New York’s Bank Street Center for Children’s Literature (CCL) has named Sam and Dave Dig a Hole (Candlewick, 2014), written by Mac Barnett and illustrated by Jon Klassen, the winner of its 2015 Irma Black Award for the best read-aloud picture book for first and second graders and Galápagos George, written by Jean Craighead George and illustrated by Wendell Minor (HarperCollins, 2014), the winner of its 2015 Cook Prize for the best picture book that teaches science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) principles for third and fourth graders. Both winners were determined by students from around the world and competed against a selection of finalists, as previously reported by SLJ. Barnett received a 2010 Irma Black Honor for his book Billy Twitters and His Blue Whale Problem, illustrated by Adam Rex (Hyperion, 2009). Klassen previously received two Irma Black Honors: in 2013 for This Is Not My Hat and in 2012 for I Want My Hat Back (both Candlewick), both of which he wrote and illustrated. First- and second-grade classrooms from Hawaii to Alaska, and from schools as far away as St. Croix, Nepal, and Italy, participated to make Sam and Dave Dig a Hole the victor, according to Jennifer M. Brown, CCL’s director. Librarian Susan Sparks at Willowbrook School in Glenview, IL, said that her students "absolutely howled at Sam and Dave as they missed the ever-growing gems. We talked about how the illustrations were a critical part of understanding the story." She added, "I even read the story to one group without showing the illustrations. After I read it again with the illustrations, they were amazed at how different they thought about the story."  

Librarian Allice Bruce Bruce reads Sam and Dave Dig a Hole to students at Bank Street School for Children.

In a discussion of the Cook Prize finalists at Bank Street's School for Children, one student observed, "It’s interesting how different turtles went to different islands and how they changed in different ways. It was really cool to learn about an animal that you haven’t seen before and lived a long time ago [and that was] really big." The winners and finalists will be feted at a ceremony held in Tabas Auditorium at the Bank Street College of Education in New York City at 9:30 am ET May 14, with 2012 Irma Black Award winner Fiona Robinson (What Animals Really Like, Abrams) delivering the opening keynote.