PRESENTATION ABOUT LIFE IN THE MIDDLE EAST
Aimed at 11 – 14 year olds Time: 20 – 45 minutes. Need: An audio-visual unit

Prue lived in the Middle East for over 12 years and speaks some Arabic and has travelled extensively in the area through the Gulf region that includes United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Oman and Yemen and is passionate about the need for an understanding between the east and west. She has many photos and artefacts to show plus traditional clothes the students can dress up in to make it a more hands-on experience.

It can also include a reading from Camel Rider or Destination Abudai. It helps if the students have read either book and have questions to ask about these or life in the Middle East.

SCARY STUFF
Aimed at 8 – 14 year olds: Understanding the Elements of a Story

Class size: Limited only by the size of the venue. Need Pencil and Eraser. Time 45 minutes or up to 90 mins.

Everyone loves listening to a scary story but how would you like to learn to write stories with all the chills and thrills that will send shivers down the spines of your friends? Prue Mason reads one of her own scary stories as she explains all the elements of story telling and the essential ingredients for writing scary stuff. This is an interactive workshop and can be as short as 45 minutes or as long as 90 minutes. The story is broken into three parts – Beginning, Middle and End and there are three different endings that the students can choose from. This is a great ‘warming up’ workshop for first thing in the morning or an easy one for late in the afternoon when everyone is tired. 

WEARING THE HAT
Aimed at 8 – 15 year olds. Understanding how to create a believable character. Class size 10 – 60 students working alone or in groups. Need Pencil and eraser. Time: 45 minutes or 90 minutes. Also can be a full day workshop. Need a white board. If a full day workshop also need an audio visual unit

Every good story needs characters and half the fun of writing is making up your own special characters. With a series of cool exercises that involves wearing different hats Prue Mason shows you how to create your own original characters. Worksheets are provided which contain a well-structured set of questions to help the students create believable characters. This workshop can be run for 45 - 90 minutes or even a full day where the students can create a piece of work written around their very own character. Other worksheets with exercises are provided to help create the plot. 

GROW YOUR OWN POET-TREE
Aimed at 6 – 10 year olds. Time 45 minutes. Class size 10 – 30. Need pencil and eraser, paste. Audio visual unit needed.

Poems are word pictures and with a well-structured worksheet and interactive presentation Prue Mason helps young students play with the sensory aspect of words by using soap bubbles and leaves from nature. By the end of the class all students will have a poem with a leaf pasted to it to take away.