Laraine Herring is proud to be a part of the Arizona Artist’s Roster, sponsored by the Arizona Commission on the Arts. Laraine is available for one hour, one day, five day and twenty day residencies at your school or other institution of learning. For more information about the Arizona Commission on the Arts and the Artist’s Roster, please visit: www.ArizonaArts.org Laraine has worked with at-risk students, gifted students, the elderly and aging population, substance abusers, women in half-way houses, and many other populations. Her focus is person-centered. She empowers each individual through language. Her workshops are interactive and highly experiential. She believes that through words and stories, we can heal ourselves, and subsequently, our world. Her focus is on fiction and poetry. Below is a sample lesson plan for a 9th grade six-day sample residency. For more information about what she can offer you, please e-mail her and she will be glad to design a program that suits you and your school’s needs. Rates for most programs are set by the Arizona Commission on the Arts and can be found on their web site www.ArizonaArts.org For rates on special programs, please e-mail Laraine. Sample Lesson Plan Grade 9 Six consecutive days, approximately 45 minute periods Objective: Utilize memory and sensory recall to create a story about a significant person in their lives. AZ Standards Addressed: Art in Context, Art as Inquiry, Creating Art Language Arts Standards Addressed: Reading, Writing, Listening and Speaking, Viewing and Presenting Objectives for the Students: - value of personal story to themselves and others - ways to create meaningful art that comes from the context of their lives - the value of others’ stories to the community as a whole - understanding that language is more than “rules” – that it is a living tool that they can use to make sense of their world Day 1: Introduction & Icebreaker. Introduce character, sensory language and metaphor through “metaphor poem” exercise. (group activity) Discuss specific language in light of metaphor poem exercise. (adjectives, phrases, compound sentences) Exercise: Create a character. Supplemental Hand Out: Parts of Speech/Language Terms Day 2: Voice/Point of View. Discussion – how you see the world is different from everyone else. This is your POV. Every story has a POV, too. This is the “lens” through which the story is told. Discussion: WHO has the strongest voice in your life? (in a positive way). Discussion: Who is a hero in your life? (preferably a person active in the child’s life, not a celebrity). Share individual stories and discuss characteristics of hero/.heroine and how that relates to literature and storytelling. Supplemental Hand Out: Draw a picture of this person. Day 3: Oral Storytelling. Discuss storytelling. Question: Who is the storyteller in your life? Sharing stories of students’ heroes. Ask them to describe a significant event or moment with that person. Write each one on the board (depending on class size) and discuss in terms of plot. Discussion: What is a plot? Causal relationship of events. Show, using their own work, how each of these stories has a working plot. Begin to incorporate sensory language skills from Day 1 to start working on a story. Supplemental Hand Out: use of myth and oral storytelling in different cultures. Day 4: Story Structure. Demonstrate how students have the skeleton of a story right in their lives. Discuss basics of Aristotelian story structure and how one even causes a reaction which causes another event, etc. Relate that to their stories. One student tells the story and then group breaks it down into elements of craft (setting, character, plot, climax, resolution). Teacher to provide time for students to work between sessions. Day 5: Place. All stories take place somewhere, even if it’s not on earth. Discussion on where their individual stories took place. Exercise: Description of place – using sensory language to create a new world for the readers. Review point of view. Who is telling your story? As an oral storyteller, you are the lens through which the story is told. In writing, you have more options. Expand on 1st and 3rd person points of view. Supplemental Hand Out: Point of View, Descriptions/Sensory Language. Final Assignment for next class: Complete the story (any length) of the hero/ine they have been working with throughout the residency. Day 6: Oral Presentations. I hope to show how the stories evolved from oral storytelling to written storytelling. Discuss process of writing & the evolution of a story from a kernel of an idea into something that could be as large as a book. Final questions & answers session. Artist's Statement I am in many ways living the life of my dreams. I am able to teach and write and I recognize how fortunate I am. I use fiction to tell the stories that couldn’t be told. I call it “healing the ancestors.” I believe as a storyteller, I have a responsibility to those who have lived before me. I am drawn by voices and oral histories. Some of my story ideas come from the data gathered during the oral history projects that were part of the WPA. My novel sprung from a need to try and understand the racial discord of my home town in North Carolina. I believe that we can use story to rewrite, revise and understand ourselves and those around us. Fiction can be used to answer the great questions of the world and can also be used to provide a framework for the author to understand her/himself. Our stories make us who we are, and the stories we choose to believe shape the direction of our lives. This is the power of language. I am continually enriched by the people I come in contact with in my workshops. So many people have a fear of language. They are afraid to communicate their truth. I hope to empower others to believe their stories are valuable through my teaching and through my own creative work. It is important, especially for a writer because the art is so solitary, to continue to interact with the community. This both feeds my own creative work, and gives back to others some of what has been so richly given to me. Writing and teaching go hand in hand for me. Words belong to all of us. As a working teacher, I am very aware of the administrative skills necessary to create a successful program. I am extremely organized, and I follow up and follow through with my commitments. Prior to teaching at Phoenix College, I worked in a corporate environment for ten years in a copywriting and marketing position. I learned many skills in that environment that have helped me create a successful freelance business. I have clear objectives for my lesson plans, and I provide handouts and can provide supplemental exercises for the teachers to use between my sessions. Since I am also an English teacher, I can correlate creative writing with language arts skills – both reading comprehension and written communication. I am easily accessible via phone, fax, and e-mail, and I respond promptly. I am punctual, dependable, and professional. I treat my artistic life not just as a creative endeavor, but as a business.