A World of Wisdom (Grades 3-12)
From time immemorial, people everywhere have asked, what is truly important? The question has been answered in a myriad of ways, and the world’s wisdom traditions represent the sum of the answers. These traditions tell us what is most valued in a particular culture, and why. They encompass a culture’s collective, and best, thinking on deep and difficult matters. Ms. Conover loves to read and discuss stories from her books on world wisdom traditions. Through stories, proverbs and poetry, Ms. Conover can speak about the ethics common to all wisdom traditions, or she can entertain an audience with stories and discussion from a single wisdom tradition from any of her books. Presentation: 50-55 minutes, any size group. A classroom-sized group will allow a more interactive learning experience.
A Picture’s Worth a Million Words, Lives and Dollars: Essential Media Literacy in a Global Age (Grades 5-12)
Even if the average American youth experiences over 3,000 advertisements a day, they should not think of media texts (billboards, newspapers, music, TV shows, and the internet, among other things) as “natural.” From her years of international experience in open media as a television producer and as an educator, Ms. Conover works with youth of any age to deconstruct embedded points of view and values in media. Understanding and comparing how media world-wide shapes what each society knows and understands about each other is a critical first step in helping youth navigate their lives through a global media society. Presentation: 50-55 minutes, any size group. A classroom-sized group will allow a more interactive learning experience.
Writes of Passage: From Poetry to Personal Narratives Writing Workshops
(Elementary – Graduate Levels Students)
Sarah Conover’s underlying passion is facilitating communication. She believes that writing is thinking and we are all thinkers, therefore, we are all writers—some of us just haven’t discovered it yet. Ms. Conover offers the Writes of Passage Workshops to elementary through graduate level students, groups as well as individuals. Each workshop can fit into a class period (the teacher would then allow students to practice their new skills in follow-up classes), or Ms. Conover can present each workshop as a mini-series of several class periods. Each workshop has embedded formative assessments that allow both teacher and student to workshop and evaluate progress continually.
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