How Author Visits Inspire Joy in Young Readers
Author Visits and Their Impact on Elementary School Readers
Part of my day job as a UX Researcher for an edTech agency is to seek out research on educational trends. This can range from investigating regional access to devices in schools, to curriculum adoption, to learning needs trends, and student achievement.
A few weeks ago, this research led me to student survey data from Pew Research Center that stopped me in my tracks.
The number of American tweens (aged 9 to 13 years old) who report reading for fun daily is at the lowest level since "at least the mid-1980s."
Rationally, I know this shouldn't be so shocking. I'm aware of the national data around our reading levels. I've followed the discourse around learning gaps and deficits. I'm a trained special education teacher with a specialization in learning disabilities, so I'm well versed in the challenges teachers face when teaching literacy across grade levels.
The more I reflected on this finding though, the sadder I felt for all of these kids.
I understand not loving the books you're assigned in school. I remember being forced to read Flowers for Algernon in eighth grade and resenting every page. Maybe it's good? I'll never know, because I hated being made to read it.
But the thought that less and less kids are choosing to read for fun? That's troubling. It's also understandable. Our attention spans are so short now. Full disclosure, I have a hard time reading fiction these days. I struggle to get into new stories, not because they aren't great, but because of my attention is pulled in so many directions.
It's sad, not only because I'm a writer and reading is a part of my job, but also because for most of my life, reading was my favorite escape. I think so many teachers, librarians, and authors feel the same way.
As an author of middle grade books, I feel I have a unique opportunity to do something to address this disheartening trend. For middle grade readers, school visits can have a huge impact on students.
Of course I'd love it if you invited me to visit your classroom [and I am booking visits for Fall 2023!] but I'd also be so happy if this post inspires you to coordinate any author to visit your school, because I do believe hosting a guest author at your school can have a lasting impact and combat this saddening trend away from reading for fun.
How do author visits benefit middle school readers?
Author visits can benefit middle school readers in a number of ways. First, they provide an opportunity for students to connect with the author of their favorite books or stories. This connection gives students the chance to ask questions and get advice from a professional who has been through similar experiences, giving them a sense of validation and understanding.
In person visits can have a powerful impact on reluctant readers. Of course, I don't mean that just because some wonderful authors visit students in their classroom they will suddenly begin reading for fun every day. But I do believe author visits provides kids with a new perspective on writing, and a new appreciation for storytelling. It personalizes writing and brings a level of tangibility to the vague notion many kids have about authors.
Why host an author visit?
When students hear directly from authors about their writing processes and the inspiration behind their books, they begin to see reading and writing in a new light.
I've seen first hand the way kids respond to the idea that when writing a book, the author controls what happens to each character and gets to shape their own little world however they want.
I'll never forget one particular Q & A exchange I had with a fifth grader at the end of an author visit.
He asked, with a skeptical tone, why a major plot point in The Ice House, my middle grade novel, unfolded the way it did. My answer: Well, because that's what I wanted to happen, and I wrote it, so I made the decision.
His response: Woah. Cool.
Hate to admit that I felt validated that a fifth grader thought anything I had to say was cool, but I did. More importantly, in that moment I could see a spark of creativity ignite.
Getting to meet someone who has written a book you've read is a memorable experience.
I never had an author come into my classroom as a kid, and I never thought I could be a writer professionally. There's probably a correlation of some sort there.
I want every kid to believe that they can be an author one day if that's what they want. I think the first step is for kids to meet a “real” author, and to get a sense of how the writing process works: why writers write, the fun and freedom that comes with storytelling.
I've gotten feedback time and again that my author visits have helped kids connect with books in a new way.
They've met and spoken to a real person who has explained the ins and outs of writing a book, and they begin to think about choices authors make in other books they've read. Not because they're being quizzed, but because they're interested.
It translates to their writing, as well. They begin to think about the stories they'd write and the decisions they'd make.
One of the most significant benefits of author visits is that kids read more as a result.
Teachers and school librarians have told me that The Ice House gets checked out repeatedly after my author visits. I've heard the same from fellow middle grade authors about their own books. My hypothesis? Meeting authors sparks kids' interest in stories in a unique way.
By hearing an author's personal story about the process of writing and publishing a book, students make connections between a book and an actual human being. This tangible example of how and why books are written from a writer of a book they've seen in person, maybe even read, engages young readers, including the reluctant ones.
I always explain that my love of writing goes hand in hand with a love of reading. When I talk about the impact my favorite books had on me throughout my childhood, kids begin to explore their own relationships with books, which leads them to seek out new stories in their classroom or school library.
During my author visits, I talk about my own favorite books from when I was the students' age, but I also cover my favorite current children's books. I give a little review and explain what I liked about each of them. The result? Kids check those books out right away.
Successful Visits
Whether you book an author for a virtual visit or an in person visit that includes a longer author presentation, there are some key aspects of an author visit that will ensure it is a wonderful experience. Make sure that you coordinate with the visiting author to make sure that your students have time for questions and receive some writing tips. Some authors are happy to provide a presentation that is more of a writing workshop format for a smaller group of students, like individual classroom visits. As a writer of middle grade novels, I recommend this for middle schoolers especially. They respond really well to getting insight into how authors approach a writing project, and tend to become especially enthusiastic about their own stories as a result.
Resources
I’m providing some links to resources to support you as you research how to best facilitate author visits for your class.
My hope is that by partnering with teachers, librarians, and families to increase author visits in elementary schools across the country, we'll begin to reinvigorate a love of reading in kids and encourage a new generation of lifelong readers.
If you're thinking of arranging an author visit at your school, please learn more about my author visits here and email me with any questions. I'd be so happy to provide a memorable learning experience for your students!
