Greystone Elementary student wins visit from Pete the Cat author

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Cole Richardson, a second grader at Greystone Elementary, was one of two grand-prize winners in the Scholastic Pete the Cat: Draw My Shoes national contest. The selection earned him and the rest of the second grade class an exciting visit from a special guest.

On Jan. 14, Eric Litwin, author of the Pete the Cat series, stopped by Greystone Elementary to meet Cole and his friends, There, Litwin, a professional performer for 10 years before entering the book-writing industry, led students through several songs that required their active participation.

Litwin began his visit to the school with a performance of his newest book, Pete the Cat Saves Christmas. He had one of the teachers show the book to the class as he recited it, playing his guitar and incorporating a song into the telling of the story.

"I think of the first line and I know I have the whole story," Litwin told the class during "Pick My Brain," the question-and-answer segment of his visit.

Litwin said he develops stories with help from live audiences and creates engaging melodies to accompany each.

Following “Pick My Brain,” Litwin led the class in a call-and-response interactive poem. He then used his voice and guitar to create sound effects as the class helped him sing a "scary" story called "The Face."

"I used to be a teacher," Litwin said. "I'm very interested in early literacy and want kids to be excited about the first book they read."

Litwin rounded out his visit by telling the original Pete the Cat story, I Love My White Shoes, and had Cole join him to act out the dance movements that accompany song he played throughout.

"The message is to stay positive," Litwin said. "No matter what you step in, keep walking along and signing your song."

The class helped him finish his message to them by singing, "Because it's all good."