Cultivating Young Voices: An Author Residency Five Years in the Making

As a teacher, you live for the moments where your students are one hundred percent dialed in. Those moments when they hang on to your words the same way they do the jungle gym at recess. When their eyes light up, and you see those metaphorical light bulbs going off. Those moments are what we strive for, what we design our lessons to ignite, and what keeps us coming back every day. Teachers work to craft these moments throughout their lessons, and sometimes they happen when we know they will, and sometimes they happen in the moments we did not expect.

That’s exactly what happened when bestselling author and seven-time novelist Ellen Potter spent a full day at Browne Academy as an author in residence. She spent the day leading writing workshops with students in second through eighth grade, giving our students a rare opportunity to work directly with an author of her caliber. Students lined up after her sessions, eager to share their writing with her and receive individualized feedback on their style, ideas, and voice. Their eyes lit up as she assured them of their potential and encouraged them to keep writing, and their smiles spoke volumes to her impact. These are the types of opportunities and experiences that make Browne the place that it is, and our students are better because of them.

Our relationship with Ellen began during the pandemic. At a time when so much had been taken off the table for kids, we were still committed to bringing meaningful experiences into our classrooms. Keeping students engaged and connected to their learning during that period required creativity, intentionality, and a willingness to find new ways to bring in the outside world. When Ellen opened up free virtual author visits to schools, we were grateful for the opportunity. After our second-grade students read the first book in her Big Foot and Little Foot series, we connected with her over Zoom. Even through a screen, the authenticity of that conversation was not lost on our students. For many of them, it was their first time speaking directly with a published author. Her twenty-minute session stretched on to thirty minutes, and then forty minutes; the children could not get enough of Ellen’s creativity and writing tips. Ellen was determined to hear each and every one of the students’ voices. This real-world literary connection ignited curiosity and excitement around writing and made them hungry for more.

Our students loved the book and Ellen so much that they convinced their teachers to read the rest of the Big Foot and Little Foot series. They asked to write more. They asked to talk to Ellen again. And she continued to show up for our students each year after that, offering her time to connect with them around the series. Those virtual visits evolved beyond just discussing the books. In 2023 and 2024, some of these same students were given the opportunity to connect with her again, this time for a virtual writing workshop. Students wrote alongside her during their sessions, brought their work to her directly, and listened eagerly as they received individualized feedback from a “real, live author.” For our students, that kind of access to a writer’s perspective, the discipline it takes, the revision process, and the craft behind storytelling is the kind of learning that does not happen in a textbook.

Flash forward to December of the 25-26 school year, and Ellen Potter was on our campus, ready to bring writing to life in person. Students in second through eighth grade gathered in the CAPA for an interactive learning session on how writers generate ideas and keep readers engaged. Ellen thrilled the students with her Writer’s Toolbox, filled with various writing crafts brought to life. Students joined her for tea, just as Ellen explained, she gets to know her characters while they are in development. A giant pencil with an equally large eraser lives in the toolbox, representing the importance of writing, rewriting, editing, and embracing mistakes that exist in the writing process. Butterflies flew out of a box, eliciting giggles and shrieks from our younger students, as Ellen highlighted the importance of the element of surprise.

As we have come to expect with Ellen, the students were now primed to continue their time with her and eager to put pencil to paper under her watchful eye. Over the next several hours, Ellen met with second through eighth grade for writing sessions tailored to their developmental levels. Using her writer’s guide for young people, Spilling Ink, Ellen shared tips for hooking readers, bringing characters to life, slowing down time, and drawing readers into the story. She gave students the opportunity to share their work with their peers while guiding them in crafting positive peer feedback. Later, Ellen commented on how remarkable this experience was for her, as well. “I’ve been to a lot of schools,” she said, “and the kids at Browne listened so respectfully to their peers and provided such genuine compliments. It speaks to the community you have built here, of creativity and respect.”

In the afternoon, she moved through the lower school, reading to our younger students and leading them through collaborative storytelling exercises where they contributed ideas and helped build a narrative together in real time. For early learners, that kind of active participation organically develops story structure, sequencing, and creative thinking. Our younger students came in curious and left even more so, and Ellen gave them that space.

Browne Academy is built on the belief that learning happens when students are connected to something real. Ellen Potter was not a one-time guest speaker. She was a relationship we built over years, nurtured through a pandemic, and committed to long before we ever had her on our campus. That kind of intentionality is not an accident. It is how we approach everything we do for our students. When prospective families ask what makes Browne different, this is part of the answer. We do not wait for meaningful experiences to find us. We go after them, we build them, and we make sure every student in our community feels the impact.

To hear more about this author visit, from the author herself, listen to the Bruin Bytes podcast, now streaming on browneacademy.riverside.com.