Ann M. Martin
| Ann Matthews Martin | |
|---|---|
| Born | August 12, 1955 |
| Occupation | Author |
| Language | English |
| Nationality | American |
| Alma mater | Smith College |
| Genre | Children's and young adult fiction |
| Notable works | The Baby-Sitters Club series (1986–2000) |
| Notable awards | John Newbery Medal |
| Website | |
| www |
|
Ann Matthews Martin (born August 12, 1955) is an American children's author most well known for writing The Baby-Sitters Club series.
Ann Matthews Martin grew up in Princeton, New Jersey. Her mother, Edith, was a pre-school teacher and her father, Henry, was a cartoonist for The New Yorker and other publications. Her mother's ancestry can be traced back to the pilgrims who traveled on the Mayflower in 1620.
Martin developed an interest in writing from an early age. Before she was old enough to write, she would dictate stories to her mother to write down for her. Some of her favorite authors at that time were Lewis Carroll, P. L. Travers, Hugh Lofting, Astrid Lindgren, and Roald Dahl. Martin loved creative writing in elementary school and discovered her passion for writing in second grade. She began writing short stories, and her fourth-grade teacher wrote on her student folder that she would make a wonderful writer because she spent so much of her free time writing in notebooks. Her favorite subjects in middle school and high school were English and French. Her least favorite subject was Math.
As a teen, Martin loved working with children and decided to become a teacher. She wanted to help children with disabilities, and she worked during the summer at the Eden Institute, a school for autistic children in her hometown.
After graduating from Princeton High School in 1973, Martin attended Smith College from 1973-1975. She studied early-childhood education and child psychology. Her senior thesis was on the use of children’s literature in the classroom. She lived in Gardiner House and wrote for Smith College newspaper, The Sophian. Describing her Smith education, Martin said “It was an environment of strong, independent women, both the students and the professors.” Her time at Smith influenced her identity as a feminist and inspired her to portray female characters who were like the women she knew in her own life.
After graduating from Smith College, Martin taught in a split fourth and fifth-grade classroom at Plumfield School in Noroton, Connecticut. Her students, ages 8-13, struggled with learning disabilities including dyslexia and autism. Martin said that her work with special needs children influenced her writing about children.
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