My Teacher Dances on the Desk

Former teacher Eugene Gagliano had a front-row seat to the everyday trials of school life. In honor of all students who have ever grappled with show-and-tell missteps and problematic classmates, he's penned a clever poetry collection, My Teacher Dances on the Desk. Episodes from every aspect of school life, from visiting the school nurse to sitting next to the wrong student, are told through humorous verse. Move Me Soon I don't like sitting next to Rose. She's always picking at her nose, And chews her fingernails way down, And always wears a pouty frown. Black-and-white line drawings punctuate these school-year reflections. Students young and old will fondly recall their own school "daze" in My Teacher Dances on the Desk.Eugene Gagliano is known as "the teacher who dances on his desk." The recipient of the IRA's 2004 Wyoming State Literacy Award, Gene travels to schools and conferences with presentations as entertaining as they are informative. Tatjana Mai-Wyss was born in Switzerland. Her black-and-white work is usually done in India ink with a dip pen. Tatjana lives in South Carolina.

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Interest Level Grade 1 - Grade 4
Reading Level
Dewey 811
Lexile
ATOS Reading Level
Guided Reading Level
Language English
Publisher Sleeping Bear Press
Available Formats Paperback (9781585364466), PDF (9781627536417), Hosted ebook (9781627536530)
Copyright 2009, 2013
Number of Pages 48
Dimensions 6 x 7
Graphics Full-color illustrations
  • Delaware Diamonds Book List: A Children's Choice Award, Short-listed, 2010

Author: Eugene Gagliano

Known by many children as the "teacher who dances on his desk," Gene Gagliano is an elementary school teacher and writer with a great sense of humor who lives with his wife Carol at the base of the Bighorn Mountains in Buffalo, Wyoming. He loves children and has four of his own—Gina, Jared, Darin and Nathan—and son-in-law, Ron. A member of the Wyoming Writers and the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators, Gene has been published in "Chicken Soup for the Preteen Soul." His first book, entitled "Secret of the Black Widow," was published in 2002. Gene and Carol are members of a professional singing group, the Polyester Blends. He enjoys making his educational and entertaining school visits, as well as hiking, canoeing, gardening and painting.

Illustrator: Tatjana Mai-Wyss

Tatjana Mai-Wyss was born in Switzerland. Growing up with her nose in a book, she always wanted to be the one to draw the pictures. Today Tatjana lives in sunny South Carolina where she can work on her screen porch year-round and listen to the birds. Most often she uses watercolor and gouache, adding detail and texture with collage and colored pencils. Her black and white work is usually done the old-fashioned way, in India ink with a dip pen.

Full-color illustrations