Yay! The programme for the Singapore Writers Festival Words Go Round school program is up. It’s happening in late February, early March 2013, and some awesome writers from all around the world will be there (including me :-))

Also attending from Australia is the fabulous YA mistress-of-angst Kate McCaffrey, who will also be giving the opening address at an incredible day-long public event: the WGR Literary Open House, a day dedicated to young writers and readers. If you’re in Singapore on March 2 2013, be there! It’s going to be huge.

I’m offering a couple of sessions for kids in Grades P4-6:

THINGS THAT GO BUMP IN THE NIGHT – one-hour talk
From vampires and zombies to bean-shakers and talking umbrellas, the world’s mythical creatures have inspired generations of authors. Join Cristy Burne, author of the Takeshita Demons series, in a lively discussion of Japan’s monsters, how to survive them, and what they can teach us about history, culture and the human condition.

FROM HISTORY TO FANTASY: WRITING WITH ARTEFACTS – three-hour workshop
Have you ever rung an old bell, then imagined who might have rung it before you? Or perhaps you’ve read an old postcard, then felt the ghost of its writer beside you? Some objects seem to carry their own history, and in this creative writing workshop, we open a window into their past. Students interact with ancient and peculiar artefacts, combining history with fantasy to write their own exciting stories.

TWO BITES OF THE APPLE: Combining science and literacy in the classroom
There’s also a programme for teachers, in which I’ll be presenting a hands-on professional development workshop on combining science and literacy in the classroom.

I call it Two Bites of the Apple, since I’m hoping to explore ways in which we can tick science learning objectives along with English learning objectives in the same lesson.

And why not? Some of the world’s best scientists are also great communicators, and science is a language that unites us all.  A couple of quotes that get right to the heart of it:

“Science immerses children in content that is so interesting and important to them that they want to learn about it, which motivates them to read.” Dr John T. Guthrie, University of Maryland, Literacy Research Center.

“Not only is reading critical to the learning of science, science is critical to the learning of reading.” Dr Rowena Douglas, National Science Teachers Association, Canada.

What do you think? Sounds fun? I think so and I can’t wait 🙂 🙂