California resident George Levenson loves pumpkins. The avid gardener not only has his own pumpkin patch, he has authored a book and produced a film about the process of growing pumpkins called Pumpkin Circle: The Story of a Garden. The National Science Teachers Association and the Children's Book Council selected the publication as an Outstanding Science Trade Book for Children in 2000.

Author and filmmaker George Levenson.

Levenson currently lives in Santa Cruz, having moved to California from Toronto, Ontario, in 1979. While in Toronto he spent seven years teaching college students at York University after earning his Ph.D. in political science from the University of Michigan.

In the mid 1980s, however, Levenson said he got a calling to produce educational resources for the classroom. That path would later involve Levenson in becoming an award-winning author and filmmaker.

An example of Levenson's work is the Pumpkin Circle, a 40-page children's picture book and accompanying 20-minute film, narrated by Danny Glover with music by George Winston. The book and film each discuss the process of how a pumpkin patch grows. The book was selected by Booklist as one of the top science books of 1999 and was included in The New York Public Library's annual list of 100 Titles for Reading and Sharing. Levenson's Pumpkin Circle film has also won awards, including a Gold Award from Parent's Choice magazine and a Gold Award from the National Association of Parenting Publications. The film was also named a Booklist Editor's Choice.

"I've always had pumpkins in my backyard and I love gardening," explains Levenson, who started his first garden as a graduate student in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

Levenson makes his films before his books and sees them as complimentary teaching tools. "Each has its own use in the classroom," he says. "Films take viewers on a journey, while books allow readers to linger and turn the pages at their own pace."

The Pumpkin Circle book, designed for grades K-3, contains color photographs that depict Levenson's pumpkin patch and a list of tips for teachers and parents who want to teach students how to grow pumpkins in their own backyard. Science educators will find the book and video helpful in teaching students the process of growth or change and various scientific concepts such as observation and the idea of life cycle.

Levenson's most recent film can also benefit science educators. Bread Comes to Life tells the story of where bread comes from. The film, narrated by Lily Tomlin with music by George Winston, uses live-action footage, time-lapse photography, and animations to show how the staff of life begins with a grain of wheat and becomes a loaf to eat. Bread Comes to Life will also be a full-color picture book. The publication is scheduled for release in fall 2004.

Another Levenson project is a film called Sadako and The Thousand Paper Cranes, completed in 1991. It is based on the classic book of the same title by Eleanor Coerr about a young Japanese girl who has become an international heroine of peace. The film is narrated by Liv Ullmann and illustrated by Ed Young, with music by George Winston. It has received numerous awards, including a Gold Award from Parent's Choice magazine, a Blue Ribbon from the American Film and Video Festival, a Gold Apple from the National Educational Film and Video Festival, a CINE Gold Eagle, and was selected for inclusion in the American Library Association’s list of Notable Films and Videos. A companion instructional video titled How to Fold a Paper Crane was produced by Levenson in 1994 and received a CINE Gold Eagle and the Benjamin Franklin award from the Columbus International Film Festival.

To learn more about Levenson's books and films, visit www.pumpkincircle.com, www.sadako.com, and breadcomestolife.com.