Schedule a Visit for your school or library.
School visits are available with Donna Warwick, author of "There's a Mouse on My Head!" and with Dayne Sislen, illustrator of the book. The picture book will come alive for your students as they engage in Miss Donna’s interactive games and songs!
You may choose from a menu of activities ranging from highly dynamic gross motor to confined circle or quiet seat work depending on the space you choose to host the author and/or illustrator.
Miss Donna will also create original activities based on your classroom’s interest!
The above video was put together with an iPad using children's art created during Donna's Art Fusion class
Author Visits
The author, Miss Donna, has been an arts integration specialist for over 20 years and also holds an elementary teaching certificate. During her imaginative visit, your students will bring 'There's a Mouse on My Head' alive through drama, creative movement, and puppet shows. Film your class as they sing Miss Donna's original song, "There's a Mouse on My Head"
Choose from a menu of highly engaging options here:
Sing-A-Long:
Your students will enjoy the fun song on the There’s a Mouse on My Head Video! Students sit in their seats and sing along as a class or take turns with solo parts. Pantomime, creative movement, props and costumes may be added.
Puppet Show:
Students may divide into small groups to perform their own There’s a Mouse on My Head Puppet Shows or watch one that Miss Donna Performs for them.
Reciting the Story Poem
Students can take turns reading the story poem. Pantomime and creative movement
can be added to make the story come alive.
Literacy Activities: Examples
Discuss rhyme and clap out the syllables of the lines.
• Write original rhyming poetry.
• Change the poem from being a boy with a little sister to being a girl with a little brother.
• Change Grandma to Grandpa.
• Vocabulary words: strengthen your students spelling and comprehension of new words from the book. Write a new story using those words.
•Retell the story substituting Spanish words for some of the foods or words in the story.
Just for Fun
• Use our fun worksheets and charming coloring pages which are from the original pictures in the book by illustrator
Dayne Sislen!
• Make a felt mouse bookmark craft to put on YOUR head!
• Make a sock puppet mouse and recite the story or do your own puppet show at home!
• Create some tiny foods from our non-toxic modeling material.
Book Readings for Libraries
Invite Donna Warwick and Dayne Sislen to visit your community library! Donna will read the book and engage students in creative pantomime and/or the original "There's a Mouse on My Head" song! Dayne will offer the children insights into her process as an illustrator and book creator. Students will have the option of participating in an art or craft activity.
Ask your library to order several copies of this delightful book to display and to check out!
Author & Illustrator
Visits
You can have both the author Donna Warwick and the illustrator Dayne Sislen come to your school to visit with lower grades and middle grades. Both Donna and Dayne can present together or you classes can be divided up for different programs. Fees on request.
To set up your school visit with Donna Warwick and Dayne Sislen click here.
How to Write, Illustrate & Publish Your Own Book
How to write and illustrate your own book
A great program for any age from grade school to adults, parents
and grandparents.
-How do you come up with an idea for a picture book?
-How do you know if your idea is any good?
-What kind of actions make a story book fun?
-What kind of characters are the best?
-Easy ways to develop and draw your own orginal characters starting with simple geometric shapes.
In adult classes we can also give helpful information on self-publishing versus traditional publishing. Fees on request.
To set up your adult class with Donna Warwick and Dayne Sislen click here.
Visits With Illustrator
Dayne Sislen
Illustrator Dayne Sislen can come to your classroom to talk about how illustrators comes up with the ideas for characters
and draw the scenes for all the illustrations in a book. She can coordinate the visit with the art department for a hands on class. The students, with Dayne's guidance, can illustrate a short story written before class.
Depending on the age of the students, she will demonstrate how funny characters can be made out of simple geometric shapes or for older students how rough sketches and a dummy book is made to help understand the process to create anticipation and suspense in their self written stories. Fees on request.
Visit Dayne's website to see more of her illustrations.
To set up your illustrator school visit , email Dayne Sislen
