Programs: 

Assemblies & workshops:

Learning Language Arts 4-5 through HUMOR (60 minutes; grades 4-5)
A humorous ride through poetry and language arts concepts for 4th and 5th graders, including a new twist to the comprehension of literary tools such as similes, metaphors, poetic license, meter, and more. Alternative approaches to reading and understanding poetry. Audience participation and lots of music and laughter.. Includes a visit by his bumbling guest, Sherlock Poems: Poetry Detective, who teaches by getting everything WRONG. (Students enjoy learning by correcting him.)

Poetry and Language Arts 3 with HUMOR (60 minutes; Grade 3)
A light-hearted look at grade 3 language arts topics, including poetry comprehension, parts of speech, rhyme, reading comprehension and the importance of pre-writing. Includes musical participation & a visit by his bumbling guest: Sherlock Poems: Poetry Detective, who teaches by getting everything WRONG. (Students enjoy learning by correcting him.)

Poetry Can Be Fun (30 minutes; Grades K-2)
Gets kids off on the right foot, seeing them laughing and excited about poetry. Session is filled with humor, including fractured nursery rhymes with chanting and musical participation. See the author dragged through the snow by a St. Bernard chasing a cat and hear some of the hilarious poems set to music, like “I’m Not Afraid of the Dark” and “Take Me Out of the Ball Game”. A ONE-OF-A-KIND PRESENTATION FILLED WITH LAUGHTER AND EXCITEMENT.

Language Arts 6 via HUMOR (60 minutes; Grade 6 (sometimes 5))
An extended view into the comprehension of literary tools such as similes, metaphors, poetic license, meter, and more. Alternative approaches to reading and understanding poetry. Includes musical interludes, audience participation, and lots of fun.

HUMOR in Language Arts 7-8 (60 minutes; grades 7-8)
Using humor to look at several topics, including the OTHER side of figurative language and how to write for humor---of special interest to the kids  too cool for anything serious---and then reasons why those same ideas help ALL typed of writing.

Writing Backwards - workshop (60 minutes; Grades 4-8)
Jeff explains why starting at the end can make writing both better and easier. This workshop helps and enlightens so many students who have not tried this approach. Examples are shared and the session is culminated with a humorous group composition, following all the steps from start to finish - or finish to start.

Living with ADHD (small group) (30 - 45 minutes; Grades 3 and up)
Following one of Jeff's ADHD poems, "Borrowed Stuff", Jeff and class dive into a classroom discussion about the positives of ADHD, along with the negatives, coping and management strategies, technology, and what the future might hold. It's not only helpful for ADHD kids to see that a fun productive life is possible - it's also beneficial for all to discuss the ups and downs and learning from them.

Creative Writing – tips and tricks (60 minutes; Grades 3-6)
A series of writing tips from an ADHD author who has had to live by them, with examples of how he has used them. Starting as an answer to “Where do you get your ideas from,” this assembly shares starting points and the resulting fun.

Family & Library:

Family Fun Evenings: "The Silly Laughing Musical Fun Poetry Show" 
                                  click here for a complete description 

Classroom Visits & Residencies:

Grade-specific visits laced with more music, poetry, special lessons and fun. Timed and tailored to fit a school's needs, the classroom visits work nicely after assemblies to help "personalize" the visit and add more up-close time. Writing sessions, parts-of-speech specialization, homophones, single or multi-topic residencies - all are not only workable, but lots of fun for everyone.

Teacher Workshops:

An ADHD Author’s Tips on Reaching Students with the Disorder

     How to keep us from being distracted before we fini…

Award-winning children’s author and poet, Jeff Nathan, shares unique ADHD insight and specific ideas for helping both ADHD and non-ADHD students to flourish. Strategies to hold attention, along with some targeted writing tips are explained with his typical humor and zaniness, but you’ll walk away with a better understanding of why “ADD” is such a misnomer and specific ideas and methods to maximize learning and make your classroom a more fun and educational place for all, not just the ADHD contingent. This was a very popular session shared by Jeff at the last New England SDE conference.

Other customized sessions:
* Practical instruction on helping kids to write more beterrerish improve their writing. Tailored to a school's or teacher group's needs, each session is designed so that you can take away hands-on activities and strategies to help students write better, faster, and with more confidence. Other sessions involve motivating students by being a guest in your own classroom, perspective and figurative language games, etc. Contact Jeff for details.

After School Programs, Camps, or just plain fun:

Fun Interactive Shows for CHILDREN

It’s a concert! It’s a comedy show! It’s a RIOT!

Music, laughter and fun abound in this magical session for children. There's loads of Jeff's exuded enthusiasm, guitar-playing, singing and enactments. They’ll see, among many other unusual things, a giant fly, a flying Jeff Nathan, a fly ball, and Jeff getting soaked with flying water as he sings a different version of that famous French song "Alouette" (All Wet). Audience participation is part of the fun, from individual volunteers to song movement.

This session is GREAT FUN FOR KIDS.

If your kids like music, humor, and fun don’t let them miss out on this event!