School Visit Recommendations
Many thanks to the librarians and teachers who were kind enough to share their opinions. I am so grateful.
Kelly
September 2011
To whom it may concern:
I wanted to share with you my experience with Kelly Milner Halls, who came to visit my elementary school (K - 5) two years ago. Kelly gave an exuberant presentation that had students and teachers fully focused on what she told them about her experiences becoming a writer and as a writer of nonfiction. She engaged students with her presentation so much that students did not want to leave... nor did teachers! Kelly also gave writers’ workshops during her day with us, and our fifth grade students learned so much from her. She showed them her editor’s red ink notes on her (at the time) new book that she was working on, reminding students that editing is an important part of writing. She answered many questions from my students about the writing process and did it in student-friendly language. My students were clearly disappointed when it was time for Kelly to move on to the next writer’s workshop as they still had many questions they wanted to ask her.
I’ve hosted many authors over the years, but Kelly was the first one that was so well-loved students acted like she was a rock star when they saw her in the hallways! Her message about writing had clearly made an impression.
I highly recommend Kelly Milner Halls for an author visit with your students!
Sincerely,
Joan Curtis
Teacher Librarian
Schwenksville Elementary School
55 Second Street
Schwenksville, PA 19473
jcurtis@pvsd.org
September 2011
To whom it may concern:
We were fortunate to have author Kelly Milner Halls visit our school in 2010. Kelly gave three presentations to our 6th grade students. She also had lunch with a few lucky contest winners and stayed at the end of the day to meet any students who did not get into her presentation.
Kelly’s presentation was mesmerizing. The students were totally under her spell. Kelly spoke about her research into cryptids, showed some amazing slides and had some great props. The students loved looking at the cast of a bigfoot footprint. The dinosaur fossils were a real hit as well. And who could ever forget the students’ surprise at the dinosaur poop!
Students have been begging me to bring Kelly back for another visit. Many of them have written stories about cryptids and I can’t keep any of the books on the shelves. Teachers have also been very positive. One teacher who has never spoken about author visits in the past told me this was the best visit ever!
Nancy J. Keane, School librarian
Rundlett Middle School
New Hampshire
September 2011
To whom it may concern:
I am the librarian of a Kindergarten through Grade 6 campus in the Houston, TX area. I have had privilege of hosting Kelly several times in the past six years. Most recently, I was able to have her speak to my older students when her book, Tales of the Cryptids, was on the Texas Lonestar list. She is an engaging, energetic speaker and the kids adore her. Most authors available for speaking engagements at the K-6 level are fiction authors. Kelly’s focus of non-fiction is a huge benefit. With the challenge of high stakes testing, the need to engage our students in non-fiction reading is more important than ever. After having a visit from Kelly, I see a huge spike in circulation of not only her books but other non-fiction titles as well. In addition, she has always been very flexible in working with me so that all of my students can enjoy her presentation. I can not recommend her highly enough.
Sincerely,
Melanie Mallory
Librarian – Lantern Lane Elementary
Houston, TX
September 2011
To whom it may concern:
I would highly recommend Kelly for an author visit to your school. Kelly visited our school about a year and a half ago and we will someday have her back again. The students and teachers all loved her! She keeps the students captivated with her information on Bigfoot and all of her hands on things she brings for the students to look at and touch. Kelly is so personable and friendly with the students and staff, you feel like you have known her a long time. The kids also love her books and are in high demand all the time.
Kathy Dorey
Teacher/Librarian
Washington Elementary
Wenatchee, WA
September 2011
To whom it may concern:
I met Kelly Milner-Halls two years ago a in Wisconsin at the WSRA convention. After hearing her speak to teachers and seeing her with student groups I would heartily endorse her as an author/presenter for fifth and sixth graders. I've coordinated the author/illustrator visits at my elementary school for more than a decade, encompassing more than twenty presenters and programs from the world of children's literature. We did not yet have an opportunity to include Kelly in that line-up, but will hope to do so as funds become available again.
Kelly's personable, student-focused, and entertaining approach mesmerized and intrigued everyone in her sessions. I feature her titles in the workshops I conduct for teachers and librarians on using picture books with older readers to improve engagement, comprehension, and content development/extension.
If you have the opportunity to have her visit and work with your students I urge you to pursue it.
Sandy Brehl
Whitnall School District
Hales Corners, Wisconsin 53130
September 2011
To whom it may concern:
Kelly Milner Halls visited our 5th grade classes last year to speak about her writing process. From the first minutes of introducing her, she had the kids on the edges of their seats, fully engaged in her stories about how she researches her books. She brought great props, including real dinosaur fossils, a cast of a Bigfoot footprint, and art from her books, but mostly it was her entertaining stories that kept the kids rapt, especially those of her field research and interviewing experts about her upcoming books about Sasquatch and UFOs. She was easy going and accessible, addressing the curriculum points about writing nonfiction (doing good research, crediting sources, telling a story and not just listing facts, etc.) and answering questions from the students. She really was brilliant and the books of hers that we have in our library remained checked out for the rest of the year. Several children mentioned her visit as a highlight of their year when they did year-end recollections. We'd love to have her visit again.
Warmly,
Roxyanne Young
Librarian, Explorer Elementary Charter School
San Diego, CA
September 2011
To whom it may concern
Kelly Milner Halls came to visit our elementary school and was a huge hit among the student body and faculty. Her presentations are incredible! She brought reproductions and relics that she actually passed around for kids to hold and examine. I've planned numerous author visits and Kelly's was by far the most informative, interactive, and student friendly. Can't wait to have her again, someday.
Belinda P. Taylor, Library, Media & Public Relations
Erpenbeck Elementary
9001 Wetherington Blvd.
Florence, KY 41091
belinda.taylor@boone.kyschools.us
September 2009
To whom it may concern:
Students, parents and staff always have a blast with Kelly Milner Halls. I have seen her give presentations to a total of 1,000 children at three schools since 2002. Students were engaged and giggling at every presentation, no matter which book Kelly was sharing. They were in awe as she described stories connected to Tales of the Cryptids and Albino Animals. Unlike some popular authors, Kelly is humble, kid-friendly and goofy. Every library teacher in the Central Valley School District (Spokane, WA) reported that Kelly was very easy to work with and that she charged extremely reasonable fees for school visits.
Kathy Kalich, Librarian
Wilson Elementary
Spokane, WA
September 2008
To whom it may concern:
“Awesome!” is the word my students used to describe Kelly’s presentations at Lee Elementary School. Students, staff and parents loved her enthusiasm, kid-friendly speech, awesome artifacts (which kids are allowed to touch!) and positive personality. Many kids asked me the next day if she could come back again this year. Kelly bends over backwards to accommodate student needs, adjusting to times of day, ability and grade levels, and staff requests. She is informative and great fun. I would highly recommend her for any school.
Beth St George, Librarian
Lee Elementary
East Wenatchee, WA
Kelly
September 2011
To whom it may concern:
I wanted to share with you my experience with Kelly Milner Halls, who came to visit my elementary school (K - 5) two years ago. Kelly gave an exuberant presentation that had students and teachers fully focused on what she told them about her experiences becoming a writer and as a writer of nonfiction. She engaged students with her presentation so much that students did not want to leave... nor did teachers! Kelly also gave writers’ workshops during her day with us, and our fifth grade students learned so much from her. She showed them her editor’s red ink notes on her (at the time) new book that she was working on, reminding students that editing is an important part of writing. She answered many questions from my students about the writing process and did it in student-friendly language. My students were clearly disappointed when it was time for Kelly to move on to the next writer’s workshop as they still had many questions they wanted to ask her.
I’ve hosted many authors over the years, but Kelly was the first one that was so well-loved students acted like she was a rock star when they saw her in the hallways! Her message about writing had clearly made an impression.
I highly recommend Kelly Milner Halls for an author visit with your students!
Sincerely,
Joan Curtis
Teacher Librarian
Schwenksville Elementary School
55 Second Street
Schwenksville, PA 19473
jcurtis@pvsd.org
September 2011
To whom it may concern:
We were fortunate to have author Kelly Milner Halls visit our school in 2010. Kelly gave three presentations to our 6th grade students. She also had lunch with a few lucky contest winners and stayed at the end of the day to meet any students who did not get into her presentation.
Kelly’s presentation was mesmerizing. The students were totally under her spell. Kelly spoke about her research into cryptids, showed some amazing slides and had some great props. The students loved looking at the cast of a bigfoot footprint. The dinosaur fossils were a real hit as well. And who could ever forget the students’ surprise at the dinosaur poop!
Students have been begging me to bring Kelly back for another visit. Many of them have written stories about cryptids and I can’t keep any of the books on the shelves. Teachers have also been very positive. One teacher who has never spoken about author visits in the past told me this was the best visit ever!
Nancy J. Keane, School librarian
Rundlett Middle School
New Hampshire
September 2011
To whom it may concern:
I am the librarian of a Kindergarten through Grade 6 campus in the Houston, TX area. I have had privilege of hosting Kelly several times in the past six years. Most recently, I was able to have her speak to my older students when her book, Tales of the Cryptids, was on the Texas Lonestar list. She is an engaging, energetic speaker and the kids adore her. Most authors available for speaking engagements at the K-6 level are fiction authors. Kelly’s focus of non-fiction is a huge benefit. With the challenge of high stakes testing, the need to engage our students in non-fiction reading is more important than ever. After having a visit from Kelly, I see a huge spike in circulation of not only her books but other non-fiction titles as well. In addition, she has always been very flexible in working with me so that all of my students can enjoy her presentation. I can not recommend her highly enough.
Sincerely,
Melanie Mallory
Librarian – Lantern Lane Elementary
Houston, TX
September 2011
To whom it may concern:
I would highly recommend Kelly for an author visit to your school. Kelly visited our school about a year and a half ago and we will someday have her back again. The students and teachers all loved her! She keeps the students captivated with her information on Bigfoot and all of her hands on things she brings for the students to look at and touch. Kelly is so personable and friendly with the students and staff, you feel like you have known her a long time. The kids also love her books and are in high demand all the time.
Kathy Dorey
Teacher/Librarian
Washington Elementary
Wenatchee, WA
September 2011
To whom it may concern:
I met Kelly Milner-Halls two years ago a in Wisconsin at the WSRA convention. After hearing her speak to teachers and seeing her with student groups I would heartily endorse her as an author/presenter for fifth and sixth graders. I've coordinated the author/illustrator visits at my elementary school for more than a decade, encompassing more than twenty presenters and programs from the world of children's literature. We did not yet have an opportunity to include Kelly in that line-up, but will hope to do so as funds become available again.
Kelly's personable, student-focused, and entertaining approach mesmerized and intrigued everyone in her sessions. I feature her titles in the workshops I conduct for teachers and librarians on using picture books with older readers to improve engagement, comprehension, and content development/extension.
If you have the opportunity to have her visit and work with your students I urge you to pursue it.
Sandy Brehl
Whitnall School District
Hales Corners, Wisconsin 53130
September 2011
To whom it may concern:
Kelly Milner Halls visited our 5th grade classes last year to speak about her writing process. From the first minutes of introducing her, she had the kids on the edges of their seats, fully engaged in her stories about how she researches her books. She brought great props, including real dinosaur fossils, a cast of a Bigfoot footprint, and art from her books, but mostly it was her entertaining stories that kept the kids rapt, especially those of her field research and interviewing experts about her upcoming books about Sasquatch and UFOs. She was easy going and accessible, addressing the curriculum points about writing nonfiction (doing good research, crediting sources, telling a story and not just listing facts, etc.) and answering questions from the students. She really was brilliant and the books of hers that we have in our library remained checked out for the rest of the year. Several children mentioned her visit as a highlight of their year when they did year-end recollections. We'd love to have her visit again.
Warmly,
Roxyanne Young
Librarian, Explorer Elementary Charter School
San Diego, CA
September 2011
To whom it may concern
Kelly Milner Halls came to visit our elementary school and was a huge hit among the student body and faculty. Her presentations are incredible! She brought reproductions and relics that she actually passed around for kids to hold and examine. I've planned numerous author visits and Kelly's was by far the most informative, interactive, and student friendly. Can't wait to have her again, someday.
Belinda P. Taylor, Library, Media & Public Relations
Erpenbeck Elementary
9001 Wetherington Blvd.
Florence, KY 41091
belinda.taylor@boone.kyschools.us
September 2009
To whom it may concern:
Students, parents and staff always have a blast with Kelly Milner Halls. I have seen her give presentations to a total of 1,000 children at three schools since 2002. Students were engaged and giggling at every presentation, no matter which book Kelly was sharing. They were in awe as she described stories connected to Tales of the Cryptids and Albino Animals. Unlike some popular authors, Kelly is humble, kid-friendly and goofy. Every library teacher in the Central Valley School District (Spokane, WA) reported that Kelly was very easy to work with and that she charged extremely reasonable fees for school visits.
Kathy Kalich, Librarian
Wilson Elementary
Spokane, WA
September 2008
To whom it may concern:
“Awesome!” is the word my students used to describe Kelly’s presentations at Lee Elementary School. Students, staff and parents loved her enthusiasm, kid-friendly speech, awesome artifacts (which kids are allowed to touch!) and positive personality. Many kids asked me the next day if she could come back again this year. Kelly bends over backwards to accommodate student needs, adjusting to times of day, ability and grade levels, and staff requests. She is informative and great fun. I would highly recommend her for any school.
Beth St George, Librarian
Lee Elementary
East Wenatchee, WA
