April Vacation-Week Workshops

Registration for April vacation-week workshops is open—click here to register.

Tuesday, April 18

Lions and Tigers and Principals! Oh MY!    
10am–12pm. Ages 8-11.
What do Simba, Nemo, and Squidward all have in common? These unique, complex characters just so happen to be animals! In this fun, artistic workshop, explore how to bring characters to life by creating your own stories, complete with your illustrations!

Say What?! Conversations and Exclamations
1–3pm Ages 6-8.
How does a bear talk? What does a chicken have to say? You can make your stories sing (and squeak and shout!) with great dialogue. From conversations to exclamations, learn how to create characters who speak to readers through dialogue. Read inspiring examples from picture books, then write and act out dialogue for your own characters in this fun, hands-on workshop.

Wednesday, April 19

Stories in Your Pocket
10am–12pm. Ages 11-14.
Despite what you’ve learned from reading Harry Potter, not all stories have to be long to be worthwhile and interesting. In this workshop, you will read flash fiction pieces and write your own. You will write a one-page story, and then cut it in half, and then cut it in half again, and again, and… Well, you get the idea!

Welcome Home
1–3pm. 14+.
Join Black Venus (poet, actor, and vocalist) to explore self-image and self-care practices by thinking of your body as a home in which you live. Through mindfulness, creative writing, and movement exercises, you will find new ways to connect with­—and take ownership of­—your body.

Thursday, April 20

What’s Wrong With This World?
10am–12pm. Ages 6–8.
In a world where magic runs amok and pigs can fly, characters use their resources and a trusty object in order to survive in a crazy, unfamiliar environment. In this workshop, led by Suffolk University students, you will be given characters, a setting, and an object. Through several games, group activities, and individual work, you will use your imagination to create a story about an alternate universe.

How To Write a Review
1–3pm. Ages 14+.
Interested in art, pop culture, or journalism? Join author and Boston Globe film critic Ty Burr to learn how to write a critical review on anything from movies, music, to books.

Friday, April 21

The Stories Our Dreams Tell
10am–12pm. Ages 8-11.
Did you dream last night? What was that dream about? What was the craziest or best dream you’ve ever had? In this workshop, led by Suffolk University students, learn how dreams have inspired great works of art and literature and write about a world inspired by a dream.

Food For Thought; Eating Up Perspective
2–4pm. Ages 6-8.
In this workshop, led by Suffolk University students, you will use your knowledge of food to build and create new and unique characters for a story. By thinking about a food’s texture, flavor, or temperature, you will create special personalities for your characters and write a dinner table scene full of dialogue and action.