SHEILAH CURRIE AND JILL BEVER

Sheilah Currie and Jill Bever know that learning to read is a critical rite of passage for kids. They share a simple philosophy for helping children to become motivated and successful readers—provide carefully crafted text that is well-matched to each child’s ability, and liberally sweeten with humour.

Currie and Bever began their collaboration as writing partners in 1997 when they were both working as literacy teachers. Reading one-on-one with kids allowed them to tap into a child-sized view of what makes a story captivating. Sought for their expertise by colleagues and parents alike, Sheilah and Jill convey a passion for early literacy. Their stories tickle the funny bone and capture the key elements children need to become proud and capable readers.

Sheilah Currie began her career as an actor in theatre, film and television, then acquired her Bachelor of Education and worked as a Reading Recovery teacher, helping at-risk children learn to read. Along with Jill Bever, she has authored sixty books for Nelson Education Ltd., Houghton Mifflin, and Duval Education. She has also served as a developmental editor and manager of quality control in educational publishing, working with authors to establish appropriate reading levels, shape stories, and helping to coordinate artwork. On a volunteer basis, Sheilah launched and continues to provide very successful children’s reading clubs in two inner-city community centres, for which she received a City of Toronto Community Service Volunteer Award.

Jill Bever lives in Ayr, Ontario and is the mother of three boys. She has an MA in School Psychology and has worked in the field of education as a Psychoeducational Consultant, a K-4, Early Literacy and Reading Recovery teacher, and as a Literacy Coordinator in the York Region and Waterloo District School Boards. She received a Barrday Teacher of Excellence Award for the city of Cambridge. Jill has also led board-wide workshops in book levelling and was involved in the planning and presentation of early literacy teacher training sessions. As well as co-authoring books with Sheilah, Jill has written lesson plans and guided reading material for kindergarten to grade two teacher guides.

Selected Forthcoming:

Grade 3 Math Readers ― 10 titles
(Houghton Mifflin, 2008)

Reading for Real Series (R4R)
(Duval Education)

• Mistakes That Mattered Grade 5
• Thrill Rides Grade 5

Selected Published Work:

InfoRead Series
(Nelson Education, 2008, 2005 and 2004)

• Hubert the Sad Giant  Grade 2
• Sly Squirrel’s Tall Tales Grade 2
• 10 Little Chickens Grade 1
• The Busy Ants and The Lazy Ants Grade 1
• The Big Fish Is Coming! Kindergarten 
• The Fluffy Ducks (Big Book) Kindergarten