Chase the Shark: Hungry as a Bear

This week my class was visited by local author Mr. Wiley "Chase" Griffin. Mr. Griffin, a parent of one of my students and former student of our school, came in this afternoon to share his experiences as an author and to help motivate some of my reluctant writers. It was a success! He read his book Chase the Shark: Hungry as a Bear, and my class was very into it, especially the boys. It was amazing; the experience totally transformed my students. By the end of the presentation, my students had folded up several sheets of lined paper, stapled them like a book and began writing their own stories. Seriously! What is even more amazing is that the book had been in my classroom, sitting on the chalkboard, for the last month. It wasn't until  Mr. Griffin read the story to them that they actually "got into it". My students were able to relate to Mr. Griffin. He shared with them his experiences as a child and young adult and really drove home the message: FOLLOW YOUR DREAMS, YOU CAN DO ANYTHING YOU SET OUT TO DO. At the end of his presentation he passed out several copies of his book and told the students to share (we're still working that part out!!)


This was the first author visit I've ever hosted in my classroom and I look forward to hosting more in the future! 

It all begins with Chase the Shark who lives in the Philadelphia Aquarium with his friends, Herman Hammerhead and Sara Sand shark. When Mr. Kirby, the night time security officer, realizes that Chase and his friends have once again escaped from the tank he sets out to find them immediately. After an evening of searching for Chase and his friends, Mr. Kirby ends up paying a hefty fee! Fortunately he was able to get Chase the Shark back home before he created any major trouble. Once he was settled in for the evening, Chase didn't waste any time planning his next big adventure! 


Purchase the book: Chase the Shark: Hungry as a Bear