"Laura was a fantastic part of our Valentine’s Day event here at
the Royal Institution. The combination of her extensive subject
knowledge and presentation style led to our audience learning
and laughing more than they had anticipated."
Lisa Derry, the Royal Institution, London
"Laura’s rich professional and academic background means
she has a very unique and exciting take on the teaching of poetry.
Laura’s workshops will make drafting electrifying and turn editing
into a sensational process. As a collaborator, she will help you
refine your vision and interpret every brief in the most stimulating
way possible. Laura is one of the most passionate, effective and
engaging facilitators we had the pleasure to work with on the
Young Writers programme."
Dr Francesca Bonafede, National Literacy Trust
"Laura worked with pupils across Years 3 to 6. She was fun,
engaging and thought-provoking, always taking care to include
every student. Without a doubt, this was one of the best author
events that I’ve experienced – the pupils still talk about it
two years on!"
Bonnie Newton, Bristol Grammar School
“One of the best visitors we have ever had in! We loved the resources Laura sent to us beforehand so we could prepare the children and get them excited for the workshops. Each workshop, from EYFS through to Year 6, was so engaging and Laura’s level of energy and passion for poetry surpassed our expectations. Each session was pitched perfectly and all children got so much out of the sessions and this was because of the relationship Laura managed to build with them in a short space of time. The poems that the children created with Laura are still being talked about and being able to illustrate them afterwards gave the children ownership over what they had created as a group. We would, without hesitation, work with Laura again and whole heartedly recommend her.”
Gemma Ellis, English Martyrs’ Catholic Voluntary Academy, Nottingham
"For World Book Day this year, we invited Laura to run a number
of virtual sessions with our children, at Lanercost C of E
Primary School, throughout the day. Each session was tailored
towards the age of the children and activities were carefully
selected. The sessions were brilliant- engaging, energetic and
exciting! The children crafted poems, listened to poetry and
stories and took an active role in the editing process! We would
love to work with Laura again in the future both virtually or in
person!"
Sian Kellock, Lanercost C of E Primary School, Cumbria
"Laura’s workshop was engaging, entertaining and enlightening.
My diverse group of students, tasked with writing a 10,000 word
dissertation, ranged in age from 15-18, with nationalities from
all over the world; however, Laura was able to relate easily to
each of them through her wit and wisdom. She offered clear,
concise strategies to help them identify their passions, define
their purpose and design a research approach that suited their
needs and environment. She also raised thought-provoking
questions and concerns regarding ethics in the research process.
Her charisma and comedy won them over from the second she
walked in the room, but, her insight, experience and practical
advice resonated with them throughout the rest of the year."
Lisa Woodcock, QSI International School of Chengdu, China
“The things we enjoyed most about the workshop include the
unique poetry exercises, listening to Laura’s fantastic poetry,
her humour and original way she used to teach poetry. Firstly,
we listened to her poems and she told us about herself, which
all of us really enjoyed since she was such a nice and funny
person. We mind mapped different rhyming words which was
funny because Laura said that they didn’t have to be real words!
After, we wrote our own engaging poems in groups and performed
them which was great, as we got to hear other groups’ ideas.”
Year 5 students, Moulsham Junior School, Essex
"I really like how Laura talks in a very interesting and fun way."
"I like how she taught us how to write a poem and said edit edit edit!!!!"
"Her wholesomeness inspired me to see poetry as more of a form
of leisure and enjoyment and expression rather than a task."
"She also made me read more poetry books. I borrowed a couple
from school and I really enjoyed it."
"Laura herself was really nice! Hope we can have another talk with her soon :)"
Year 6-8 Students, Harrow International School Hong Kong
“Laura ran a wonderful poetry workshop with 30 of our Year 9 students.
Her lively presentation really engaged the children and they all
participated enthusiastically in the writing tasks she set them.
The way she took the students on a writing journey from a pile of
random words to a complete co-created poem in 90 minutes was fantastic
to watch. The students loved the experience and learnt a great deal,
not only about how to write poetry, but also why writing poetry is so necessary.”
James Lofthouse, Sir William Borlase’s Grammar School, Buckinghamshire
"National Poetry Day 2021 was our best yet! With Laura’s high energy
and charisma, the children were instantly engaged and enthusiastic to
create their own poetic masterpieces! Laura spent the day with our Year 5 –
Year 8 pupils, workshopping ideas and encouraging input from every pupil
to create year group poems. The children got a huge amount out of the
sessions and were inspired to create their own poems at home!"
Chloe Richardson, Cheltenham College Prep School
“I really enjoyed making the poem together”
“I laughed a lot, she was really funny”
“When do we get to go again!”
Year 5 students, Rouge Bouillon School, Jersey
