As an author of middle-school-aged fiction, and living in a non-English speaking land, I was searching for methods of reaching out to my audience. In October 2018, I was invited by Rachel Robins to join a class in St. George, Utah to discuss the process of writing a novel. We dialed up a Skype session, mutually first-timers, and had a wonderful time chatting about all kinds of things - Writing, reading, and favorite ice cream flavors. Shortly after, my sister Jen Kraus, was willing to share her classrooms in Fort Collins, Colorado with me to practice this new-found method of reaching out to schools. Little did I know that this spark would become such a vibrant part of my life.
I joined an official program called Skype in the Classroom, which is officially sponsored by Microsoft. Two weeks ago, Skype had made my profile the activity of the week, and it remains the most popular lesson under the literature category. My Skype lesson, which focuses on my journey from being a struggling student in middle school to having my debut novel published, has now received well over a thousand views and seventy requests to speak with classrooms throughout the world.
Within the past seven days, I've had the opportunity and pleasure to speak with five classrooms from every corner of the globe, traveling 13,000 virtual miles and meeting over 120 students. With 30 more scheduled sessions (and counting), ranging from Vietnam, Tunisia, India, Russia, Thailand, Malaysia, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Pakistan, Canada, and the Unites States, this is just the beginning of a glorious adventure. Stay tuned for pictures and stories about these special visits!
I offer this free Skype lesson as a way of paying it forward to those people; teachers, family, and coaches, who helped me along the way. If you know someone who may be interested in joining a Skype in the Classroom session, please feel free to forward along the following link. www.geoffrey-simpson.com/Skype
Don't forget to check out the Adventure Club while you're there. Chances to win free books!
(From left to right: Lagos, Nigeria; Fort Collins, Colorado; New Delhi, India; Poland; Andover, Kansas; and the one that got it all started St. George, Utah. Not pictured is a class from Stei, Romania.)