Once again this year, the Grade 2 students at the Junior School had the opportunity to learn all about book publishing, and the art and craft of illustration.

Leading the half day sessions was Mark Thurman, an illustrator, designer, fine artist and teacher. Mr Thurman is best known as an author and illustrator of numerous children’s books.

The first sessions took place in February and complemented the students’ study of Canada. After learning such concepts as colour contrast, perspective, and cutting and gluing techniques to create pop-up elements, the students created tourist brochures representing one province or territory. Each brochure had to include images, such as wildlife, as well as information specific to the province or territory.

The final works were displayed during the Canada Lunch, and met with rave reviews form parents and staff alike.

During the second workshop sessions in early May, Mr. Thurman helped the students design books based on a fairy tale each student had written. The students learned how to identify the key elements in their story and match those elements with the information they put into their illustrations.