Tag: Middle grade presenters

Baird Warren, Jane (Ayer’s Cliff, Quebec)

Jane Warren

Writers’ Union Member. Also SCBWI, CANSCAIP, TWUC, CAA, QWF.

Rates: $150 for one classroom session (grades 4-8), $350 for half-day workshop (grades 9-12, CEGEP). Plus a travel fee of $0.50/km. For Ontario, $0.50/km if outside Toronto. Book Club visit fee $150

Travel from Toronto (though author lives in Quebec). All activities can be offered online.

Located in Quebec, Jane is a former teacher, personal trainer and coach with BPE, BEd and an MFA in Creative Writing. She’s published short fiction and poetry and has been featured on CBC radio. Her debut children’s novel HOW TO BE A GOLDFISH deals with themes of family, relationships and bullying can expand to offer a gentle introduction to discussions about alternative families, homosexuality, feminism, forced adoptions and social justice. (Grades 4-7)

How to be a goldfish by Jane Baird Warren

Writing workshops

Grades 4-8

No Shaggy Dogs Here! A fun, hands-on workshop where students learn that a good story is not just a collection of events; characters matter! Working together we will develop a collective story outline. Students choose and develop their own protagonist then, armed with our story roadmap, they are free to navigate as their imaginations allow. Suitable for a class.

Grades 9-12 (and CEGEP)

Workshops are geared to the writer wanting to hone their craft and who may be considering continuing in the field of creative writing either at university or independently. These half-day workshops focus on the student’s own writing and work best when limited in size (10-15 participants).

Book Club: Grades 4-7

Jane is available for student book clubs/ classrooms wanting to discuss HOW TO BE A GOLDFISH. Discussions can follow the Study Guide (Scholastic Canada) or can be adapted as needed.

Contact Jane for a visit:

    Camlot, Heather (Toronto, ON)

    The Writers’ Union of Canada member. Fiction and nonfiction writer.

    Heather’s rates are $300 for one session, $550 for two, $800 for three. For virtual presentations: $300 for one session, $500 for two. HST applies to all sessions. No travel costs within Toronto or if I am in your city (I travel to Montreal several times a year). Able to present in English and French.

    HEATHER CAMLOT is an award-winning author of a dozen books for young readers.

    Her middle-grade nonfiction include What If Soldiers Fought with Pillows? True Stories of Imagination and Determination, The Prisoner and the Writer, and One Goal: How Soccer Can Help Save the Planet. Heather is also an accomplished fiction writer. Her two middle-grade novels are Clutch and The Other Side. 

    Fall 2026 will see two new nonfiction books, Have a Bite! How Food Connects Us and Beyond Words: The Meaning and Impact of Signs and Symbols. Two more books are slated for 2027  Champions for Change: How Athletes are Making a Difference and Poster Child: The Story of Artist Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, her first picture book. 

    Heather’s books have been honoured as a Best Book pick from Kirkus Reviews, a Canadian Jewish Literary Awards winner (juvenile category), Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selections, an Outstanding Science Trade Book (NSTA/CBC) and Skipping Stones Honor Awards. They have also been shortlisted for provincial, national, and international awards, including Forest of Reading, CCBC Book Awards, and Prix littéraire FETKANN – Maryse Condé. 

    PRESENTATIONS (60 minutes, grades 3+)

    Heather aims to entertain and educate, engaging students with a fun and interactive presentation, lively discussion and themed activities. We’ll talk about a specific book (choose from the list below), inspiration, challenges, themes and of course writing.

    Heather is happy to collaborate to create a customized presentation.

    Books and themes:

    • Clutch: Baseball, family, tradition, 1940s, Montreal, Jackie Robinson, Judaism, World War II, Holocaust, Canada, government of Canada, historical fiction, sports, courage, injustice
    • The Other Side: Mystery,family secrets, illness, soccer, 2014 World Cup,World War II, Germany, Canada, inter-generational, injustice, courage, history, present
    • What If Soldiers Fought with Pillows?: Social justice, human rights, imagination, real-world crises, asking big questions, courage, change, peace, reconciliation, bravery, injustice, leadership, history, present
    • Secret Schools: School, underground, hiding, current, history, present, education, learning, courage, perseverance, resilience, determination, change, injustice
    • I Can’t Do What?: Laws, rules, human rights, sports, art, entertainment, injustice, technology, family, crime and punishment, weird, governance, social justice
    • Becoming Bionic: STEM, science, biology, technology, superheroes, comics, cartoons, science fiction, technological innovations, medicine, pop culture, history, present
    • The Prisoner and the Writer: Dreyfus Affair, antisemitism, Judaism, advocacy, racism 19th century, France, media literacy, bias, fake news, treason, betrayal, courage, true story, justice, equality, prejudice, scandal, misinformation
    • One Goal: Soccer, climate change, World Cup, Olympics, sports, social justice, human rights, sustainability, environment, reduce, reuse, recycle
    • Beyond Words: Symbols, hate, peace, support, protest, social justice, human rights, history, racism, 2SLGBTQI+, sexism, physical and mental health, marginalized
    • Have a Bite: Food, food history, social justice, family, tradition, climate change, history, culture, trade, geography, connection, politics, food safety, food waste

    WORKSHOPS (60 minutes, grades 3+)

    • Where do ideas come from?: In this idea-generating workshop, we’ll discuss where to look for fiction and/or nonfiction book ideas – starting in our own lives. Students will get writing with two exercises to jumpstart the creative process. Based on ONE GOAL: HOW SOCCER CAN HELP SAVE THE PLANET.
    • What’s news?: Bias in the media is difficult to spot. In this media-literacy workshop, we’ll look into how to determine if what you’re reading is fact…or fiction. I’ll test students’ knowledge of news fact vs news fiction through a fun game and we’ll create a reference guide to better judge whether what they are reading, seeing, and hearing is objective, biased or completely fake. Based on THE PRISONER AND THE WRITER.

    You can find more presentation and workshop descriptions available on Heathercamlot.com.

    Maximum presentation size: 100 (flexible) / maximum workshop size: 30 (flexible)
    Teacher and/or librarian must be present.

    Heather offers the services of professional editing, copyediting, proofreading, and translating. She also provides manuscript evaluations – fiction and nonfiction.

    Contact Heather to book a visit:

      Rasberry, Gary (Kingston)

      Gary Rasberry Philosopher. Poet. Imagination Consultant. Musician. Artist. Educator. Juno-nominated children’s artist. Award-winning classroom creativity workshop facilitator. Workshop rates: $250 for one, $450 for two, $650 for three,$850 for four. Concert rates: Same as above for divisional concerts (JK, Primary, Junior, Intermediate). Full school performance: $550. Combo day: three workshops plus full school performance: $1000, plus travel. Continue reading “Rasberry, Gary (Kingston)”

      Hune, Bernice (Toronto)

      Storytellers of Canada. Gold Mountain Stories. Traditional Asian folklore & Canada’s immigrant history (FDK – 12). Per session, 80-100 students. Three Sessions $625 + travel from Toronto. Continue reading “Hune, Bernice (Toronto)”

      McKay, Sharon (Burlington ON)

      Writers’ Union Member. Sharon travels across Canada several times a year. Sharon E. McKay (Mick-EYE) writes fact-based fiction for young adults. Multi-awards, all ages.

      Flat fee of $900 for a full day, four sessions and includes a free (optional) brown-bag lunch for anyone interested in writing. Flat fee of $600 for an afternoon. Parents and media are welcome in all sessions.

      Virtual Visits: $150, 60 minutes, Skype. Continue reading “McKay, Sharon (Burlington ON)”

      Storms, Patricia (Toronto)

      Writers’ Union Member. Fun and funny cartoonist, children’s illustrator and picture book author and ukulele lady. $300 + HST for 1 session, $500 for 2, $800 for 3 and $1,000 for 4. Continue reading “Storms, Patricia (Toronto)”

      Boudreau, Hélène (Markham ON)

      Not available for bookings at this time. Writers’ Union Member. Parents’ Choice Award. Fiction. Non-Fiction. Humour. Picture Book. Middle Grade. Tween. K to 8. Hélène’s rate is $250 for one 45-60 min session, $450 for 2, $650 for 3, $850 for 4 (max 4 per day), plus travel by car. HST extra. Continue reading “Boudreau, Hélène (Markham ON)”

      Zweig, Eric (Owen Sound ON)

      Writers’ Union Member. Hockey historian and author. Available for school and library visits. Eric’s rate is $300 for one session, $500 for two, or $750 for three, plus HST. Mileage costs can often be negotiated for multiple bookings or for presentations in the GTA. For virtual visits, the fee is $200 per session.

      Continue reading “Zweig, Eric (Owen Sound ON)”