Come with us to a place where anything is possible.
Where swashbuckling sea captains and puddle jumping champions play together.
Where spells are cast in the sand.
Join author Dannika Patterson on an incursion adventure to the amazing place that is…Beach Kindy!
Like all the story-driven workshops she develops and presents, Dannika’s first priority is to meaningfully share her love of books and wild creativity with children in a joyful way.
This workshop was developed to help foster a deeper understanding & appreciation of people and place, through story, art, science and sensory elements.
Using working examples from her book Beach Kindy, set on Quandamoooka land, Dannika will share this story of people and place that gently encourages early years ecological, social-emotional and cultural awareness.
We’ll talk Welcome to Country, respect for land, animals & people and name the feelings that often come with new experiences, like the butterfly-filled nerve-citement of first excursions! (Plus a few child-led tangent topics, no doubt!)
This workshop aligns with the primary concepts of the Early Years Learning Framework: Being, Belonging and Becoming. P-2 curriculum-links built into this workshops include; narrative writing, science inquiry skills, environmental science, habitats, life-cycles, cultural understanding & sustainability.
The Beach Kindy workshop can be run as an incursion style author visit in kindergartens, primary schools, libraries, education centres, community events and writers festivals.
This workshop is 100% waste-free, with all materials being either recycled, upcycled or compostable.
Most suited for children Kindergarten – Grade 2.
I love visiting schools, kindergartens and libraries on author visits as well as presenting creative workshops at writers festivals and other events.
As well as in-person presentations, I offer remote access online workshops and author visits via Zoom, making these options available and adaptable to diverse learning environments around the globe.
Choose from a pre-developed range of workshops (see examples below), or work with me to create a custom workshop to support specific learning goals or community engagement at your school, library or event. Drop me an email at d a n n i k a p a t t e r s o n @ gmail.com and let’s chat!
The newest addition to my range of story-driven creative workshops is ‘Imagineering Play’.
‘Sea Stories’ workshops encourage participants to enjoy, respect and protect our oceans, helping to foster a deeper understanding and appreciation of ocean environments and sea creatures, through creative word & picture pairings, with a splash of science.
My popular ‘How to Haiku’ workshops, based on my book SeaSpray17: Ocean Photography & Haiku Poetry, are perfect for Primary School kids (great curriculum links for poetry units in Years 2 and 4!) as well as adult poetry workshops.
As well as my individually presented workshops, I have collaborated with Author-Illustrator Megan Forward to create 3 AMAZING (if we do say so ourselves!) co-presented workshops: Scribbly STEAM, Making Magic and Wild Ideas.
These co-presented workshops are rich and wonderful experiences for participants that foster real world connections through the sharing of literature and our creative processes. We’ve run & refined them over a few years now and have lots of great feedback from happy repeat school and library customers.
Although initially designed for Prep – Year 6 age range, these workshops can be adapted for all age groups, including adult learning.
Co-presenting delivers a great level of energy and the opportunity for participants to share in and learn from two unique creative perspectives.
Although the Scribbly Gum STEAM, Jacaranda Magic and Wild Ideas workshops have been designed for ideal delivery as co-presented workshops involving both Author & Illustrator, these workshops can all be delivered individually, by either Dannika or Megan, if scheduling and/or budget constraints exist. We’re always happy to try and work in with organisers – just reach out and ask! 🙂
My ‘Making Magic’ workshop, has been designed for primary school students, Prep – Year 6. It is a ‘Between the Pages’ look at how a picture book is made, where I aim to inspire children to have a go at creating their own stories by breaking down the steps involved in the book-making process through a dynamic discussion of the roles involved, followed by an age-appropriate and curriculum-linked extension activity, using my picture book Jacaranda Magic as a working example.
Here’s what educators are saying about the ‘Making Magic’ workshop:
‘Dannika was charming, dynamic, patient and resourceful.
The children thoroughly enjoyed her reading of her story Jacaranda Magic.
The children were enthralled with her treasure box and the way she was able to keep the children so engaged was amazing.’
Mrs Robyn Waddingham, Yr 2 Teacher, Moreton Bay Girls College
‘Preps loved listening to a story from the ‘actual, real, live’ author!
Hearing the process of creating a book was also extremely interesting and the setting, beneath the jacaranda, so suitable! They are spotting ‘jacaranda magic’ wherever we go!’
Mrs Melanie Schaefer, Prep Teacher, Moreton Bay Girls College
‘Incredibly engaging, personable and generous.’
Brisbane City Council Libraries
A popular option for schools has been booking Jacaranda Magic‘s illustrator, Megan Forward, and I to present an extended version of this workshop together, so children can learn how author and illustrator can work – independently and collaboratively – to create a picture book. Megan and I bring along real working examples from Jacaranda Magic and emphasise that the initial creative and drafting processes of making a book can be messy and require a good dose of patience and resilience. This dual presenter format also works well for adult professional development sessions, particularly for professionals working in environments where both autonomous function and a degree of collaboration are required.
With a strong background in business development and marketing, I am also available to run copywriting workshops for big kids and businesses, to help grown ups develop and communicate their individual and brand stories.
Book me for:
- School author visits*
- Library events
- Writer’s festivals
- Book readings and extension activities (with general art, craft or specific STEAM-links) at festivals or other public events
- Creative writing workshops for children and adults
- Professional development workshops
- Copywriting/brand story development workshops
*Rates and charges are industry standard as per ASA guidelines.
To arrange an author visit, speaking engagement or workshop, email:
d a n n i k a p a t t e r s o n @ gmail.com (remove spaces) or book via Creative Net Speakers Agency.
Dannika Patterson 