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Dianne Ochiltree (Florida) is the author of 'It's a Seashell Day' (2016) and 'It's a Firefly Night' (2013), both are published by Blue Apple Books. Additionally, Dianne has also authored 'Sixteen Runaway Pumpkins' (2004) and 'Ten Monkey Jamboree' (2002), both are published by Simon & Schuster Children's - Margaret K. McElderry. Dianne's earlier mathematical stories - 'Sunflowers Measure Up!' (2003), 'Bart's Amazing Charts' (1999) and 'Cats Add Up!' (1998) - appeared in Scholastic's long-running 'Hello Math Reader' series. To learn more about these stories, read our reviews, and find out where you can purchase them, simply click on their covers below. We hope you enjoy reading Dianne sharing her experience of working on these incredible mathematical story projects with you! Connect with Dianne:
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First thing first, can you tell us three interesting/weird facts about you :-)
I’d be glad to!
How would you describe your relationship with mathematics and mathematics learning when you were younger? And now? When I was growing up, I struggled with math. I didn’t think it was something I could do well, because I was the kid who loved to write stories, and draw pictures to go along with them. In short, it didn’t come naturally to me, so I assumed I could not be good at it. I only gained real confidence in my ability to master school math class the year I had an extraordinary teacher who assured me that I was smart enough to do the work IF I had the patience to work it through. He was also able to explain the math concepts in a few different ways, which helped me greatly. This helped me not only survive algebra but gave me a good skill set for problem-solving, math or otherwise. Approach a problem from a few different angles and your chance of succeeding is so much greater. What inspired you to write picture books with a mathematical focus for young children? Definitely inspired by my personal struggles with math as a kid. My goal is to write a fun story in a way that explains a math concept while making a child smile while learning. Why do you prefer creating mathematical picture books with a storyline to, say, non-fiction mathematics concept books? A mathematical picture book with a storyline gives me the opportunity to create a character or characters that a young child can relate to, and learn along with. I can use a setting that is familiar to most children, as well as activities that are part of everyday life. Kids practise math skills along with the characters, as they read along. Did you find coming up with a storyline / context to embed your chosen mathematical concept in difficult? Where did you draw inspirations from? The difficulty of coming up with the storyline, characters, setting and situation to embed a math concept within isn’t that much different than that of finding those narrative pieces for any sort of story. I draw my inspiration for all types of stories from everyday life. It feels particularly important for kids to feel like math is something they need to learn and that will help them in life, now as well as in the future. Some mathematical story authors prefer to have a context and setting as closely related to children’s real-world experience as much as possible. Some prefer fantasy. In the specific context of mathematical stories, what is your preference, and why? My preference is for contemporary, realistic situations for a slightly older reader (6-8 years old) and fantasy for the younger picture book reader (2-6 years old) because I believe those settings and context relate more closely to what many children are experiencing emotionally and cognitively at those times. 
What were some of the key stages that you went through in creating your mathematical picture books? My usual process is to start with a math concept, such as simple addition, and double-check with educational sources as to which age child for whom this is appropriate. Then, I come up with a tandem non-math theme which is similarly suited to the target reader. I create a setting, characters and simple plot line which would lend itself to math learning. Then, I do a ‘math plotline’ which consists of the sequence of additions and/or subtractions, etc., in numeric form. Then, it’s a creative process of creating a situation and context for each of those additions, subtractions, divisions or multiplications, which in total evolves into the final story. Which of these stages did you find most challenging? Similarly, which did you find most satisfying? The most challenging stage is to keep a good balance between narrative storyline and the educational content imbedded within it. Too much story or too much math instruction makes the book difficult to read with enjoyment AND learning the math lessons properly. Finding this balance after a lot of drafts is the most satisfying part of the process, certainly. On average, how long did it take you to work on each of your mathematical picture books? Each book has had its own timeline, depending on factors such as the editorial schedule of the publisher, the availability of the illustrator, and so on. The shortest time would be six weeks (I was under contract with a firm deadline) to a year (this was a project of my own that I developed to market to a number of publishers.) 
Across the sector, it is quite common for authors not to have any say in the illustration process at all. Many authors never even have any direct contacts with their book’s illustrators. What has been your experience on this? Would you prefer authors to be more involved in the illustration process? I have not had much influence on the illustrative process for any of my books, as I am not the illustrator but just the writer. However, I have had many wonderful artists work their magic on my words. I feel that my most important involvement with the illustrative process is to provide a solid ‘launch pad’ for the artist to work with, without hindering the artist’s freedom to create. |
On reflection, how would you comment on the diversity of the characters in your mathematical stories? Would you have done anything differently in terms of the diversity of the characters? I believe that the kids and animal characters in my books reflect a diverse world. I try to write characters that all children would recognize and relate to emotionally and cognitively; then the publisher works with the illustrator to create a book that reflects the real world in all its diversity. I rarely have input in the illustration process but have consistently been delighted with the final results. How do you know whether the language used in your stories is age-appropriate for your target children? Do publishers normally have a word limit that you need to stick to? I have never had to work with a page count limit, but I can say that most picture books are between 400-600 words, and that is something I endeavor to do before submitting my work to a publisher. There are computer software programs that can guide a writer in finding words that are appropriate to a reading level, but common sense is also a good guide. It’s not a bad idea to place ‘reach’ words in a text, which are words that are officially above and beyond the designated reading level for the book, but are easily decoded by a young reader as long as they are placed within the sentence in context. Said differently, by surrounding the unfamiliar term with familiar words and familiar situations, often with illustrative clues as well, makes it easier for a beginning reader to ‘work it out’. It’s a fun way to build vocabulary and practice problem-solving skills. Can your fans expect to read any more stories with mathematical connections from you in the soon future? I hope so! Do you have any favourite mathematical story author(s)? If so, which one, and which aspects of their works do you particularly like? I’ve always liked the work of author/illustrator Loreen Leedy, particularly the picture book title ‘Measuring Penny’, in which the family dog is measured in many different ways. The ‘Hello, Reader!” Math series from Scholastic consistently offers good step-into-reading stories that teach useful math concepts. Do you think teaching mathematics through storytelling could be used with secondary school students too? The combination of language arts and math study enlivens the learning process at any age level, I would think. My thought is that it would give teachers an additional tool for reaching students who do not yet have the confidence in their ability to tackle complicated math concepts. "If a child isn’t naturally gifted or interested in mathematics, this is a way to approach the subject using their interest in language, stories, and artwork. A visual learner might find picture books a comfortable way to understand a math concept." What do you think are some of the key benefits of children developing their mathematical understanding through mathematical picture books? It’s simply another tool for teaching math skills. If a child isn’t naturally gifted or interested in mathematics, this is a way to approach the subject using their interest in language, stories, and artwork. A visual learner might find picture books a comfortable way to understand a math concept. What do you think are some of the key benefits of helping children to develop their mathematical understanding by encouraging them to produce their own mathematical picture books? Learning by doing is an excellent way to learn. Going through the process of planning a math story and producing it is another wonderful way to incorporate math studies in the language arts curriculum. For teachers and parents who want to encourage their children to create their own mathematical picture books at school or at home, but are not sure how to guide them through the creative process, what would be your advice?
The first step, to my way of thinking, would be to seek out appropriate math-oriented story books and to read them to the child. If there is a favorite, use this as a ‘mentor’ text, a story upon which to model a version that the child and parent write together. Then allow the child full freedom illustrate according to his or her muse. The more mathematical story books the child creates, the easier it becomes. For teachers and parents who want to have a go at having their own mathematical picture book published by a publisher, what would be your advice? There are many good guides to getting published, as well as a lot of good information on websites, so I will just say that the single best step to take is to join the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators and take it from there. SCBWI is an international association for published and non-published creators of books for young readers. The cost for membership is modest in relation to the resources offered online and in person, at conferences. "There’s much more to find in the MathsThroughStories.org's resources sections than most websites for educators and parents. Additionally, I loved learning about your various research studies and their results, too. It’s important to do field research as MathsThroughStories.org does, interacting with those who are actively working in the field with real students." What do you think of the research that we do and the resources that we provide to teachers and parents on our MathsThroughStories.org website? I think the resources available on the MathsThroughStories.org website offer a fantastic range of useful tips, activities and information. The research articles, how-to book recommendations, and practitioner-oriented articles are brilliant for teachers. The recommendations of mathematical story books, and inspiration for creating one’s own mathematical stories are particularly useful for teachers, parents, librarians and others working with young students. There’s much more to find in the MathsThroughStories.org's resources sections than most websites for educators and parents. Additionally, I loved learning about your various research studies and their results, too. It’s important to do field research as MathsThroughStories.org does, interacting with those who are actively working in the field with real students. I was most interested in your study of representation of girls and women in mathematics-specific picture books, as I believe it’s important to encourage ALL children to develop their talent in math, and science, regardless of gender. It’s terrific that the encouragement offered is for students of all ages and grade levels, and not just focused on the younger student. It’s so important to not give up on students’ ability to learn, and love, math. It’s so frustrating to hear someone say, by age 13, “I’m just not good at math”. It’s never too late to embrace, improve and enjoy math skills. |
Illustrations copyright © 2013 by Betsy E. Snyder from It's a Firefly Night by Dianne Ochiltree. Blue Apple Books. All Rights Reserved.
Illustrations copyright © 2016 by Elliot Kreloff from It's a Seashell Day by Dianne Ochiltree. Blue Apple Books. All Rights Reserved.
Illustrations copyright © 2016 by Elliot Kreloff from It's a Seashell Day by Dianne Ochiltree. Blue Apple Books. All Rights Reserved.
