APPLY TO HOST KATE JENKS LANDRY (IN PERSON)
BIOGRAPHY
A member of CANSCAIP and The Writer’s Union of Canada, Kate is also a graduate of the MA in Creative Writing program at the University of Toronto. When not reading or writing books for young readers, Kate spends much of her time drinking dangerous amounts of coffee while working on her blog, The Needle and The Knife, where she interviews other creatives about their lives and work, or volunteering in local classrooms. Kate is passionate about working with students of all ages, helping them to become confident readers and writers.
Home Location: Kitchener, Ontario
Creator Type: Author
Genres: Picture books
Website: katejenkslandry.com
Tour Region: Ontario
Target Audience: Kindergarten – Grade 6
Cost: For one 60-minute presentation: $300 plus 13% HST
NOTE: The fee of $300 (plus tax) will be paid to The Canadian Children's Book Centre (CCBC) upon receipt of an invoice from the CCBC. After Book Week, the CCBC will pay the author their presentation fee of $250 (plus taxes, if applicable).
PRESENTATION DESCRIPTIONS
What Do You See through Anna's Camera?
Note: This presentation can be easily adapted for students of different ages, and for groups of different sizes.
Target Audience: Kindergarten – Grade 6
Preferred group size: 20-30 students
Maximum group size: 100 students
“Before they go, they hand me a box. Inside is Anna’s camera, the one she never lets me touch. I lift the camera to my eye and watch the car drive off without me.”
-from A Summer without Anna
This dynamic presentation will begin with a reading of Kate’s new book A Summer without Anna, followed by a discussion of the ways in which the protagonist, Junie, uses her sister’s camera to document and make sense of a confusing time, full of both beauty and uncertainty. We will discuss some of the techniques photographers use, such as zooming in and out, documenting the same subject or view over a period of time, and creating groupings of images that work together to tell a story.
Students will then have the opportunity to practice some of these techniques, decorating a paper camera, and drawing a collection of images onto the accompanying film strip about an important time and place in their own lives.
We will end with a Q&A, where students are free to ask any questions they wish about the writing and publishing process.
Required equipment: LCD projector, whiteboard or screen
Required materials: paper camera (provided by me), pencils, pencil crayons, markers, or crayons.
Memory + Imagination: An Introduction to Autofiction
Target Audience: Grades 4-6
Preferred group size: 20-30 students
Maximum group size: 100 students
Autofiction is a fancy word for writing that blends real-life details with imagined story elements.
This interactive workshop will begin with a reading of A Summer without Anna, followed by a brief slide show presentation modeling how Kate combined images and memories from her childhood experience with imaginary details to create a powerful work of fiction inspired by facts.
Students will then have the opportunity to mine their own lives for memory seeds they can grow into fictional postcard stories. We will explore ideas for revising their work, and end with a Q&A.
Required equipment: LCD projector, whiteboard or screen
Required materials: Handout (printed by me), pencils
NOTE: An educator guide containing additional lesson plans, extension activities, and an author note is available through the Kids Can Press website.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
A Summer without Anna. Written by Kate Jenks Landry. Ill. by Risa Hugo. Kids Can Press, 2025
Beatrice and Barb. Written by Kate Jenks Landry. Ill. by Vivian Mineker. Kids Can Press, 2023.