Award-winning author Mary Amato gets kids excited about writing in an all-grades assembly, and then she visits each classroom to conduct writing workshops. Classroom workshops can be focused on either fiction or poetry. Both fiction and poetry focus on voice and character. (If teachers would like a different topic–other than voice/character–to be covered in the workshops in order to meet their curricular needs, Mary will be happy to discuss tailoring the topic.) Poetry residencies are effective because poems can be written, read, and discussed in a shorter amount of time than a story; fiction residencies do require teachers to devote class time so that students can finish their stories.
Poetry: Mary takes students through an exercise to develop a character; next Mary shows them how to establish a unique voice for this character; and finally students write a poem in the character’s first-person POV. Students will be given tips for revision and encouraged to revise these poems on their own. The techniques they learn can be applied to write new poems. These poems are especially great for performance, and Mary also gives tips on effective reading/speaking techniques.
Fiction: Mary takes students through an exercise to develop a character; next Mary shows them how to establish a “want” for this character that will become the driving force for both the voice and the plot; finally, students will begin writing a short story in this character’s voice. Mary will give tips for how to complete their stories, and teachers will need to devote more class time to allow students to finish their stories.
Optional Follow-Up:
Follow-up visits can be very helpful for students and teachers. Ideally, these are scheduled at least two weeks after Mary’s initial visit and during this time the students will have been working on their writing. In these classroom sessions, Mary will invite students to read their work, give on-the-spot feedback, and teach/model how to give/take feedback. If class sizes are large, not all students will be able to read their entire work; however, teachers and students will benefit from hearing how Mary responds to the work that is shared.
Sample Itinerary
Initial Visit
Day One
10:00-10:50 All Grades Assembly
Mary shares the humorous and emotionally touching story of how/why she started writing, shares her childhood diaries, and shows how she moved from diary writing to fiction and poetry writing. She also explains her writing process and helps kids get excited about writing by playing an improvisational game.
11:00-11:50 Classroom Workshop
11:55-12:55 Lunch Break (Mary will meet with small group of selected students for Q and A. This can be informal; however, it can also be used as a way to extend the learning process. One suggestion is to have students “interview” Mary during lunch and be responsible for writing an article about it for the school’s website or newsletter.)
1:00-1:50 Classroom Workshop
2:00-2:50 Classroom Workshop
Day Two
10:00-10:50 Classroom Workshop
11:00-11:50 Classroom Workshop
Lunch Break
1:00-1:50 Classroom Workshop
2:00-2:50 Classroom Workshop
(Add extra full or half day as needed to meet with all classes)
Follow-Up Sessions
(several weeks after initial visit)
Day One
10:00-10:50 Classroom Workshop
11:00-11:50 Classroom Workshop
Lunch Break (meet with teachers to discuss issues/questions)
1:00-1:50 Classroom Workshop
2:00-2:50 Classroom Workshop
(Add extra full or half day as needed to meet with all classes)
If you are scheduling Mary for a full day, she is willing to do five classroom sessions in one day; however, then she will not be doing a lunch session with students or teachers.
Fundraiser/Celebration:
If you are holding the residency as part of a book fair, fundraiser, or literary celebration and would like to offer Mary’s books for sale, Mary would be happy to attend an evening event, autograph books, speak to parents about the residency, and/or host an “open mic” for students who would like to share their work.