los Angeles, I wasn't used to "real" weather- or snow for that
matter. One December morning at school it did snow! The principal came in
and told our teacher to let us play outside. That memory still sticks
today.
Years later, as an elementary school teacher, my classes ran a school
weather station. That led to my first published book, The Weather Report.
It also landed me a consulting position with The Weather Channel. My first
TV weathercasting job was in San Luis Obispo, CA- while I was teaching. Now
over 25 years later I have been on TV at several different stations. I have
also written several books on weather for children- both fiction and
non-fiction.
Writing about national parks is my favorite subject. My
national park adventure series, the Adventures with the Parkers currently
has 13 books published taking place in: Sequoia/Kings Canyon, Zion/Bryce,
the Grand Canyon, Yosemite, Yellowstone, the Great Smoky Mountains, Olympic,
Glacier, the Rocky Mountains, Arches/Canyonlands, Mount
Rushmore/Badlands/Wind Cave, Acadia, and Grand Teton. This series has
received national attention and awards. I also has several non-fiction books
out on national parks, including the recently released, Pop-Up and Build
Guide to the National Parks.
I also have books on many other subjects and now have
over 90 published works.
I spent ten years teaching 4th and 5th grades and GATE classes. I was also
a district mentor teacher in science and weather. Additionally, my first
year of teaching, I was recognized as one of the Top 100 New Teachers in
the Country.
My favorite thing about being a writer is visiting schools and presenting.
I have ten different presentations and workshops to offer. They are tailored
to meet a variety of age and ability levels.
My background includes:
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• Upper grade elementary school and GATE
teacher for 10 years
• Weathercaster on air for 25 years at
different stations
• Instructor for Child Development and
Education Departments at California State University, Chico, CA
