|
|
 
School Book Talks
Picking noses, wiping boogers, and pickles - author beware!
By: Michael Moorehead
Looking for a few good ways to spruce up your school book talks? Then read on to discover several great ways to make book talks more fun for both the audience and the speaker.
When it comes to presenting at schools, the most important thing to do is be very interactive with the audience. As a personal experience, when I wasn't engaging the kids about my book - The Student from Zombie Island - I literally saw them picking their noses and trying to decide where to wipe the boogers. I'm not joking!
The more speakers connect with their audiences and ask them questions, the more the kids understand what the speakers are trying to tell them. Presenters also need to remember to talk "to" the students, not "at" them. For example, instead of saying, "A rumor is gossip spread by word of mouth," ask the audience, "Does anyone know what a rumor is?" This will start a discussion on rumors, and before you know it, the students will really be tuned into what you're saying.
Another way to make school presentations more exciting is to offer giveaways. Freebies are always fun and can be - hopefully - cheap. For example, bookmarks, stickers and pencils are inexpensive, but they can make all the difference to a child. It always feels good to see that smile on a child's face when they get something fun. Besides, promoting your book doesn't hurt either.
If authors want to sell more books at schools, it always helps to inform the students of the book talk before you come. What I do is give teachers preorder forms for them to pass out to the kids about two weeks before I speak. That way the students or their parents can purchase the book before I come. Think about it, how many kids walk around the school with money in their pockets ready to buy a book. Not many. The forms also give the parents something to look at that might convince them to attend the book talk as well.
Always have a question and answer session at the end of your talks. Usually kids ask lots of questions, which can be good or bad depending on the way you look at it. Also, be ready for every possible question, because I guarantee you there will be some children that ask some strange questions - I have been asked if I like pickles by kids on numerous occasions.
It doesn't matter what the age group of the audience is, speakers need to try to be as upbeat as possible. What happens if presenters aren't lively? Just imagine a bunch of kids sitting around in a room listening to some person drone on what seems like an eternity. That's pretty boring. If presenters are cheerful and full of pizzazz the kids will remember the presentation a lot more, you'll enjoy yourself a lot more, and you are less likely to see a finger up a nose.
Michael Moorehead, age 12, is the author of "The Student from Zombie Island: Conquering the Rumor Monster." Visit his website at www.ZombieIslandBooks.com.
|
 |
P: 480-940-8182