SCHOOL & LIBRARY PROGRAMS
Jenny's First Catch Author Visits
The perfect complement to your science, language arts, visual arts and personal development curriculum.
Susan is currently booking Jenny's First Catch author visits for the 2021/22 school year. Secure your date now to ensure she is available for your upcoming Reading Week, Writer's Week or whatever special event can benefit from a high energy, inspirational program.
Students won't stop talking abouT …
The amazing editing process for a book
How the illustrations are made
Why all picture books are 32 pages long
Which wading bird eats baby alligators!
Spoonbill original sketch for Jenny’s First Catch
Spoonbill inspirational photo for Jenny’s First Catch
“Susan Levine’s presentation to our students was fascinating and informative. The students loved hearing how she developed her ideas for her story and showed them the actual publishing process, explaining book signatures and seeing the printing press. Susan even showed our students a YouTube video of her illustrator, who detailed the process of creating illustrations for a picture book. Susan’s presentation was engaging and impactful. The students’ retention of the information she shared with them was evident during her interactive Grab Bag Game. We are so grateful to have had this experience for our students.”
Science - covers concepts of physical adaptation, habitat partitioning, and protecting local wildlife populations.
Language Arts - in-depth look at the writing process with an emphasis on the all important step of editing. Also demonstrates how books are made from "signatures" and why all picture books are 32 pages in length.
Visual Arts - the illustration process from pencil sketch to final layout
Personal Development - Jenny provides an excellent role model for a Growth Mindset approach to problem solving.
A Typical Program
The program begins with an opening assembly. We recommend that all students read Jenny's First Catch beforehand so that Susan can focus on the writing, editing, publishing, and book making process. A Naturalist will then introduce the students to the wading birds their habitat.
At this point, students are divided into two groups for a more intimate experience and will rotate stations:
Book Illustrations: Susan will show all the steps involved in the creation of the pictures for the book - research, pencil sketches, color draft, editing, and final layout.
Estuaries and Wading Birds: The Naturalist will explore what an estuary is, why is it so important to the wading birds, and what students can do to protect these birds and their ecosystem.
The program will end with a Grab Bag game where students get to pick an item and guess what bird each item in the grab bag relates to. Learning has never been so fun!
Packard Takes Flight and Harriett's Homecoming Author Visits
The perfect multi-disciplinary enhancement to any hometown or Ohio "State Study"
Social Studies - covers the history, culture, architecture, and key downtown sites of Columbus and Cincinnati, Ohio.
Language Arts - in-depth look at the writing process with an emphasis on the all important step of editing. Also demonstrates how books are made from "signatures" and why all picture books are 32 pages in length.
Visual Arts - the illustration process from pencil sketch to final watercolor painting
Science - a fascinating look at Peregrine Falcon facts and behaviors. Details why these birds became endangered and how they were brought back from the brink of extinction.
A Typical Program
The program begins with an opening assembly. We recommend that all students read Packard Takes Flight or Harriett's Homecoming beforehand so that Susan can focus on the writing, editing, publishing, and book making process. A Naturalist will then introduce the students to a live Peregrine falcon and their unique features.
At this point, students are divided into two groups for a more intimate experience and will rotate stations:
Book Illustrations: Susan will show all the steps involved in the creation of the pictures for the book - research, pencil sketches, editing, and final watercolors.
Peregrine Falcons: The Naturalist will share more about the peregrines in Ohio and their journey back from near extinction.
The program will end with a Grab Bag game that teaches students interesting historical facts about the city sites featured in the book. Always a crowd pleaser!
What educators are saying
Susan Levine shows students one of the original paintings from Packard Takes Flight
Abby Bramlage from the Ohio Bird Sanctuary talks about Legacy, the peregrine falcon
“Bravo! The Packard school program is FABULOUS. Teachers and students cannot stop talking about it. The program is fast-paced, very informative and appropriately designed for elementary-aged students. We ALL learned so much. I am happy and honored to recommend this program to anyone who needs convincing.”
“Fabulous presentation! Susan weaves science, social studies and art into an engaging and informational program, perfect for our 3rd-5th grade. Teachers and students alike have commented about how much they enjoyed the day and all that they learned, from falcons to bookmaking! The presentation was right on target for students - a perfect mix of listening, asking questions and playing interactive games. I, myself have generated a list of ‘day trips’ to take this summer from both books!”
“A great program! Meeting both the author and illustrator made for a very engaging and informative morning. The students and teachers really enjoyed learning fun facts about the Columbus sites in the book and hearing about the illustration process. They even got to see an original painting and the “dummy” book. And, of course, Legacy the peregrine falcon was a showstopper!”
“The Harriett’s Homecoming author program nicely integrates reading, writing, social studies, and science subject areas in a highly engaging and interactive way modified for primary and intermediate grades! I especially enjoyed the break-out sessions that provided in depth time with the author as well as the naturalist from Raptor Incorporated. Meeting Lucy, the peregrine falcon, was certainly a highlight for our students! Teachers and students, alike, were inspired by the visit.”
“The Packard program is wonderful! It is a “must see” for every school. The breakout sessions are very educational and well presented. Being a Math-Science based school, it was a great complement to our curriculum.”
“All of the teachers loved the visit! I personally loved the up close and personal look you provided to all of the students about the actual book writing process. This perspective was a unique experience for our students to get to know your book and you as an author. They were inspired and left energized about not only writing a book but also about exploring the Cincinnati and Columbus cities. Thanks for visiting!””