Details
Hi. Thank you for taking a look at my page. I am based in Buckinghamshire but happy to travel anywhere in the UK. I was a teacher for many years so I have lots of experience teaching in primary and secondary. I am also very happy to talk to clubs and societies as well as schools. I have run drama classes with cubs, I run our local Holiday Bible Club drama group and I was the main organiser for DanceXchange - a dance show at Milton Keynes Theatre for 400 children from local schools - for three years.
I am due to travel to The Netherlands in January to do several days of workshops so I am happy to travel abroad again. Just drop me a line and I will be happy to chat about what I can offer.
TESTIMONIALS
"Where do I start? Paper boats and Butterflies from the front cover to the content inside provides the reader (of all ages) to become a creative, critical thinker.
I contacted Sue because I was blown away with the ability to draw readers from all ages and interests into the book with relevant themes and imagery that our year 8 students could relate to. Initially, I contacted Sue to be a guest speaker at my school as a local author and once in contact I learnt that she was incredibly flexible with what she could offer us and also had a range of resources on offer. The beauty of the resources is that you can pick and choose what you would like to use, and you have the set text to support the quality of the content of the resource.
Sue was able to work with us from the beginning of our project to the end. Our project was run through our project based learning sessions so she provided us with a launch video and also completed a Q and A session for us based on questions our students had asked (this couldn’t be live because we were in the depths of covid). But, completely adaptable, this did not stop Sue in supporting our project. Our students were writing 500-word stories and she offered to judge and present awards to the successful students.
Sue is personable and uses her experiences as a teacher and leader to meet the needs of the school and the project. I highly recommend the book, resources and Sue. Our students are now inspired to write, and it is thanks to Sue for making it such an authentic project for them.
Sue, I cannot thank you enough. You are an inspiration to many and clearly have the needs of all students at the heart of what you do. I look forward to working with you again soon."
"We have had the pleasure of working with Sue Upton this term and l have found her book and accompanying resources to be fantastic and incredibly helpful. As a busy teacher l appreciate the ease with which l could access and utilise the resources available on the website. The book is pitched perfectly to engage the audience and be used as a stimulus for learning.
My students were enthusiastic from the outset and asked if they could buy the book for themselves, so high praise indeed. The chapters recorded on YouTube were also useful to analyse as the students have created audio books, so we examined the expression, pace and tone when reading.
The scheme of work is amazing and offers lots of cross-curricular and stimulating activities, it saved me lots of time and offers motivating and engaging tasks for the students. I am incredibly grateful for all of Sue's hard work."
WORKSHOPS
KEY STAGE 2
Creative writing, reading and drama workshops for key stage 2 students will be based on a book the class is studying at the time or a topic suggested by the school, or on Sue’s unpublished book for children – Fergus Jones and the Black Star.
KEY STAGE 3 & 4
Creative writing, analytical writing and drama workshops for key stage 3 and 4 students will be based on Paper Boats & Butterflies: Unfolding the Truth. The scheme of work that accompanies book one, Unfolding the Truth, is available to purchase online and comes as a power point document to download instantly.
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EXAMPLES – CREATIVE WRITING & ANALYTICAL WRITING
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Example workshop for year 7
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Learning Objectives
To predict the subject of a novel by using clues.
To understand the use of symbolism in a novel.
Main Activities
Analyse the cover and the blurb.
Discuss symbolism and find clues in the cover and the blurb.
Read an extract from the beginning of the book. Predict what might happen next
Write the next bit of the story – who is the girl, why is she there?
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Example workshop for year 8
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Learning Objectives
To confidently make inferences about a literary character.
To create a character to develop creative writing skills.
Main Activities
Study an extract from chapter 4 using inference and deduction to explore the character of Beryl Citrine.
Answer the question - How has the writer presented the character of Beryl Citrine?
Using Role on the Wall, create a character. Various pictures of people will be shared to inspire ideas. Write the opening of a story using this character.
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Example workshop for year 9
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Learning Objectives
To use descriptive writing to develop creative skills.
Main Activities
Read an extract regarding Erin’s safe place – The Seven Spirits
Write a piece about your safe place – real or imaginary.
Read the extract about Z89 visiting The Garden of Perception.
Write a detailed description of a place where what we see is perceived as good but is really masking evil beneath the surface.
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EXAMPLES - DRAMA
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Key Stage 3 drama
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Learning Objectives:
To develop drama skills.
To use drama to explore the storyline.
Main Activities:
Using five key points in the play create a series of freeze frames.
Add thought tracking.
Split screen can be used to develop ideas further.
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Key Stage 3 drama
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Learning Objective:
To develop play writing and/or story boarding skills.
Main Activities:
Write a play script of a scene in the novel.
Create a story board or perform the script.
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EXAMPLES – AUTHOR TALK WITH Q & A
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Presentations can be made to individual classes or clubs, whole year groups or whole school.
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Power Point presentation including:
Information about life as an author
The author’s inspiration
Advice on creative writing
If several books are purchased by the school, the talk is complementary.
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