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When Children's Authors Visit Schools

© Sue Reichard

The whole language approach and philosophy is about how children learn language and learn to read. Thanks to this movement, teachers now use children's trade books as part of the curriculum or as a supplement to enhance content areas. Teachers want their students to be successful readers and writers The natural progression of this goal is to bring children's authors into the schools to speak to and read to children.

If you are now or will be in the future (as we all hope) a published writer, chances are you will be asked to speak at a school. This can be an enlightening and inspiring experience; and to top it all off, you may be paid!

Since this may be the only time in their lives that these children are exposed to a real live writer, you really want your visit to be a great experience for everyone.

One of the most important facets of a school presentation is to find out what the school (teachers, administrators) expects of you. Chances are they have never had a visiting author before and, in that case, you need to be prepared to tell them what they can expect from your visit. Never thought about this before? Now is a great time to start!

Make a list of questions you need to have answered, such as: How much time will you have for your presentation?
How many students will be attending?
What are their ages?
Once you have these facts, you can begin to plan your program.

The visiting author will also need to determine if the teachers have any special goals for your visit. Perhaps they want you to stress the writing process or how to find ideas.

You will also need to make the school aware of any special needs you may have. Do they have a slide projector and screen available? Do they have a TV/VCR? Will you use an overhead projector in your presentation? Make sure one will be available for you to use. Will the students need to bring any material to the presentation, such as pencils or paper?

You also need to make sure your audience is familiar with you work. When students have prior knowledge of your work, your presentation will be more successful.

Plan to talk about the writing process in some way. Not just by dry lecture but by involving the students in the process. Use concrete objects as part of your presentation. Children need something to see and touch and this will encourage active participation.

The copyright of the article When Children's Authors Visit Schools in Writing for Children is owned by Sue Reichard. Permission to republish When Children's Authors Visit Schools in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.