Proposal for School Visits
Katie would like to visit your school and talk with your students.
Who is Katie?
My name is Katie Spina, and I’m a children’s author. I have always been the kid with a book in her hands. Stories helped me understand the world around me.
I write for kids who want to connect with characters who struggle with the same insecurities and fears they do.
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The ideas below are ones I have designed myself; however, if you have a specific unit that you are looking for me to talk on, I'm happy to work with you.
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Most recently, I gave a talk to 300 Seventh Graders over the course of two days on Worldbuilding in a Dystopia for their Dystopian Unit in English Language Arts.
What sort of visits does Katie do?
1. For younger elementary students (grades 1-3), there's a library book reading and signing
When the students visit the school library during their scheduled time for library, they'll hear Ms. Katie read Dig It Out. After the reading, discussion generated by follow-up questions written and provided to the librarian by Ms. Katie, explanation of the writing process, where story ideas come from, etc.
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Students who pre-purchased a book will get their books signed.
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2. For middle schoolers (grades 6-8), there's a classroom visit presentation "Fanfiction and You"
This presentation is designed to encourage kids to write their own fanfiction. It is designed for an audience of all interests. It is not specifically for kids who like fantasy or science fiction.
In a 45-minute presentation, I’ll talk about:
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What Fanfiction is
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How anyone can write it about anything
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Famous fanfiction they may not realize is fanfiction
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How my own fanfiction became Swim the Stars
I’ll provide handouts with prompts and tools to inspire the students to write their own stories
We’ll play a game to show how easy it can be to generate ideas