Art Education Major Shares Career With Second Grade Students
Spring Lake second graders in Becky Claussâ?? class at Holmes Elementary School learned what goes into writing and illustrating a children's book, when author Janice Beuschel and illustrator Elizabeth Parmelee, a Kendall art education senior visited their classroom.
Beuschel has written a trio of books, â??The Misadventures of Grandpa Silly and Grandma Bâ? based on the travels of her and her husband.
Beuschel and Parmelee read a book in the series, "The Naughty Goats" to the class, and answered questions about the process behind creating a picture book.
The young students asked Beuschel and Parmelee how long it takes them to write and illustrate an entire book. Beuschel said that it takes her about a year to complete a book, and Parmelee said it takes her several months to illustrate it.
Parmelee said Beuschel asked her to illustrate her books after hearing from Parmelee's father that she is an aspiring artist.
Illustrating a book is about putting a visual to the story and expanding on it, Parmelee said. As an example, she showed the students what a Stetson hat looks like, and drew a horse and a lion on the board for the students.
"I absolutely love this job," Parmelee said. "When Jan called me for the first time, I literally did a little dance because I was so excited. I've wanted to do something like this my whole life, so to have this opportunity is so exciting."
"And I did a little dance, too, because I found somebody who can draw a whole lot better than I can," Beuschel said.