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Author Polacco Brings Inspiration To Stamford Students

STAMFORD, Conn. -- A children's author who didn't learn to read until she was 14 and published her first book at 40 brought a message of inspiration to students at Newfield Elementary School in Stamford on Friday.

Author Patricia Polacco and Newfield Elementary third-grader Zuzanna Kowalski, 8, share a piece of a meteor that the Michigan-based children's author brought as part of her talk at the school on Friday.

Author Patricia Polacco and Newfield Elementary third-grader Zuzanna Kowalski, 8, share a piece of a meteor that the Michigan-based children's author brought as part of her talk at the school on Friday.

Photo Credit: Frank MacEachern

"I know you are just children, but I think you have greatness in you," Patricia Polacco told second- and third-grade students during a morning session.

Polacco referred to her own story of overcoming severe learning disabilities, including dyslexia, to earn a doctorate in art and publish dozens of books. She said that trying to read in front of her classmates was a constant source of humiliation, as they laughed at her.

"I felt stupid. I felt dumb. I felt pathetic. I didn't dare to have any dreams," said Polacco, who lives on a farm in Union City, Michigan, with numerous animals.

With the help of a sympathetic teacher, she was able to begin reading when she was 14 and overcame her other learning disabilities, including failure of sensory integration.

"That was the worst of all," she said. "I was a headbanger and a bouncer. You need to move; without movement you can't learn. I need to sit even now in a rocking chair and rock, or I can't think. At this age, it was problematical because when kids can't hold still, they get into trouble -- and I was in trouble all the time."

Polacco draws on her experiences growing up and puts family members and friends into her books, including one called, "My Rotten Redheaded Older Brother."

Students at Newfield Elementary have been studying Polacco's books, and one of her fans is Zuzanna Kowalski, 8.

"They are really interesting to read because she has a lot of childish memories that spills out into her books," Zuzanna said. 

One of the things that most impressed Zuzanna was Polacco's "keeping quilt," which began with a dress her Russian immigrant grandmother outgrew as a child. Gradually, other pieces from family members were incorporated into it, Polacco told her audience, as she held it up for them to see.

"Just looking at their faces restores my faith in mankind," Polacco said after her first session. "They are my future."

She referred very little to her books when speaking to the students. Instead, she spoke about her own troubles and urged them to be kind to others and have faith in themselves.

"I never talk down to children because I think they are far more intelligent than we realize. They are concerned about things, especially children with learning difficulties. I kind of target them because they feel so terrible about what is happening," she said. 

"They need to know that they're going to land on their feet. I love the idea that they can even have the notion that some day, they can be an author."

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