The best part of being a children’s book author and illustrator is meeting and interacting with my readers! My school and library programs include large auditorium and single classroom settings. They are best suited for Pre-K through 4th grade, with different programs tailored to different ages. The most popular part of each of my programs is a story brain-storming activity where the students are the authors and I am the illustrator! I call this WRITING WITH PICTURES, where I go around to each student asking them what happens next in our story-they supply the idea while I draw it on a large pad of paper on an easel. When we are done, we have 3-4 sheets of paper with many illustrations on them (see below) I leave the art with the class, encouraging them to look at one of the illustrations and to come up with their own story about it. Students love this! It really fosters creativity and story writing.
TESTIMONIALS
“Dan is absolutely incredible. He was wonderful back in 2005 when he visited my first grade class, and he was wonderful last week when he visited the preschool class I now teach! Dan is extraordinarily passionate about what he does and about passing that onto the next generation. His stories are classic and hold a special place in my heart. Typically, Dan does presentations to large groups in an assembly format, like he did when he visited my school as a child. I remember feeling a connection to what he was saying and doing even with all of the other children in the room. Now I teach at an integrated preschool, meaning half of our class is special ed and the other half is neurotypical. Because of this, we weren’t able to do a large group presentation and had to do each classroom individually. Dan was more than willing to change up what he usually does to fit our program. Just like when he visited my childhood school, he was able to truly connect with all of my students and I know it meant the world to them. He was able to go with the flow of our classroom and meet the children where they were and what they were capable of doing/understanding. He even catered his presentation for each individual classroom! On top of all of this, Dan is an incredibly friendly, kind, intelligent, and passionate man who was an absolute pleasure to work with. I could go on and on about how great it was working with Dan and how highly I recommend him, but no words will do it the justice that a visit from him could!”
Emily Hyde, preschool teacher at A Child’s Place preschool, Albany, NY
“Daniel was amazing in every way. Daniel came to our school, and saw all of our Pre-K classes up to grade 3. this is no easy task, but Daniel was able to cater to us and work around our schedule. We decided to break the classes into smaller groups, so Daniel did his presentation not once but four times in one day! The children were mesmerized by Daniel. To have such young children be able to sit for the entire time and be well behaved says a lot! He was engaging and interactive with the children. He not only went over his own books but went through the process of how he writes a new book and comes up with ideas. Daniel had a new book coming out called “We Don’t Eat Our Neighbors”. He assured them that nobody would be eaten in the book. The children thought it was so cool to see a book that was not even out yet. The children’s favorite part was when they got to write a store together with Daniel. He had them come up with ideas and then he illustrated. The children came up with the most outrageous thoughts, but Daniel kept up with them and made their ideas come to life with his drawings. I would highly recommend Daniel for an author visit to any elementary school!”
Kelly Barbour, PTO President at All Saints Catholic Academy, Albany, NY
“Daniel was a pleasure to work with and host as an author for our kindergarten and fourth grade classes. It was easy to set up a date and time for him to come in, give his presentation, and read his book to us. He had every student hooked on every word that he was saying as he walked us through the process of writing and reading, and they were on the edge of their seats listening to the story. When he had them help him create illustrations for a story they could write in school after he left he had students fully using their imaginations to come up with original ideas. Even after he left the students kept their enthusiasm to use the illustrations to write their creative writing pieces. He left a lasting impression on each of the students he got to work with. I highly suggest if you are looking for an author to visit look no further. You found the perfect fit and the most accommodating author you could.”
Dylan Moss, Kindergarten Teacher at Berne Knox Westerlo Elementary School, Berne, NY
“We were absolutely thrilled to host Daniel J Mahoney, a local author, at our Mary E. Dardess Elementary! His interactive approach to storytelling was a huge hit with our students. He immediately captured their imaginations by asking them to create characters, and then brought those characters to life with his incredible drawing skills. Watching him sketch the student’s ideas in real-time was truly magical! The collaborative story creation that followed was equally engaging. The children were bursting with ideas, and Dan masterfully wove them together into a captivating narrative. It was wonderful to see their creativity sparked and their enthusiasm for writing ignitied. Beyond his talent and engaging presentation, Dan was incredibly generous with his time. He even joined our students for lunch, creating a relaxed and personal connection that they will cherish. His visit was not only entertaining but inspiring, leaving a lasting impression on our students. We highly recommend Daniel J Mahoney for any school looking to foster a love of reading and writing!”
Mary Suelflow, Librarian at Mary E. Dardess Elementary School, Chatham, NY
“Daniel J Mahoney did an amazing job! What a fun two days, and I really appreciated his efforts. I have nothing but positive feedback-his presentations were perfect!!”
Lara Hotaling, Instructional Technology and Library Media Specialist, Peiter B. Coeymans and A.W. Becker Elementary Schools, Ravena, NY