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Born: October 31,1932
Place of Birth:
Qing Jiang, China
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Maiden Name: Katherine Womeldorf
Parents: George and Mary Womeldorf
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Her parents were Americans working in China as Christian missionaries
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Katherine is the middle of 5 children

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Katherine lived in China till 1937 when Japan was invaded and the family was forced to move to North Carolina
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The family returned to China but returned to the
United States again when World War II broke out
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Unable to go back to China, Katherine’s family lived in many different towns throughout North
Carolina, Virginia, and West Virginia
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Katherine moved to eighteen different places by the time she was eighteen years old

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Katherine attended
King College in Bristol,
Tennessee where she earned a degree in English in 1954
She spent a year teaching 6 th grade in a rural school in Northern Virginia
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She would use these students as the basis for her characters in Bridge to Terabitha
Katherine earned her Master’s Degree in Bible and Christian Education from Presbyterian School of Christian Education in Richmond, Virginia
In 1957, Katherine moved to Japan to work as a missionary

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Katherine moved to New York to continue her education in 1962. It was there that she met and married a Presbyterian Pastor named
John Paterson
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They have four children, Elizabeth, Mary,
John, and David. Mary and Elizabeth are both adopted.
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Katherine and John have seven grandchildren

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As a child, Katherine enjoyed writing plays for her friends to act out
Her career as professional writer began in 1964 when the Presbyterian church asked her to write curriculum for 5 th and 6 th graders
After the books were finished, she decided she wanted to be a writer. But now she wanted to write fiction
Katherine wrote many things but none of them were published
Finally, a friend convinced her to take a creative writing course
It was in this class that she wrote her first children’s novel The Sign of the
Chrysanthemum which was published in 1976.

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The settings in Mrs. Paterson’s books are often places that she has lived such as Japan, China, and many different places up and down the east coast of the United States
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Katherine sometimes uses her books to deal with issues in her own life
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For example, she wrote:
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Bridge to Terabitha to deal with the sudden death of her son’s best friend
The Great Gilly Hopkins after she had a foster child for two months that they could not handle
Come Sing, Jimmy Jo to help her deal with her new found fame and her personal shyness

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Katherine’s characters are usually on a quest to find themselves
Her work portrays strong characters who are set apart or cast out of society
Katherine’s books help to put a human face on the people who are different
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Her books on China and Japan introduce her readers to two culture very different from their own
Her writings also display a deep insight into human nature and deal with the vast realm of human emotions

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A motion picture has been produced based on the book Bridge to Terabitha. The movie premiered in 2007
Her newest book, The Day of the Pelican, was published in 2009
Katherine is National Ambassador for Young
Peoples Literature
She is the Vice President of National
Children’s Book and Literacy Alliance
Katherine currently lives with her husband in Barrie, Vermont

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The Sign of the
Chrysanthemum, 1973.
Of Nightingales That
Weep, 1974.
The Master Puppeteer,
1975.
Bridge to Terabithia,
1977.
The Great Gilly Hopkins,
1978.
Jacob Have I Loved, 1980.
Rebels of the Heavenly
Kingdom, 1983.
Come Sing, Jimmy Jo,
1985.
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Park's Quest, 1988.
Lyddie, 1991.
Flip-Flop Girl, 1994.
Jip, His Story, 1996.
Parzival: The Quest of the
Grail Knight, 1998.
Preacher’s Boy, 1999.
The Same Stuff as Stars,
2002
Bread and Roses, Too,
2006
The Day of the
Pelican, 2009

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The Angel and the Donkey, 1996.
The King's Equal, 1996
Celia and the Sweet, Sweet Water, 1998.
Tale of the Mandarin Ducks, 1990.
The Wide-Awake Princess, 2000.
Blueberries for the Queen, 2004.
Brother Sun, Sister Moon: Saint Francis of Assisi's
Canticle of the Creatures, 2011
The Field of the Dogs, 2001.
Marvin One Too Many, 2001.
Marvin’s Best Christmas Present Ever, 1997.
The Smallest Cow in the World, 1991.

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Gates of Excellence: On Reading and Writing Books for
Children, 1981.
Consider the Lilies: Plants of the Bible, 1986.
The Spying Heart: More Thoughts on Reading and Writing
Books for Children, 1989.
Who Am I?, 1992.
A Sense of Wonder: On Reading and Writing Books for
Children, 1995 (combined text of Gates of Excellence and The
Spying Heart)
The Invisible Child: On Reading and Writing Books for
Children, 2001
Angels & Other Strangers: Family Christmas Stories,
1979.
A Midnight Clear: Twelve Family Stories for the
Christmas Season, 1995.
Star of Night: Stories for Christmas, 1980.

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Written by: Katherine Paterson
Main Characters: 10 year olds - Jess
Aarons and Leslie Burke
Setting: Rural Northern Virginia in the
1970s
Summary of the Story:
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Jess lives with his parents and four sisters. He has one goal in life to be the fastest runner in fifth grade. Though no one knows what a really good artist he is.
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However, a strange new girl, Leslie Burke, enters his class and things begin to change.
They become great friends and create a magical world in their minds. In this new world,
Terabithia, they rule as king and queen
But when tragedy strikes everything changes for
Jess again

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Written by: Katherine Paterson
Main Characters: Louise Bradshaw,
Caroline Bradshaw, and Call Purnell
Setting: Rass Island on the Chesapeake
Bay in the 1940s
Summary of the Story:
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Louise lives with her family on a small island on the Chesapeake. She is a tom boy who makes money by crabbing with her best friend Call
Her twin sister, Caroline, is not only a great singer but she is also beautiful
Louise is terribly jealous of her twin sister. She hates how everyone fawns over her sister and ignores her. She is desperate for her own world away from her sister
When her best friend tells her he’s going to marry Caroline, Louise knows she must find a new life away from the island

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Written by: Katherine Paterson
Main Characters: Galadriel “Gilly” Hopkins,
Trotter, William Ernest
Setting: Small town in Maryland in the 1970s
Summary of the Story:
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11 year old, Gilly Hopkins, has been in the foster system since she was 3. She has been in 3 foster homes in the past year. Gilly knows she can only depend on herself
Gilly’s goal in life is to make her foster family and teachers as miserable as possible so they send her back to her beautiful mother
They send her to the Trotters, the weirdest foster family she’s ever had. She immediately started cooking up plans for getting back to her mother
After a while she realizes that life at the Trotter’s isn’t so bad. However something is about to backfire in Gilly’s life.

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Written by: Katherine Paterson
Main Characters: Lyddie Wenthon
Setting: New England in the 1840s
Summary of the Story:
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Lyddie lives on a small farm in Vermont.
Her father ran off 3 years ago so her and her brother Charlie runs the farm
One day, Lyddie’s mother hires out Charlie and her to help pay off their father’s debt.
Lyddie works in a tavern for a year until she decides to run off to Lowell, Mass. to become a factory girl
Now she works in factory were she works as hard as she can and saves as much money as possible. Her goal is to pay off her father’s debt and return to her farm.

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Bread and Roses, Too
New York Public Library Best Books for Teen Age, 2007
Bank Street Best Children's Books of the Year, 2007
VOYA's 2006 Top Shelf Fiction for Middle School Readers
Notable Social Studies Trade Book for Young People, 2007
Christopher Award, 2006
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Parents' Choice Gold Medal, Fall 2006, Historical Fiction
Co-winner of the Paterson Prize 2003
Honor Book for The Red Mitten, Judy Lopez Memorial, and Jane
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Addams Awards 2003
Parents' Choice 1999 Story Book Award
Jefferson Cup of Virginia Library Association

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Jip, His Story
The Scott O'Dell Award for Historical Fiction 1997
Parents' Choice 1996 Story Book Award
Parents' Choice 1999 Paperback Book Honor
Flip-Flop Girl
ALA Notable Children's Book
School Library Journal Best Book
American Bookseller Spring Pick of the Lists for Middle Readers
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New York Public Library - 100 titles for Reading and Sharing
Honor Book of the International Board of Books for
Young People 1994
ALA Best Book for Young Adults
ALA Notable Children's Book
American Bookseller Pick of the Lists
IBBY Honor Book

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The Tale of the Mandarin Ducks
Boston Globe/Horn Book Picture Book Award 1991
The New York Times Ten Best Illustrated Books
American Bookseller Pick of the Lists
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Booklist Editors' Choice
American Bookseller Pick of the Lists
NCSS_CBC Notable Children's Trade Book in the Field of Social
Studies
IRA-CBC Children's Choice
Learning Choice
Library of Congress Books for Children
Child Study Assocation Children's Books of the Year
The Horn Book Fanfare Honor List

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The Tongue-Cut Sparrow
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Parent's Choice Award
NCSS-CBC Notable Children's Trade Book in the Field of Social
Studies
IRA-CBC Children's Choice
Child Study Association Children's Books of the Year
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CCBC Choice
Library of Congress Books for Children
Parents' Choice Award
School Library Journal Best Books
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CCBC Choice Booklist Editors' Choice
Parents' Choice Award
NCSS-CBC Notable Children's Trade Book in the Field of Social
Studies
Child Study Assoc. Children's Books of the Year

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Jacob Have I Loved
Newbery Medal 1981
ALA Notable Children's Book 1976-1980
School Library Journal Best Books of 1980
Best of the 80's YA Novels (English Journal)
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Best of the 80's (ALA Booklist)
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National Book Award 1979
Newbery Honor Award 1979
Honor Book, Jane Addams Children's Book Awards 1979
Christopher Award, 1979
American Library Association Notable Children's Books 1978
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School Library Journal Best book of 1978
Of Nightingales that Weep
Phoenix Award Children's Literature Association 1994
ALA Notable Children's Books 1974

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Bridge to Terabithia
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Janusz Korczak Medal (Poland) 1981
Silver Pencil Award (Netherlands) 1981
Newbery Medal 1978
ALA Notable Children's Books 1977
School Library Journal Best Book of 1977
Lewis Carroll Shelf Award, 1978
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Le Grand Prix des Jeunes Lecturs (France), 1986
1986 Colorado Blue Spruce Young Adult Book Award
The Master Puppeteer
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National Book Award for Children's Literature 1977
Edgar Allen Poe Special Award, Mystery Writers of
America 1977
Citation from The Puppeteers of America, Inc. 1978
ALA Notable Children's Books 1976
School Library Journal Best Book of Spring, 1976

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Massachusetts Reading Association Lifetime
Award
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NSK Neustadt Award (University of Oklahoma),
2007
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Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award, Swedish
Government, 2006
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Literary Light, Boston Public Library 2000
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Living Legend, Library of Congress 2000
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New York Public Library Lion 1998
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Hans Christian Andersen Medal for Writing 1998
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Who's Who in American Women 1995 to present

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King College, Outstanding Alumnus 1993-1994
Education Press Friend of Education Award 1993
Anne V. Zarrow Award Tulsa Public Library 1993
New England Book Award 1992
Regina Medal, Catholic Library Association 1988
Children's Literature Award, Keene State College
1987
Kerlan Award, University of Minnesota 1983
University of Southern Mississippi Medallion 1983
US Nominee Hans Christian Andersen Medal 1979
The Union Medal, Union Theological Seminary
New York

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Katherine Pattern @ Web English Teacher
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 http://www.webenglishteacher.com/paterson.html#bio
This site has lesson plans and activities for Bridge to
Terabithia, The Great Gilly Hopkins, Jacob Have I Loved,
Lyddie, The Master Puppeteer, and Same Stuff of Stars. It also has a biography on Katherine Paterson
Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson
Scholastic.com
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 http://www2.scholastic.com/browse/article.jsp?id=3751208
This site provides lesson plans on Bridge to Terabithia
Bridge to Terabithia
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 http://rmtc.fsdb.k12.fl.us/content/terabithia.html
This site provides links to sites that will help teachers teach
Bridge to Terabitha

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Interactive Workshop- In Search of a Novel
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 http://www.learner.org/workshops/isonovel/Pages/Bridgepage
.html
This site gives a two day lesson plan for Bridge to Terabithia as well links to other activities on the book
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Katherine Paterson- Bridge to Terabithia, Lyddie
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 http://literature.pppst.com/PQR/katherine-paterson.html
This site provides Power Points, lesson plans and study guides for Bridge to Terabithia and Lyddie
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Literature: Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine
Paterson
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 http://ethemes.missouri.edu/themes/1805?locale=en
This provides links to internet sites that can be used while teaching Bridge to Terabithia

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TeachersFirst- Katherine Paterson
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 http://www.teachersfirst.com/tchrkeyword.cfm?keyword=paterson&lower=1&upper=12&Submit4=
Search%2Bby%2Bkeyword
This site provides links to lesson plans to different Katherine
Paterson books
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Teacher’s Guide: Bridge to Terabithia
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 http://www.teachervision.com.au/fiction/printable/64764.ht
ml
This site provides a teachers guide for Bridge to Terabithia
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Lyddie by Katherine Paterson
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 http://www.carolhurst.com/titles/lyddie.html
This site provides talking points, activities, and related books for the book Lyddie

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Beyond Books- Reading Between the Line
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 http://www.beyondbooks.com/lit71/1.asp
This provides ways for teachers to introduce and discuss different themes found in Bridge to Terabithia
The Stories of Katherine Paterson:
Interdisciplinary Teaching Units and the
Development of Social Skills
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 http://www.eric.ed.gov/ERICWebPortal/search
This is article detailing units for the books The Great Gilly
Hopkins, Jacob Have I Loved, and Bridge to Terabithia
Middle School English
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 http://www.bcps.org/offices/lis/curric/middle/eng/6.html
This provides links to lesson plans and activities for Lyddie and
Park’s Quest

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.
Annenberg Channel. Interactive Workshop- In Search of a Novel.
Annenberg Foundation, 2011. Web. 30 March 2011.
Beyond Books. Beyond Books- Reading Between the Line. Apex Learning
Inc, 2007. Web. 30 March 2011.
Leonardi, Roy & Leonardi, Bonnie. “The Stories of Katherine Paterson:
Interdisciplinary Teaching Units and the Development of Social Skills.”
(2000): 1-22. ERIC. Web. 30 March 2011.
Martin, Phillip. Katherine Paterson- Bridge to Terabithia, Lyddie. Phillip
Martin, 2011. Web. 30 March 2011.
Network for Instructional TV. TeachersFirst- Katherine Paterson. Network for Instructional TV, 2006. Web. 30 March 2011.

Otis, Rebecca. Lyddie by Katherine Paterson. Carol Hurst's
Children's Literature Site, 2010. Web. 30 March 2011.
Paterson, Katherine. Bridge to Terabithia. New York: HarperCollins,
1977.
Paterson, Katherine. The Great Gilly Hopkins. New York:
HarperCollins, 1978.
Paterson, Katherine. Jacob Have I loved. New York: HarperCollins,
1980.
Paterson, Katherine. Lyddie. New York: Penguin Books, 1990.
Paterson, Katherine. Official Website of Katherine Paterson.
Katherine Paterson, 2011. Web. 30 March 2011.

Resource Materials & Technology Center for the Deaf and Hard of
Hearing. Bridge to Terabithia. Resource Materials & Technology
Center for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing, 7 February 2008. Web. 30
March 2011.
Scholastic Inc. Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson. Scholastic
Inc, 2011. Web. 30 March 2011.
Scholastic Inc. Katherine Paterson. Scholastic Inc, 2011. Web. 30 March
2011.
Sutton, Rodger. “An Interview with Katherine Paterson.” Horn Book
Magazine (2010): 10-14. EBSCOhost. Web. 30 March 2011.
TeacherVision. Teacher’s Guide: Bridge to Terabithia. Family Education
Network , 2011. Web. 30 March 2011.

University of Missouri. Literature: Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine
Paterson. University of Missouri, 27 January 2011. Web. 30 March
2011.
Web English Teacher. Katherine Pattern @ Web English Teacher. Web
English Teacher, 28 December 2010. Web. 30 March 2011