Insights for Students
"My goal is to put the joy back into learning. Everyone, adults and children alike, learn better when it is fun!"
Dorothy brings enthusiasm into the classroom as she stimulates students to expand their horizons and to express their visions on paper. She offers four presentations:
Presentations offered (click on links for details):
- Great-Grandmother's Texas - Immigrants Who Tamed Our State
- Writing with Your Nose and Ears - Creative Writing for Grades 3-6
- The Smell of Creativity - Using the Senses to Inspire Writing for Grades 5-8
- The Sound of Creativity - Using the Senses to Enhance Creative Writing for Secondary Students
Find out how to book Dorothy for your school now.
Great-Grandmother's Texas -Immigrants Who Tamed Our State
After the Civil War and before World War I, immigrants from all over the world came to Texas. These brave people left behind everything they knew and loved in anticipation of finding a better life. To ease the difficult transition from immigrant to American, they continued to practice the traditions of their homeland and to eat their familiar foods.
In Great-Grandmother's Texas, Dorothy, author of Our Texas Heritage, Ethnic Traditions and Recipes, uses costumes, props, dramatic flair and audience participation to relate the stories of different ethnic groups that settled in Texas between the Civil War and World War I. She makes the experiences of the immigrants come alive for the students
Depending on the size, age and interests of the students, Dorothy may involve the class in an ethnic cooking project (and they get to eat the results!), teach the students a Danish folk dance or help them with a Ukrainian craft project.
Ethnic groups typically discussed may include the Danes, Wends and Czechs. Poles, Germans, Ukrainian, Mexican/Spanish, Irish/English, Syrian/Lebanese and others may also be included.
Student Comments:
"I loved it when you put those hats on. It made me understand
the stories better."
"I learned a lot of stuff. I never knew there were so many cultures in Texas. I thought Texas was. Texas. Now I know that there
are Danish in Texas, Native American and a lot more."
"I learned that there are more immigrants in Texas that aren't only German."
Writing with Your Nose and Ears, Creative Writing for Grades 3-6
It is not just what we see that inspires good writing; it is everything we experience.
In Writing with Your Nose and Ears elementary students expand their awareness of the world through their senses of smell and hearing. This program creates excitement to inspire them to love writing as well as the writing process. Once student imaginations soar, their brains become receptive to learning the fundamentals of writing, structure and grammar.
More important than these accomplishments, Students will start to develop a passion for the written word. During Writing with Your Nose and Ears students will:
1. Write a creative composition.
2. Learn a specific, predetermined lesson in grammar or structure.
Student comments:
"Neat!"
"That was a weird smell I'd never smelled before."
"What was that we heard? It made me think of a far away place."
"This was fun."
The Smell of Creativity Using the Senses to Inspire Writing Grades 5-8
It is not just what we see that inspires good writing; it is everything we experience.
Outdoor class in the Piney Woods of Jefferson, Texas
In The Smell of Creativity, middle school students expand their awareness of the world through their sense of smell. This program creates excitement to inspire them to love writing as well as the writing process. Once student imaginations soar, their brains become receptive to learning the fundamentals of writing, structure and grammar.
During The Smell of Creativity students will:
1. Write a creative composition.
2. Learn a specific, predetermined lesson in grammar.
More important than any of these accomplishments, Students will start to develop a passion for the written word.
Student comments:
"I liked the assignment. It was weird at first, but then
it seemed really neat."
"Assignment: It was actually a lot of fun. I wrote about something I never would have thought of before.
Presentation: It was cool. It was a little odd, but it was cool."
The Sound of Creativity
Using the Senses to Enhance Creative Writing Secondary StudentsIt is not just what we see that inspires good writing; it is everything we experience.
In The Sound of Creativity high school students expand their awareness of the world by using their sense of hearing. This program can be adapted to create excitement in gifted and talented students as well as underachievers to inspire them to love writing and the written word. Once their imaginations soar, their brains become receptive to learning lessons in structure and grammar.
During The Sound of Creativity students will:
1. Write a creative composition.
2. Learn a specific, predetermined lesson in grammar or structure.
Student comments:
"What was that?!!! I'd never heard anything like that
before!"
"This was weird, but fun."
"It made me think of things I'd never thought of before."
Booking Information:
Call for fees and special promotions.
Presentations can be divided between two schools within close proximity.
Presentations can be divided between social studies and language arts programs.
To check availability and to engage Dorothy,
call: 214-542-7899 or 713-785-4237
Or email:
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