Reading, Writing, Poetry, and Philosophy for Kids

This is an experience that will get children thinking deeply while practicing their own storytelling through writing and illustration.

Jo-Ellen will share and read the book, “The Important Book,” by Margaret Wise Brown. Margaret Wise Brown is the New York Times bestselling author Goodnight Moon _and _Runaway Bunny, and in this story she prompts children to think about the importance of everyday objects like apples and spoons. Why do those things matter? Do they help us to eat? What's important about the wind and the rain?

In this experience, curious kids will observe and notice important details about their everyday surroundings. Kids will practice reading and writing and choose their own everyday objects to opine bout. Together with Jo-Ellen and each other, they'll work on following the format laid out in "The Important Book," and using great imagery in their storytelling. Once finished, kids will illustrate their own stories as a final project.

The 4 Hour experience will incorporate Kenneth Koch's poem, "Rose, Where Did You Get That Red?" Jo-Ellen guides kids to write a variety of poetry forms and put them into a poetry flip book that they'll illustrate. They'll learn and review concepts like metaphor, simile, personification, hyperbole, and imagery; and, learn about the different types of poems like haiku, cinquains, odes, limericks, and diamanté. At the end of this experience, kids will have a completed poetry flipbook to take home.

* Fully-vetted, background checked, and interviewed

What Parents Are Saying

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We LOVED everything about Grasshopper! The customer service experience was exceptional! I felt like so much intentionality was taken to ensure that the activity would be both age appropriate and fun for my kids. Our experience leader was so easy going and chatted with the kids during the experience, and really took the time to engage and get to know them. We are definitely going to be using Grasshopper again! Thank you!
Mandi B.
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Grasshopper offered my daughter an opportunity to learn in a vibrant, fun setting that was continuously customized for her attention span and interests. Her Grasshopper teacher was fun, engaging and supremely personable. She took the time to get to know my daughter before diving into anything. I felt more than comfortable leaving my daughter in such capable hands…and love that she truly learned some new things from the experience. We will be using Grasshopper regularly to broaden her horizons and expose her to new concepts in a safe and compelling way. The icing on the cake is that the experience took place in our home, at a time that was convenient for us!
Lauren G.
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Our Grasshopper experience was amazing! I have four very curious kids at different ages with different interests, and the experience had all four of them engaged the whole time. Also, as an educator, I was very impressed with how the teacher led the program. She obviously knew what she was doing, and the minute she left, my kids were asking for another experience.
Sarah L.

Questions?