1. Planning Author Skype Sessions for Elementary Age Students Michele Copeland & Uzma Askari Potowmack Elementary

2. Introductions  Uzma Askari, Potowmack Elementary Reading teacher  Uzma.Askari@lcps.org Uzma.Askari@lcps.org  Michele Rzewski Copeland, Potowmack Elementary Librarian  Michele.rzewskicopeland@lcps.org Michele.rzewskicopeland@lcps.org  Participants will share their names, locations, and any experiences they have with Skype.

3. Why Skype with authors?  Builds enthusiasm and purpose for reading  Low cost alternative to author visits  Teaches students about the roles of authors and illustrators.  Many kindergarten students think all authors are dead!  One to the World project requirements.  Develops interest in a series or work of a single author  Develops parent and community connections

4. Technical aspects of Skype  Visit the Skype website to install Skype on your laptop or device.  Create a “school specific” skype account for your author visits.  Test your account by calling a colleague.  Use the “Echo self test” function to be sure your equipment and sound works with your whiteboard.  Have your technology staff on call on the day of your event.

5. Before you plan your visits….. Skype sessions are exciting but require a lot of pre-planning to be successful. Things to consider when you plan: 1)Where in your schedule do you have a time gap to set up for and take down from a Skype session? Can kids help move furniture? 2)When will you have time in your schedule for 2-3 weeks to read the author’s books to your students to familiarize them with the literature? 3)What time of day can your teachers release their students to you for the visit? Will you make teachers stay? 4)Do you have enough of the author’s books? Do you need funds to order books to prepare for the visit? 5)What about alternate plans for inclement weather?

6. Finding Authors  Check out Kate Messner’s list: http://www.katemessner.com/authors-who-skype-with-classes-book-clubs-for-free/ You can try contacting some of the authors we have used: http://www.loudoun.k12.va.us/Page/169357 Approach authors at book events - we found a couple of our favorites that way! Follow them on Twitter – they love to have their posts liked/retweeted. You can also just go to author’s web sites and ask. Many of them are very flattered and happy to work with you!

7. Funding a Skype session  PTA may help you. Our PTA used the money allocated for assemblies to help pay for some of the Skype sessions.  Write a grant – LEF, NEA, KINF, and VEA are all good sources for teacher grants.  Use Scholastic bonus points and free book coupons to buy books for students participating in the Skype session.  Try holding a used book sale.  When all else fails, do ILL’s to get sufficient copies of books to support your project.

8. Good times for a Skype session…  To coincide with a class project. Third graders wrote non-fiction books for their OTTW projects. They met with a non-fiction author and she talked about her process of writing non-fiction.  To coincide with a special holiday or event. We Skyped with an author from Mexico for Multicultural Month and with a deaf author during Disabilities Awareness Month.  After an author study  After a reading incentive

9. When contacting an author….  Tell what book(s) you are reading and want to discuss.  Describe the population that would be working with the author.  Describe your budget. Are you willing to pay for a visit? Can you buy multiple copies of their books for a discussion group in lieu of paying an honorarium? Do you need to sell their books?  Give a possible time frame for a visit.  Be specific about your location and time zone.  Do they expect you to send questions in advance?  What is the length of time you are proposing? (20 minute Q&A is pretty standard for a free visit).

10. When setting up the visit….  Do all planning weeks in advance – this can be more complicated than you think!  Talk to your bookkeeper. If the author is being paid, she will need to see that the author is on an approved vendor list. She will also need tax information from the vendor.  Talk to your principal. He/she is going to want to know who is meeting with your students and when.  Coordinate with the classroom teachers to be sure they are willing to release their students to you at the appointed time.  Be sure that the event is posted on staff and school calendars so your students are not double booked for the day and time you have chosen.

11. Where/when should you hold the visit?  Lunch is a good time – all students are available and it is instructional dead time. Students tend to be quiet and eating and more likely to listen.  Hallway alcoves can be good because you don’t have to move furniture, but there can be an echo and it gets noisy.  Libraries are great but require a lot of movement of furniture.  Classrooms are nice but can only accommodate a small group.  See if your author can do the visit twice so you have smaller groups of students to work with.

12. Who should attend?  Entire grade level – can be great to get a lot of kids excited but you lose the personal interaction.  Students participating in a book club as an incentive to get kids to join the club and read more books  Students participating in a study group as an incentive to get kids to read more outside of school  Students completing a reading incentive activity to motivate kids to complete the activity (as opposed to handing out trinkets)  Invite parents and staff – it is great publicity for your program!

13. Things to do with students before the visit  Expose students to a variety of the author’s work. Read the author’s picture books to the students if possible. Have students discuss what they like about the books with each other.  Visit teachingbooks.net and play the author pronunciation audio so students know how to address the author.  Create a book display in the library.  Promote the event on the school news show / announcements.  Have students create lists of questions.  Determine who and how students will ask questions.  Send home ConnectEd messages making parents aware of the events.  Send home book flyers for students to request/order books by the author.

14. Things to discuss with the author  What time will the event be?(Confirm this many times, especially with different time zones).  Exchange phone numbers in case equipment fails.  When does the author need payment?  What are they planning to do with the students? Read a book or just answer questions? Do they need questions in advance?  Be sure you have exchanged Skype names before the event. These can be confusing as many people have similar names.  Are you expected to do a test call?

15. If the author is willing…  Show pets (This is usually the best part of the visit).  Show their babies or other family members.  Show their work space and describe when/how they write.  If you are working with an illustrator, see if he/she will draw during the visit or even do drawing instruction. (Giving kindergarteners crayons for drawing instruction is a great way to keep them engaged).  Show drafts of their work (along with editor’s comments)  Describe the region where they live and show the view from the window.

16. During the visit…  Be sure students are silent before you begin. Work out an arrangement with teachers if a student needs to be removed. This event is a privilege.  Have kids create a line at the laptop to read their questions to the author.  One question per student – otherwise some kids will monopolize the conversation.  Make sure that students know to say thank you after their question has been answered.  Have a designated photographer!

17. After the visit  Send a thank you email to the author.  If any students still have unanswered questions, you can also send those questions to the author.  Post/share your photos.  Encourage students to read the other books by the author. Rest! You deserve it.

18. Any questions? Contact us at Michele.rzewskicopeland@lcps.org or Uzma.Askari@lcps.orgMichele.rzewskicopeland@lcps.org Uzma.Askari@lcps.org