Field Trips to 826
Up to five times a week, 826 Valencia welcomes an entire class for a morning of high-energy learning. Students may experience a round-table discussion with a local author or enjoy an active workshop focused on poetry or journalism. The most popular field trip is one we invented called Storytelling & Bookmaking, in which students write, illustrate, and bind their own books. The field trip is so popular that our schedule is filled a year in advance.
Storytelling and Bookmaking
Students are charged with the task of writing an original story as a group, with the help of 826 volunteers. While the students decide on character and plot points, an 826 volunteer types the story into a computer, which is projected onto the wall. The students can track the story’s progress, and make corrections as needed. Meanwhile, the story is being illustrated by a professional artist. As the pages are finished, they’re being copied — one set for each student — and collated in our back production room. Thus, as soon as the class finishes creating the story, we’re ready to bind the books with our in-house tape bindery. The students will go home with personalized books created as a class, with illustrated covers, and their photo on the About the Author page. This field trip teaches students about collaboration, self-editing, the bookmaking process, and elements of successful storytelling. And it’s really a good time for all. Recommended for students 7–11 years old. Request this field trip!
Writing a Screenplay
Just like in our Storytelling & Bookmaking field trip, students will collaborate on a story. This story, however, will be in the form of a script which is written for the stage or the screen. Students will learn to craft scenes and write engaging dialogue, while a professional artist creates storyboards to accompany the text. Students will leave with a bound script, all ready to send to Hollywood or Broadway. Recommended for middle- and high-school students. Request this field trip
Meet the Author
826 draws upon the wealth of Bay Area writers for this field trip. Teachers request a local writer and prepare students by introducing them to the author’s work ahead of time. At 826, students will be treated to a short interactive presentation by the author, who will then answer all questions from the students. Because of the rich diversity of writing talent local to the Bay Area, we often find a perfect match between talented author and classroom. This trip can also be structured around a specific genre. Recommended for students of all ages. Request this field trip
Specialized Field Trips
We can accommodate many different requests from teachers to meet their unique curricular goals. We draw on the expertise of our volunteer community to bring writing professionals to the lab to work directly with classes. We have presented a broad range of specialized field trips, including college entrance-essay writing, poetry with a well-known poet, basic journalism and concepts — the list goes on.
If you have an idea in mind for your students, let us know, and we can work with you to tailor a field trip to meet your classroom needs. Just fill out this application.
