During the week of March 28th, all the SAD 6 elementary schools welcomed authors Stephen Swinburne and Peter Lourie.

Steve, a naturalist who is inspired by the environment around him, worked with students in grades K through 3. He encouraged students to find inspiration for their own writing by “keeping their eyes open and their ears on.”

Peter Lourie spoke to grades 4 and 5. Pete is an adventurer who has written about his canoe trips down many major rivers in the United States and around the world, including the Hudson, Mississippi, Yukon, and Amazon. Pete was the first person to canoe the entire length of the Hudson River. He even brought the canoe that he used for the trip to show the children.

The purpose in inviting these authors to speak was to encourage and inspire students in their own writing. Both authors helped students to understand writing techniques such as discovering ideas, voice, use of detail and incorporating descriptive vocabulary. They also emphasized the importance of practice and rewriting.

The author visits were made possible thanks to a generous grant from the

Narragansett Number One foundation.