Sep 132024
 

Florence Atwater (born Chicago, Illinois, 1896; died Chicago, Illinois, August 23, 1979) cowrote children’s books with her husband Richard Atwater. Their book Mr. Popper’s Penguins received a 1939 Newbery Honor Award.

Roald Dahl (born Llandaff, South Wales, Great Britain, 1916; died Oxford, England, November 23, 1990) wrote books for both children and adults. He wrote among other works James and the Giant Peach and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Children can visit a website devoted to him at: Roald Dahl.

Milton S. Hershey (born Derry Township, Pennsylvania, 1857; died Hershey, Pennsylvania, October 13, 1945) developed the Hershey Bar. His career began in Chicago and New York where he made and sold caramels. In 1905 he concocted the idea of the Hershey Bar and returned to Pennsylvania. There he built his chocolate factory. Children could read Chocolate by Hershey: A Story about Milton S. Hershey by Betty Burford.

Carol Kendall (born Bucyrus, Ohio, 1917; died Lawrence, Kansas, July 28, 2012) was a children’s author. One of her most famous books is The Gammage Cup, a 1960 Newbery Honor Book. She also wrote The Whisper of Glocken. Children can learn more at: Carol Kendall.

Else Holmelund Minarik (born Denmark, 1920; died Sunset Beach, North Carolina, July 12, 2012) wrote at least 40 books for children, including the Little Bear series, illustrated by Maurice Sendak. Children can learn more at: Else Holmelund Minarik.

Walter Reed (born Gloucester County, Virginia, 1851; died Washington, DC, November 22, 1902) was an army physician. He conducted important research regarding yellow fever.

Arnold Schoenberg (born Vienna, Austria, 1874; died Brentwood, California, July 13, 1951) was a composer. He wrote atonal music. Eventually he developed a twelve tone system. Idea: Students could listen to some recordings of his music. Can they tell the difference between his music and music of other composers?

Mildred D. Taylor (born Jackson, Mississippi, 1943) is a children’s author. She wrote among other works Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry, which received the 1977 Newbery Medal. She also received numerous Coretta Scott King Awards: in 1982 for Let the Circle Be Unbroken, in 1988 for The Friendship, and in 2002 for The Land. She also earned Jane Addams Book Awards: in 1976 for Song of the Trees, in 1977 for Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry, in 1982 for Let the Circle Be Unbroken, and in 1996 for The Well: David’s Story. In 2002 her book The Land received the Scott O’Dell Award for Historical Fiction. She received the 2021 Children’s Literature Legacy Award from the American Library Association for her body of works.