Author Current Location: Jericho Center, Vermont Honorarium: The fee listed below is only the honorarium and does not include expenses which the hosting organization must pay for. $1250 per day Full day includes 3 large audience presentations -or up to 5 small group workshops -or a combination of 2 large audience presentations and 2 small group workshops Program Description My program has two parts. The first part is a 45-minute presentation suitable for small or large audiences. This is usually followed by a 30-40 minute workshop appropriate for smaller groups. I will present to parent/family groups or community libraries in combination with school visits for an additional fee. I have spoken to audiences that range from 2 months old to 80 years in the same group! The Presentation No matter what the size, I work to keep my presentation very hands-on arid interactive with my audience. I begin by drawing and storytelling about where I get my ideas. I then take the students through the process of creating a book. I bring sketches, dummies, original draft and proof sheets. Students in the audience help me hold dummies that can stretch the length of ten children. The older the students, the more involved I get in the writing, editing and process of making picture books. The final part of my presentation involves slides of my family, studio, home and town. Because the books that I write-and-illustrate-are based on my family and community, the students can see where these stories come from. I end by answering questions from the students and teachers. Group Size Large audience = 50-150 students Small audience = up to 40 students The Workshop The presentation can be followed directly or later that day or the next, by the workshop. In the workshop I become the publisher and the students become the illustrators. Using a short simple poem, first we brainstorm ideas together and then the children do their own illustrations. They each create their own dummy. The workshop is a lot of fun for everyone. But it also pulls together everything that I have talked about in my presentation. The students see that even though they all have the same text, they are different artists. As long as they are true to the words, they can go crazy with their own illustrations. Like each child, each book is unique.