Winner of the National Poetry Series Patricia Smith with students from Monroe Campus High Schools, Bronx, April 2006. Photo © Leslie Shipman

The National Book Foundation’s Author Residencies bring National Book Award writers to schools and settlement houses across New York City’s five boroughs to illuminate the value of reading and writing and to encourage participants to explore reading as an activity done for pleasure.

Authors in Schools
The National Book Foundation places award-winning authors for one to two-week residencies in New York City public schools. In preparation for author residencies, each student receives a copy of the visiting writer’s book, courtesy of the Foundation. The book is then incorporated into the students’ curriculum. Authors collaborate with teachers to prepare for the residency and create a lesson plan. During the writer’s stay, he or she encourages students to read and educates them about the writing life through workshops, readings, and discussions.

For more information, please e-mail Leslie Shipman, lshipman@nationalbook.org, at the Foundation offices.