Member Profile

Joyce Grant

Photo: Beverley Daniels Photography 2015

Joyce Grant is an author, freelance journalist and literacy advocate. 
She delivers high-energy and inspiring workshops and presentations.

NOVELS:
SLIDING HOME (Lorimer Publishing)
This middle-grade baseball novel focuses on Miguel, who is holding down part-time jobs so he can bring his father to Canada from El Salvador. Set in Toronto's Christie Pits baseball field. (Sequel to Tagged Out.)

TAGGED OUT (Lorimer Publishing)
Fast-paced middle-grade book about baseball, for reluctant readers. Includes a strong secondary character who is gay.

PICTURE BOOKS:
GABBY (2013, illus: Jan Dolby, pub: Fitzhenry & Whiteside)
GABBY: DRAMA QUEEN (2013, illus: Jan Dolby, pub: Fitzhenry & Whiteside)
GABBY: WONDER GIRL (2016, illus: Jan Dolby, pub: Fitzhenry & Whiteside)

When Gabby drops her magic book, all of the letters fall out. Whatever she spells with those letters comes to life! Includes two pages of literacy activities.

WEBSITES:
Teaching Kids News, www.teachingkidsnews.com
Free kid-friendly news articles with curriculum questions.

Getting Kids Reading, www.gkreading.com
Activities, games, resources and book ideas to get kids reading.

Joyce's Presentations Website, www.joycegrantauthor.com
Information about Joyce's presentations.

Joyce's Author Blog, www.joycegrantauthor.com
Includes a kids' art gallery.

E-mail: joycehgrant@gmail.com
Phone number:
c/o Writers' Union of Canada

Publications

GABBY. Fitzhenry & Whiteside, 2013
GABBY: DRAMA QUEEN. Fitzhenry & Whiteside, 2013
GABBY: WONDER GIRL. Fitzhenry & Whiteside, 2016
TAGGED OUT. Lorimer, 2016
SLIDING HOME. Lorimer, 2018

Awards

Ontario Library Association "OLA Top 10 Best Bets," picture book category for GABBY, 2014
Winner, Rainforest of Reading Award (Montserrat) for GABBY, 2015
Rainforest of Reading Award Nominee for GABBY, 2014
Selected for TD Canadian Children's Book Week Author Tour, 2017
Links:
Teaching Kids News
http://www.teachingkidsnews.com
,
Getting Kids Reading
http://www.gkreading.com
,
Author blog for Joyce Grant
http://www.joycegrantauthor.com
,
Joyce's Presentations
http://www.joycegrant.wordpress.com
Eligible for National Public Readings Program :
Yes

WITS

Presentation Description

For Primary students (K-3): Gabby, Gabby: Drama Queen, Gabby: Wonder Girl
Creating Gabby and interactive fun with scrambled letters and creating our own stories.

Junior students (grade 4+): Teaching Kids News, based on www.TeachingKidsNews.com
Critical thinking, avoiding fake news, how news is gathered and written.

For Junior students (4-6 and beyond): Writing workshops
Journalism and picture book workshops. In the picture book workshop, we talk about structure and then design and create an actual picture book based on the curriculum your class is currently studying! (It's awesome.)

For parents and caregivers: Literacy, based on Getting Kids Reading (www.gkreading.com)
Stresses the three most important literacy strategies for parents and offers many strategies, games, literacy board game suggestions, online resources, research information and activities parents can use at home.

Presentation Length:
40 mins (approx.)
Genre:
Picture books, Journalism, Media Lit, Literacy, Writers' Craft
Grades:
K-8
Audience size:
Small or large groups are fine.
Workshop Description:

Writers' Craft
This workshop begins with a discussion of how story ideas come about. We then look a series of "story starters" from which students develop their own characters, settings and plots. Later, students will write a story, newspaper article, poem or picture book.

Journalism
Students learn how news is gathered for an article and they come up with their own ways of gathering information. We work on creating a newsletter for the class or school, stressing how the news is gathered, written (inverted pyramid style) and prioritized.

Northern OAC WITS:
Yes
One session:
$300
Two sessions:
$600
Three sessions:
$900
Four sessions:
$1,200
GST:
GST applicable