I’m just coming off of a very busy week of school author visits. Actually, it has been the busiest month of author events since I started doing in-person programs again, after the Covid shut downs. On Monday, March 18th I was at schools in Pennsylvania, then Connecticut on Tuesday, and New Jersey on Wednesday. I was then home for less than 24 hrs as I had a visit in Maryland near DC. In all I travelled about 1000 miles this week.

The month started with a visit to Poolesville Elementary in Maryland. A K-5 school, I did 3 presentations in their multi-purpose room, with each program geared towards the different age groups. Earlier this year I had scheduled short, 20 minute virtual readings with schools all over for World Read-Aloud Day on February 7th. One of them was Poolesville, with their 4th grade students. We had such a great time the school librarian arranged for me to come to the school at the beginning of March.

I remembered to ask for a review to add to my website, this is what was sent:

“I can’t say enough about the presentations done at our school by author/illustrator Timothy Young! They were so stellar! He answered every question from “how is a book made,” to “what inspired your books” with honesty, but also with plenty of humor sprinkled in! He showed a technique to encourage students to be creative by starting with a scribble! He spoke about some other creative jobs he’s held and opened up a world of jobs rooted in the arts and gave our students a glimpse into what kinds of jobs are out there for them! I received notes from parents telling me how their kids came home from school ecstatic about the assembly, wanting to purchase all of his books, and learn more about illustrating and sculpting! Mr. Young even gave the families the option to receive signed copies of his books! The experience was top notch, and I’d highly recommend him to anyone looking for a wonderful assembly for their school! THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR SUCH AN AMAZING EXPERIENCE!”

Clair L. Ketchum, Library Media Specialist , Poolesville, MD

The next week I was getting ready for my next group of schools. I had to order and sign about 200 books for the PA, CT and NJ schools. I also did a couple of local drawing workshops at Easton Elementary School. This was a follow-up to my presentation at Easton’s historic Avalon Theatre in January. You can see excerpts from that presentation here.

I packed up the car with 6 cases of books and all of the stuff I bring for my presentations. My first stop was Pen Argyl, PA. I did 2 presentations in the morning at Plainfield Elementary and two in the afternoon at Wind Gap Middle School. I presented to students from K through 8th grade. With the younger students I read books and do a drawing demonstration, as the students get older I talk amore about the writing and illustrating process. I also talk about creative careers and include information about my work in animation and the toy industry. I didn’t get pictures from that day’s visits, some schools don’t allow photography and I completely understand their concerns. I did snap a pic of my set-up before the older student presentations began.

That evening I drove from Pennsylvania to central Connecticut. This is a school I was scheduled to visit in the Spring of 2020 when the world turned upside-down. Jennifer Herrick, the school librarian, contacted me early last fall to schedule this visit, Bolton Center Elementary’s first author event since schools have reopened. I was thrilled she remembered and set this visit up. I also love it when a librarian really gets the students excited for my visit. She even had them color a bunch of my coloring and activity pages from my website.

Sometimes the school will post about your visit on social media. This was a video snippet of me drawing, you can see the video here.

Ms. Herrick also posted on her own Facebook page:

Last month a librarian friend of mine asked if I might be able to do a visit to a New Jersey school where a friend of hers worked. I told her I couldn’t do Read Across America week, which is the first week of March but if they could arrange it for the day after my CT visit I could add it to my schedule. Paterson School #5 didn’t really have the money for an author visit but it was not out of my way so we were able to work it out. The students and staff were greatly appreciative and we all had a wonderful time. The school bought a bunch of my books to raffle to some of the students. I can’t afford to do a lot of discounted presentations but it’s nice to be able to present to kids who otherwise would never get to have an author visit their school.

I asked Ms. Propersi for a review of my presentations:

“As a teacher, I had the honor of arranging for a wonderful author to come to our school, and it was simply amazing. Tim Young’s contagious energy and love of storytelling enthralled everyone in the room the instant he entered our classroom. He had an easy time connecting with kids of all ages, dismantling obstacles, and fostering a real sense of participation. Mr. Young inspired students to embrace the power of imagination and explore their creativity through stimulating activities and interactive discussions.

Young’s inspiring ability was one of the most amazing things about his stay. He gave our students confidence and determination by sharing personal stories and insights into his writing career. After the event, a lot of students felt motivated to continue with their creative projects, be it writing, painting, or any other kind of expression. Tim Young’s remarks struck a deep chord with our children, serving as a reminder that they are important and can change the world.

Tim Young also made a genuine effort to connect with every student. He took the time to listen to students’ questions and concerns, offering encouragement and support. His passion for storytelling, coupled with his ability to inspire and connect with students, made for an unforgettable experience. We wholeheartedly recommend Tim Young to any school or organization looking to enrich the lives of their students through the power of literature and creativity.”

Carla Propersi, Literacy Specialist, Paterson, NJ

I drove home to Maryland to rest up and get ready for my Friday visit. Mary of Nazareth school is just northwest of Washington DC. They are just up the road from Poolesville and wanted to know if I could visit their school as well. We tried to work out a schedule so that it would be the next day after Poolesville but they realized they had testing so we moved it to March 22nd. I was happy I had given them a book order deadline before my 3 day trip north. They ended up ordering over 80 books for their students and I was able to sign them before I had left on the 17th.

On Thursday I drove over the Bay Bridge and headed for Washington DC. The school was a little over 2 hours away and I could have gotten up early on Friday but it turned out my brother Jody, who lives in Florida, was going to be in DC for a few days on business so I stopped and had dinner with him before heading to my hotel in Rockville, MD.

When I do school assemblies, most often I am presenting to Kindergarten through 5th grade. If I do those grades a usual day would be 45 minutes with K-1st and then an hour each with 2nd-3rd and 4th-5th. I have occasionally presented to older groups of middle school students and I’ve even done high school presentations centered around creative career opportunities. Three of the 5 schools I visited this week asked me to do up to 8th grade. I am often warned “They’re going to be a tough crowd.” I find I enjoy presenting to the older grades, I can have a lot of fun talking about books, animation and toys. You can also joke around with them in ways that young kids won’t appreciate. It also helps that I have my new middle-grade to talk about, even if it is a younger chapter book.

Mary of Nazareth school put these photos on their Instagram page. I really love it when I see a room full of students paying attention to me. I mean, for me that’s how assemblies go but it’s nice to be able to show that the kids really listen.

And here are the students excited to ask questions. Much of my program is steered by the questions kids ask. I always answer every question as best I can. Sometimes it’s a question I’ve been asked a million times but to them it’s a brand new question. I like the photo they took of my books. I always display them in order of publication. Kids often ask which was my first book.

Before Covid happened I was doing multi-day school visit trips like this fairly often. It’s been a bit of a struggle to get as many bookings as I would like. I try to get a minimum of 3 each month but I have room in my schedule for up to 10 or more. Since Spring 2023 I have had a number of months with only one or none. I was told by three of this month’s schools that I was their first assembly since the lock downs so at least I know it’s not just me, so many schools are just getting back to having assemblies.

I recently rebuilt my whole website, CreaturesAndCharacters.com, so that schools looking for me can find my information more easily. The old website was looking dated and was too small to read on the phone. If you are an educator or you know a school looking for a fun and informative author assembly, please think of me. I’ll travel anywhere and my rates are reasonable. I hope to visit your school soon!