Mary Lee Gowland

Surprise Yourself!: Fun Writing Exercises for Today's Kids Mary Lee Gowland

The innovative writing ideas in Surprise Yourself! are an adventure for both teachers and students. Designed to stimulate imagination and celebrate language, these lessons come from Mary Lee's long career as poet, writer and teacher. "My favorite challenge is the child who says he doesn't like to write. By my third session I can't stop him. It's wonderful to see his pencil fly." Each of the forty exercises take about an hour, including discussion time, examples from Mary Lee's own work-or other "grown up" sources-and examples from her students, so children will be inspired by their peers. Surprise Yourself! is an excellent supplement to the language arts curriculum for classroom teachers, home school parents and after school programs. In writing we not only communicate with others but learn to better understand ourselves. The skills children acquire from this book will help them become more proficient writers and serve them throughout their lives."Excellent! I love the format. The lessons are very explicit."-Roz Thrapp, North Fork Elementary School "Wonderful exercises that I use endlessly, teaching poetry in the Bronx Public Schools."-Katherine Leiner, award winning author of thirteen children's books, including Mama Does the Mambo