Getting started
We welcome challenging assignments! Let us team with your teachers to develop writing strategies to increase literacy and learning.
Beyond the standard “Author Visit,” we strive to offer teachers and students opportunities to express themselves through writing and speaking.
We can schedule half-day, full-day or multiday residencies.
Scheduling activities
Assemblies
We like to start with an assembly where we perform our own poetry for the students followed by writing or public speaking workshops. We have different assemblies for different ages – primary – intermediate – middle and high school and may be as large as your facilities can accommodate. We do assemblies together.
Classroom workshops
Our writing clinics are designed to be completed in about 50 minutes. We can squeeze them in at 45, but the more time the better. Our initial goals can be met in the first 45-50 minutes; any extra time allows for revision and a more sophisticated finished product. In a perfect world an hour to an hour and a quarter is great. Our workshops are very interactive and high energy. You can split us up for classroom workshops.
Advance preparation
For Kids
Familiarizing the students with our work in preparation for the visit helps build excitement and foster more meaningful interaction. Here are some ideas:
- Distribute a sampling of poems to teachers to share.
- Share poems over the announcements
- Post poems and student responses in the hallways
- Create art to go with some of our poems.
- Display our books in the library
Click to download a list and descriptions of writing and speaking workshops we provide: WritingFrameworkDescriptions
For Teachers
- Teachers! We look forward to partnering with you in the classroom.
- Look over our list of workshops and let us know which you would like to see modeled. Feel free to contact us in advance to ask which workshops are best suited for your students.
- Check out a couple of our poems and share with students.
- Let us know what your current area of study is so we can make meaningful connections to what the students are learning.
- Be prepared to be involved in the lesson, let kids know what we are doing is important and ties into your classroom goals.
- Expect to debrief after class to discuss how you can extend the lesson after we leave.
Workshops
Professional Development Workshop
Our PD workshops are practical. Everyone will leave with at least one new writing strategy they can implement the next day. We offer full day, half day, and shorter sessions. We can even make the dreaded one-hour after school session lively and useful.
