Top Marks! Primary Schools Praise FREE Virtual Author Visits

The week of World Book Day in early March is always the busiest time of the year for a children’s author and storyteller – I LOVE it!

This year, I was busier than ever delivering FREE virtual author visits to primary schools all across the UK. Thanks to online video conferencing platforms such as Zoom, Teams and Google Meet, I was able to travel thousands of virtual miles without leaving my base in Cheshire!

Since March 2020, lockdown restrictions and home learning created a whole new challenge for me in my mission to ‘make every day a book day’ at UK primary schools. I’m proud to have mastered the technology and discovered new ways to make my live online sessions engaging and interactive, to the delight of primary school teachers and children.

During the week of World Book Day 2021 I visited eight primary schools as far afield as Exeter, Bolton, Portsmouth and Manchester. It was great fun to connect with nearly 1,000 children all across the country, joining me on screen from school and at home.

I made a simultaneous appearance at three primary schools in Devon and shared a screen with around 70 children viewing from their homes in North London. On my World Book Day visit to Grange Park Primary School in Enfield, I was greeted with a screen full of beaming children wearing homemade beards, to look like the main character from my book ‘Bob’s Beard’!

I’m overwhelmed by the fantastic feedback I’ve received from teachers following my virtual author visits. Year 2 Teacher Lisa Lally from St William of York Primary School in Bolton says: “You were so engaging. It’s a difficult task entertaining 50+ children under the age of seven, yet every single one of them loved it. Great interactive session, lovely story and superb at answering the questions of our youngest children in school.”

Lisa adds: “It was absolutely gorgeous having you here. Although you were on a screen it felt like you were sitting here with us and our children. We could have listened to your stories all day long. Ten out of ten!”

Now that primary school children have returned to the classroom, I’m looking forward to continuing my virtual author visits at primary schools across the UK. The pandemic has taught me that social and geographical distance is no object when it comes to delivering interactive and engaging online sessions, thanks to the wonders of modern technology!

To arrange free virtual author visits for your school, please contact me to check availability.