Dr. Jason VanHorn is available for classroom visits, author conversation via Skype, and other speaking engagements. To set up a visit, please email him directly with this link. Please use this link to guarantee he gets the message from you.
Professor VanHorn does not charge a visit fee for educational institutions. For schools and libraries, he donates all his time as an in-kind gift, based on his normal speaker fee. If visits are far, he does ask for help getting to the school, if possible.
What does a visit look like?
An author visit is one of the most exciting opportunities for students. Providing space and time to meet and chat with an author can propel students toward deeper engagement in reading and writing.
“I’m an educator first. As a professor of geography and an author, I want to inspire young minds to think about storytelling and writing. When I visit your school, my main focus is education.” — Dr. Jason E. VanHorn
Dr. VanHorn works directly with school librarians, teachers, and principals to arrange the visit. Usually he will meet with students in the classroom or in larger groups in the library throughout the day. His Alabaster Dangermond series books are available to all schools at a discount of $10 per book and he will sign each copy. Here is what he can provide:
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Classroom Presentations
- Writing and story crafting – Approximately 50 minutes describing story structure and story telling using Alabaster Dangermond as a template. Includes interactive opportunities for students to work in teams to build their own story construct. It includes time for Q&A. Recommended for 3rd grade to 8th grade.
- Thinking about Year 2050 – An academic geography lecture that focuses on present challenges in the world and thinking about life on planet earth as we move toward year 2050. This 50 minute lecture is designed for 10th grade and up and typically this lecture is given on the same day as other presentations to younger students when the school combines elementary, middle, and high school.
- Other geography focused presentations – from cartography and map-making to understanding cultures and people and place, Dr. VanHorn lectures on a variety of customized geography content.
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Writing workshops (Recommended for 7th grade and up)
- Crafting Great Characters – A great story includes a great plot, but it really starts with great characters. This hour-long workshop focuses on what makes a great character, how to build characters that are unforgettable, dedication to backstory, and how to master the opening of your story.
- Developmental Editing – So you’ve written a story–that is AWESOME! But now what? This hour-long workshop helps students understand the power of evaluating your manuscript and editing it to develop it further. Jason VanHorn draws connections between creative writing and academic writing to reinforce concepts taught in the classroom to help teachers bridge these different kinds of writing forms with their students.
To set up a visit, please email him directly with this link.
Alabaster Dangermond 