Writers in Schools

What is Writers in Schools?

In July 2007 the Primary English Teaching Association successfully applied for and received a grant from the Copyright Agency Ltd (CAL) to develop and run Writers in Schools, a training program for new authors to assist them in developing the skills needed to present talks and writing workshops in schools. The information and ideas from the training program are now available as an e-manual.

How was the program developed?

Following a focus group involving teachers, teacher librarians and experienced children’s authors to establish the training needs of authors, a list of topics that needed to be addresses was developed. This list became the basis of a 3 day training program and an e-manual which will be completed in July.
Authors Deborah Abela and James Roy and former teacher librarian Maureen Nicol worked with project manager Val Noake to identify speakers and content for two days of workshops and talks that would provide practical advice on what to expect when visiting a school, examples of different types of presentations and how to get work in schools.

In between the two days of workshops, a one-day practicum was planned with the ‘new’ authors spending a day in a school with a mentor (an experienced author) to gain some first-hand experience of presenting talks and workshops.

Who participated in the program?

The training program was advertised through publishers, writers’ centres and author networks inviting new authors to register their interest in participating. Enquiries were received from authors in Perth, Adelaide, Melbourne, Canberra, Sydney and regional centres in NSW and Victoria. Eleven new authors from Sydney, one from Bega and one from Wodonga joined the training program.

As well as workshops presented by Deborah, James, Maureen and Val, authors Libby Gleeson, Jeni Mawter, Sue Whiting and drama teacher Maria Simpson shared their experiences and expertise with the group. Moya Simons and Jane Carroll joined Deborah, James, Sue and Jeni as mentors for the new people.

What were the outcomes of the program?

All the new participants agreed they were now confident to go out into schools and share their enthusiasm for writing and reading with students. They reported that the one day practicum that allowed them to see an experienced author in action and have a go with the support of their mentor was a great learning experience. The workshop presenters and mentors also reported that they found working with the new authors an opportunity to learn as well.

Students and teachers at thirteen schools were treated to free writing workshops and talks. They appreciated the opportunity to meet both the new up-coming authors and their well-known mentors. Students participating in the workshops were invited to enter a story in the What’s your story? writing competition which followed on from the Writers in Schools Program.

An e-manual covering the content of  the workshops and other useful ideas and information for authors is available. The manual is divided into three parts: 'About primary school', 'About being a presenter' and 'About the business of visiting schools'. It is a comprehensive document of 61 pages so it is recommended that you save the manual to your hard-drive and only print where necessary.

Guidelines for author visits to schools are being written for teachers and librarians to help them maximise the benefits of author visits and ensure the best outcomes for all involved.