School Visits ~ Programs
Bobbie leads the children through a lively, thought-provoking discussion, beginning with the realization that a book starts with an idea. She then reads her award-winning books. Following the reading, Bobbie gives the students a chance to look at the books from a new perspective. This time they concentrate on the illustrations, discussing ways that pictures enhance the meanings of words. She encourages the students to explore new ideas for their own stories, convincing them that if they work hard and believe in themselves, they can achieve whatever they wish.
Following the presentation, students love to sing along with the children on the accompanying CDs.
Small groups of up to 45 children are preferred. Length of presentation is 45-50 minutes.
This more in-depth program is designed for the upper elementary grades. Bobbie shares with the children the many stages involved in producing a book, including a glimpse at her early scribbled notes and the first illustration sketches. She guides the students in discovering the importance of making the pictures match the words. They discuss the parts of a story and realize that every story needs a beginning, a middle and an end. Children are encouraged to create their own story characters and discuss their ideas.
Small groups of up to 45 children are preferred. Length of presentation is 50-60 minutes.
This program is designed to teach the importance of character development to a story. The students learn that each character reveals information that is relevant to the story. They learn to distinguish the difference between boring characters and ones with pizzazz. The lively discussion that follows leads to the creation of an interesting and distinctive story character. Students are then given the follow-up assignment to develop their own unique character. This final phase of the program is completed with the classroom teacher.
Small groups of up to 45 children are preferred. Length of presentation is 50-60 minutes.