I’m interested in helping children become writers and discover the power of their own words to move people. Once they feel the excitement of searching for answers to their own questions, they will find their voice and use their rich imaginations to share their own stories with the world.
Clare presents classroom workshops on creative writing in elementary schools. She also conducts assemblies about her published books and magazine stories with full-color photos. Virtual author visits are also available
Assemblies
Grades 1-3: Fun Facts Lead to Great Stories: How to create simple stories using fascinating facts about a favorite animal and a problem in nature the students have to solve.
Grades 3-5: What makes nonfiction stories come alive: How to research and build a compelling narrative using a 3-problem approach to my true animal stories like Growing Up Gorilla and Rhino Rescue.
Grades 3-5: Ten Tips on Teamwork: How to work together on the field and in the classroom the Soccer Dreams way.
One-Hour Classroom Workshops
Grades K-1: How to make a book: Read Who Wakes Rooster? and brainstorm a story about who wakes whom in your house. Make a book using this paper folding template.
Grades 2-3: Fun Facts Lead to Great stories: Lead a writing exercise to take three facts about an animal and outline a story.
Grades 3-5: Think Like a Gorilla: How to research a true animal story.
Grades 3-5: Buddy Poems: Introduce basic poetic form of stanza and refrain and guide students as they interview a partner and create a spoken word poem to perform in class. (See video below.)
Multi-Day Classroom Workshops for Grades 3-5: From Idea to Finished Story using a 3-problem approach to story structure
1) Family Journey Stories
Students interview a parent or relative about coming to America or taking a family trip, create an outline, write a finished story, and make it into a chopstick-bound book.
2) Nature Narratives
Students choose an animal as their main character and create a story using real-life problems of survival regarding habitat, finding food, and predators.
3) Creating Stories of Heroes and Sheroes
Students create their own stories about what it means to be a hero by developing a character who sees a problem and wants to solve it. Includes outlining a plot and creating a story, from the call to adventure and facing obstacles to the final climax that determines whether the character becomes a hero or not.
Testimonials
“Clare’s slides and stories held each of the 90+ students enthralled for the full 45 minutes presentation. Not only did her book fly off the library shelves, but students clamored for “everything about gorillas” and “all of Clare’s books” for which our lucky little library was ready and waiting.” – Craig Seasholes, Teacher Librarian at Dearborn Park Elementary in Seattle
To Clare—our wonderful fiction teacher! We loved having you come and teach us about fiction writing! Thank you from the bottom of our hearts! We are finishing up the final drafts and will have a class celebration—and think of you!
—Jill McGrath, Whittier Elementary Teacher in Seattle
"We did a Google meet with Clare Hodgson Meeker in two separate classrooms simultaneously. She kept over 120 students engaged as she explained how she wrote her book Growing up gorilla. She also explained how hard non-fiction writing can be as you can't anthropomorphize." – Donna Miller, Librarian at Prescott Elementary School in Massachusetts
Finished paper-folded booklet for the Who Wakes Rooster workshop