Virtual Author Visits

 Kate offers full-day virtual author visits, along with live webinars. To request a virtual visit, read the information below and then email via the contact form on Kate’s home page to submit your request, or register for webinars via the links provided.

Virtual Author Visit Webinars

In the past, Kate has offered a very limited number of free virtual Q&A sessions with individual classrooms each season. This year, to accommodate more requests, she’s offering low-cost virtual author visit webinars that are available to everyone, no matter where they’re learning. A small registration fee helps pay for webinar hosting, tech support, and ASL interpreting.

Registration is good for login on just one device. The webinar will be recorded, and a video replay will be made available for those who cannot attend live. (The video replay may also be shared with remote learners and viewed multiple times.)

This webinars are designed for readers learning with their teachers at school and for those learning with caregivers at home. (An adult must register for the webinars.)

HISTORY IS HAPPENING: A VIRTUAL AUTHOR VISIT & WRITING WORKSHOP WITH KATE MESSNER
OCTOBER 5, 2021 – RECOMMENDED FOR READERS IN GRADES 3-7

RETHINKING THANKSGIVING: HISTORY, HOLIDAYS, AND GRATITUDE
NOVEMBER 3, 2021 – RECOMMENDED FOR READERS IN GRADES 3-7

OVER AND UNDER NATURE WRITING
NOVEMBER 4, 2021 – RECOMMENDED FOR READERS IN GRADES K-3

Virtual Author Visits – Full Presentation Plus Q & A 

Available dates:  Please send an email via Kate’s contact form for current information on availability and fees.

These private, just-for-your-school virtual presentations are similar to in-person author visits and writing workshops. They’re typically 45-minute sessions that begin with a 25-30 minute presentation on the writing process, using selected books as focus titles and discussing writer’s notebooks, brainstorming, outlining and planning, research, drafting, revision, and the publishing process. Sessions wrap up with 15-20 minutes of Q and A with students.

Kate’s virtual visits are designed to be developmentally appropriate for different age groups. Her interactive K-1 sessions (35 minutes) focus on brainstorming ideas for stories and keeping a notebook, as well as nature and STEM concepts in her picture books. Kate’s sessions for grades 2-3 (45 minutes) focus on the high-interest science and history research she does for her picture books and chapter books as well as the writing process in action. Sessions for grades 4-5 (45 minutes) focus on research, organizing ideas, drafting, and especially revision in the writing process for Kate’s picture books, chapter books, novels, and works of nonfiction, and sessions for grades 6-12 are similar, with even more in-depth looks at the research and writing process.

These sessions are available to all schools and home-school groups. Students and staff have the option to order personalized, signed books through Kate’s local independent bookstore; she’ll provide order forms.

Virtual Writing Workshops

Available dates: Please send an email via Kate’s contact form for current information on availability and fees.

These private, just-for-your-school 45-minute virtual writing workshops begin with a quick presentation on Kate’s writing process and progress to hands-on student writing. Kate offers the following sessions as virtual writing workshops:

• Over and Under: Observing and Writing about Nature: Kate will share the research and writing process behind her popular science-themed picture books Over and Under the Snow, Up in the Garden and Down in the Dirt, Over and Under the Pond, and Over and Under the Rainforest and will invite readers to start their own nature observation notebooks. Best for grades 1-6.
• Time Traveling With Ranger: Researching and Writing History – Kate will share her research for the Ranger in Time books and get readers started with a historical research & writing project of their own. Best for ages 8-12.
• Story Starters – This general story-elements brainstorming workshop is designed to get kids started writing their own stories. Recommended for grades 3 and up.
• Writing with a Zoom Lens – This personal narrative writing workshop walks writers through choosing topics for personal narratives, writing a great opening paragraph, using strong verbs and vivid language, and dialogue. Recommended for grades 3 and up.
• It’s a Mystery! – This mystery-writing workshop looks at elements of a great mystery and walks writers through the process of brainstorming and organizing their own mysteries. Recommended for grades 4 and up.
• Fairy Tale Retellings – This workshop walks writers through the process of reimagining a classic fairy tale and beginning their own retellings. Recommended for grades 4 and up.
• Writing the Future – This workshop engages writers in the process of brainstorming and world-building for writing their own works of futuristic fiction. Recommended for grades 5 and up.
• Revision Workshop – This workshop is designed for writers who have a completed draft of a personal narrative or short story. Kate will discuss her own revision process, share tips, and lead writers through several revision activities with their own drafts. Recommended for grades 3 and up.

Praise for Kate’s Virtual Author Visits…

“Booking Kate Messner for our first-ever virtual author visit was, hands down, the highlight of our school year! Despite the fact that we were states away, our students were engaged and fascinated by her lively and informative presentation. Afterwards, both teachers and students were clamoring to get their hands on her books – in fact, copies waiting to be cataloged in the library were swiped by teachers the very next day! Students across all six grade levels were engaged and delighted, and we could not recommend her highly enough!”

~Courney Ahearn, Andover Public Schools (all-school read of History Smashers: Women’s Right to Vote)

 

One of the best things about technology is the way it brings people together, even when they’re far away. Each year, I meet thousands of kids in their classrooms via Skype, to talk about books, research, and the writing process. I’ve Skyped and Zoomed with hundreds of classrooms around the world. Some of them have blogged about their experiences to share what my virtual visits are all about:

PES Library in Maine

Mrs. Sarchet’s Grade One Class

Maria Selke’s Fifth Grade

Laurie Morrison’s Seventh Grade

Curtis Elementary Morning Book Club