Patricia Polacco, an Award-Winning Author and Illustrator, Visits Ithan, Radnor and Wayne Elementary Schools

Patricia Polacco, a multiple award-winning author and illustrator of more than 40 picture books, spoke with students at Ithan, Radnor and Wayne Elementary Schools on Nov. 7 and 11. The visits were made possible in large part by a grant from the Radnor Educational Foundation (REF).

Polacco’s work often involves meaningful interactions between children and adults as well as those among different cultures. Due to dyslexia, she did not learn to read until age 14 and struggled in school, leading to teasing by classmates.

“I felt trapped in a body that wouldn’t do what everybody else could do,” she wrote on her website.

A teacher discovered her disability and helped her learn to read, a relationship and outcome Polacco recounted in her book, “Thank You, Mr. Falker.” She began writing and illustrating children’s books at 41.

“One of the symptoms of my disability in academics is the ability of draw very, very well,” Polacco wrote. “So drawing, painting and sculpture has always been a part of my life even before I started illustrating my books. The books were quite a surprise, really. I have enjoyed a wonderful career.”

For more on Polacco, click here. To view photographs of the individual visits, click here.