Author brings storytelling, songs to schools
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North Dakota author, storyteller and entertainer Marsha DesLauriers as Amma Mamma visited John Hoeven Elementary School Friday, Oct. 2, for the third year of her classroom visit program for kindergarten through second grade.
During her visits, DesLauriers performs short songs with her ukulele, introduces her character puppets and reads her books over a course of 20-25 minutes. While the direction of her visit depends on the grade level, she says Minot students and teachers have received her well.
"We've got some great kids around here and even more awesome teachers," DesLauriers said. "Everybody comes in all studious, but by the end we have a pretty good interaction going. They all participate well. I don't know if the teachers coach them first before they get in, but I've had really good interactions with kids. I leave them with a little activity sheet to do so that they can remember the visit and talk about it with their parents."
DesLauriers is a children’s author with seven books published and a YouTube channel on which she posts interactive songs and content for children and parents.
"That is what I do now and I started that when my grandchildren were young, and so they've kind of been involved in it with me," DesLauriers said. "I've written seven books over the course of about three years. This all kind of started with a YouTube channel. I was in Florida missing my grandkids and I just sent back a few little interaction song videos for them and then I went, ‘Maybe I'll just do some more.’ I ended up doing that and starting a YouTube channel for kids.
“It's got a small following but it's been a fun project. My grandkids are involved. I never show them but you can hear them in some of them. I never even thought I would be doing this, but simply having grandchildren and being able to have the time to spend with them, this is what we do. We make up goofy stories. We make up goofy songs and so that’s kind of the whole root of it all."
DesLauriers’ first stop at John Hoeven was in Lisa Cook’s classroom, where the first grade students heard "You've got a friend in me" by Randy Newman and "We're going to be friends" by the White Stripes on the ukulele.
The visit’s focus was to teach about friends as DesLauriers introduced her newest character and book, "Olga the Onion Out in the World." During the story time she invited the students to interact and afterward answered questions about what it is like to be an author.
"We cover alliteration. Some of the books have alliteration and rhyming and so they get a little bit of a lesson and a little bit of fun," DesLauriers said. "They can see that reading is fun beyond what they do in the classroom."
DesLauriers later said, "In this day and age with screens, I think any teacher would agree that it's important to keep things like this front and center for them. To be able to grab a book and go into the world of a book, if I can bring little props and kind of reinforce the characters and stories, that time is spent with their imagination in front of you. "
DesLauriers’ first invitation into a classroom was from one of her friends who taught kindergarten. She said she brought her first book, "Henry Habanero Visits His Friends."
"I have a teacher friend of mine that's been so gracious along the way, so I did my first book," DesLauriers said. "I just started out with something really small. I went into a kindergarten classroom, and where my grandchildren go. I did an introduction of the characters, read the book and I took my ukulele in and did a little bit of interactive music with them. Then the next year, it grew. I added a little more music, shakers and activities."
In the classroom, DesLauriers reads the room, engages the students and interacts. Over the years, she said, she has observed and asked children what books and topics they're interested in, and sometimes they even come up with jokes and new characters.
"I did this last year. We started discussing what their ideas for books might be, so we would come up with characters and adventures that they could go on," DesLauriers said. "I give them a little prompt and they tell me maybe what I could do with it. I've collected those and remembered which school."
The subject of friends during the visit to Cook’s classroom is one DesLauriers says is important, especially for back to school time. Her book, “Solomon Saves The Day,” will be carried with her through the classrooms as she hopes that any child will be able to find themselves in one of the characters.
“When I started with the characters for the sheep, they all had different personalities,” DesLauriers said. “I’m hoping that any kid can find themselves in at least one of these characters because there’s a leader, a fashionista, a brainiac and a funny guy. It takes all of them to make their world work.”
She is invited by schools to story-tell and doesn’t charge for her time.
“Sharing this with my grandchildren is the most rewarding because they’re at the root of it,” DesLauriers said. “Classroom visits, I just love it. I’ve got like, 38 classes I’ll be visiting in October. If they can take it home and be excited about it, that’s rewarding.”