Award-winning author Jerry Craft surprises Coral Springs Middle School students after their love for New Kid grows
Coral Springs, Florida – What began as a classroom reading assignment turned into an unexpected visit from an award-winning author when Jerry Craft walked into Coral Springs Middle School on Sept. 14.
Students had been spending time with Craft’s graphic novel “New Kid” as part of an English and reading class. By the time the author arrived, the book had become much more than another school assignment. Students were laughing at its characters, discussing the story and finding connections between the book and their own experiences in middle school.
Some students who were normally reluctant to read were even asking to keep going.
The class was led by English and reading teacher Sonise Benedict, who saw the students’ growing interest and began sharing their work online. She posted about their projects, classroom conversations and reactions to “New Kid,” tagging Craft and his publisher, HarperCollins.
Craft noticed. The online exchange eventually attracted the attention of organizations including Learning Ally and Kahoot!, and the connection ultimately led to Craft making a surprise appearance at the school.
Students had gathered expecting another school activity when Craft walked into the room. The surprise quickly became an opportunity for them to meet the person behind the story they had been studying.
“What started as a classroom reading experience became something much bigger,” Benedict said. “They weren’t just completing an assignment anymore. They wanted to know what happened next.”
During his visit, Craft met with students, signed copies of his books and showed them how he creates his illustrations. He also produced artwork during the visit and left the school with an original drawing addressed, “To my friends at Coral Springs Middle School!”
Craft is the author and illustrator of “New Kid,” “Class Act” and “School Trip.” “New Kid” made history as the first graphic novel to win the Newbery Medal. It also received the Coretta Scott King Author Award and the Kirkus Prize for Young Readers’ Literature.
The author, who now lives in Orlando, grew up in Washington Heights and attended the Ethical Culture Fieldston School. He graduated from the School of Visual Arts in 1984 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Media Arts.
For the students at Coral Springs Middle School, however, the most important part of his visit was having the chance to meet him in person.
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Craft also made time for Benedict, who is an author herself. She gave him a copy of her book, “Mapping Meaning Through Literature: Using Visual Thinking & AI to Strengthen Literary Analysis.”
Craft responded by drawing inside the book and writing, “KEEP WRITING!”
Benedict’s own path into education began as an English for Speakers of Other Languages student. She later earned a degree in English literature and a master’s degree in curriculum and instruction. She has also presented her teaching methods at the Future of Education Technology Conference and Broward’s IDEA EXPO.
The visit was particularly meaningful because it connected Benedict’s approach to teaching with the kind of response she hopes to encourage in her students. She wants them to understand that their starting point does not have to define what they eventually accomplish.
“I want my students to understand that where you begin does not determine where you finish,” Benedict said. “You do not need to wait for a title before you begin making an impact. Sometimes you have to create the opportunity yourself, and when that door opens, you hold it open for your students too.”
The surprise appearance also showed how a teacher’s efforts can extend well beyond the classroom. Benedict had simply wanted to share what was happening among her students as they responded to Craft’s work. Her posts helped create a connection that eventually brought the author directly to the school.
For Benedict, that experience reinforced an important lesson about creating opportunities rather than waiting for them to appear.
“I have learned that sometimes you cannot wait for someone to offer you a seat at the table,” she said. “Sometimes you have to build your own table, pull up your own chair, and make sure there is room beside you for your students.”
The visit left students with more than signed books and drawings. It gave them a chance to meet an author whose work had already sparked their interest in reading, while also showing how a classroom conversation can grow into something much larger when students and teachers share their enthusiasm.
