Jeana Kinne received her Masters Degree in Early Childhood Education and has over 20 years of experience working in a variety of positions within the Early Childhood field. She has worked as a Parent Educator, Preschool Director, and currently works with children with special needs. Jeana's goal is to provide families and Preschool Teachers with fun and engaging ways to teach young children important skills. Sammy, a golden retriever, was inspired by Jeana's sweet golden, Kona. Each book was created for a purpose, inspired by real life events. Keep on reading to learn more from Jeana!"As I sit here with this big, fluffy dog on my lap (a Golden Retriever named Kona), I can't help but laugh. She is my only child (currently) and boy is she spoiled, as any fur baby is. As a matter of fact, she has four books that she is the star of!Writing children's books has always been a dream of mine. I have spent the last 18 years working with toddlers and preschoolers as a teacher and preschool director. I absolutely adore this age group and know deep down that kids learn the best through imagination and play. This Sammy series started with "Soothing Sammy" - my first book (as a brand new author) and Kona's first star spotlight."Soothing Sammy" came to me one day while I was watching a parent struggle during their child's tantrum in the grocery store. This mom was cringing, trying to get through her shopping trip as fast as she could with a two year old screaming in the front of the basket. My heart just broke for her. I wanted to create something for kids, to teach them how to manage their feelings in a way that they would understand. I didn't want "just another parent course." I wanted kids to take ownership of their feelings and learn to express them in appropriate ways. As a result, “Soothing Sammy” was born!After writing "Soothing Sammy," I realized I loved writing children’s books and I wanted to write more! But what should I write about?During our daily fetch game with Kona, I thought, "what if Sammy played fetch with balls that had the letters on it?" After all, learning the alphabet is a core skill for young children. That Kona girl sure does have great ideas ;) So the following year, I released “Sammy Chases the Alphabet!" I included some playful games to make teaching letters simple and fun ("The Playful Alphabet").It was so fun watching my illustrator bring my story to life with the amazing illustrations (seriously... she is so talented.) I knew I wasn't finished writing stories, but I didn't know what to write about next. Unfortunately, that same year, an unnerving event took place. Two girls, ages 5 and 7, wandered away from their home in a dense wooded area. They were lost for 44 hours! It was devastating to watch the Search and Rescue volunteers search the woods for two days.Magically, they were found alive! They were tired but okay. Come to find out, their parents had taught them wilderness survival skills through a local program, and it paid off. They wanted to be prepared since they lived in a wooded area. After I witnessed the adventure of these two young girls, I wanted to teach all preschoolers how to stay safe if they were ever lost. I partnered with our local Search and Rescue Volunteer team to create “The Search for Sammy: A Lost and Found Adventure.” This story talks about Sammy getting lost while he played his favorite fetch game, and explains exactly what he did to stay safe. There are some playful games in the back of the book that helps kids remember what to do to stay safe. 50% of all the profits from this book goes to our local Search and Rescue Team (did you know they are all volunteers? Amazing!).So then there were three "Sammy the Golden Dog" books, but a full set should be four right?So what should this next book be about? I have spent the last 10 years working with infants, toddlers and preschoolers with developmental delays. These adorable children have a very special place in my heart. I was lucky enough to work in an inclusion preschool class for a period of time, and I was always so amazed at how young children help each other out, no questions asked.Most recently, I released “Sammy Goes to Preschool,” a lesson on inclusion. This story talks about how although everyone is different, we all have unique strengths and we can still all be friends! Not only is this story a peek into a typical preschool day, but it dives deeper into building friendships with everyone.And there you have it. The current "Sammy the Golden Dog" series. I hope you enjoy these books as much as I have enjoyed writing them.Jeana Kinne, MA, Author of "Sammy the Golden Dog"Read more about this authorRead less about this author