Programs, Workshops & Speaking Engagements

When you bring Tim O’Shei to your school, you get an author who:

• has published more than 60 books.
• specializes in nonfiction, and can teach your students the research skills and writing techniques that make expository writing shine.
• began writing professionally at age 16, and can show your students how to aim for an early start too.
• is an educator. Tim’s degree is in elementary education; he holds a New York State teaching preK-6 teaching license, has taught elementary and middle school, and currently teaches high school and college classes in Buffalo, New York.
• excels at showing students how writing can be exciting. Writing has given Tim the opportunity to interview presidents, Hollywood celebrities and sports’ biggest superstars. It’s also provided him the chance to travel, achieve some of his childhood dreams (example: playing professional baseball), and earn a living doing the things other people do for fun.
• is versatile. Programs can be customized for students at every level, from kindergarten through college.
• is a teacher trainer. Tim has extensive staff development experience in writing instruction. He is a certified trainer in the Six Traits of Writing and also shares his own techniques for planning, creating and revising quality prose.
• gives you a full day. When you bring Tim to your building, he’s yours for the school day. What does that mean? Set up large- and small-group sessions that fit your school’s needs. Pick kids and staff to have a “Lunch with the Author.” Pack the schedule and make the most of it!

Writing & Communications

 Write to Your Dreams

We’re born to be big dreamers. Most of us have visualized ourselves in the spotlight: revving up a crowd, winning a championship, curing a disease, or leading people to better lives. Today, as we’re bombarded with messages of fame, glory, protest and struggle, that’s truer than ever. In “Write to Your Dreams,” students discover how to use nonfiction writing as a tool to touch their biggest goals. Author and journalist Tim O’Shei takes them on a high-energy, interactive tour through the stories of presidents, big-league athletes and coaches, Hollywood performers and real-life superheroes. They’ll learn lessons in thinking big, making tough choices, overcoming rejection and being resilient. They’ll also discover exciting ways to use their research, reporting, writing and speaking skills to pursue their dreams.

Format: Keynote or assembly; can be extended into a hands-on workshop.

Audience: Students grades K-12 (content is leveled for age interest); staff development workshop; parent-child programs. “Write to Your Dreams” can be extended with the “Adventures in Nonfiction” workshop.”

 

Adventures in Truth: The Real Fun of Writing

Nonfiction writing should be fun. But it isn’t always that way, and this workshop is designed to change that. In “Adventures in Nonfiction,” author Tim O’Shei helps you transform writing into a engaging, exciting and active activity. The author of 60-plus books and a veteran journalist who has interviewed presidents, sports stars and Hollywood celebrities, Tim shares the research and storytelling skills needed to create powerful nonfiction.

He reveals:

• the three ways to begin a writing piece;
• the magic question that injects energy into every part of the writing process;
• how to sprinkle gems into writing;
• how to dig like a detective and turn small details into big examples;
• ways to make writing a fully immersed, participatory experience.

This fast-paced, interactive workshop is loaded with stories about Tim’s own experiences interviewing some of today’s most famous athletes, entertainers and newsmakers (and even an anecdote about his one-time appearance as a boy-band tambourine player). By the end, students, teachers and writers of all kinds will be excited to create clear, engaging and energetic prose.

Format: Workshop for small, mid-size and large groups

Audience: Students grades K-12 (content is leveled for age interest); staff development workshop; parent-child programs. This workshop can be paired with “Write to Your Dreams.”

Creativity & Goal-Setting

 Dream-On-Boarding:
Thinking Big, Planning Huge & Creating an Epic Story

Big dreams are also big risks, and the journey to making them happen can involve thrills and accolades, but also mistakes, awkward moments and feelings of failure. Dream-On-Boarding empowers tweens, teens and adults to think big about school, careers, community service and their personal lives, and it also equips them with strategies for handing the tough parts of the journey. Through music, videos and stories, workshop participants will dive deep into the six elements of Dream-On-Boarding: Boundless Curiosity, Resilient Focus, Relentless Effort, Sound Support, Deliberate Optimism and Courageous Creativity. They’ll discover how some of the most successful leaders, businesspeople, athletes and entertainers have used these traits, and then develop their own plan with a goal-setting guide and a Dream Board. This workshop is adaptable for all audiences and has been taught in elementary, middle and high schools, as well as for college students, educators, and for prison inmates. It incorporates elements of the Creative Problem Solving process and improvisational comedy, and can up adapted for groups both small and large.

Format: Workshop for small, mid-size and large groups

Audience: Students grades K-12 (content is leveled for age interest); staff development workshop; parent-child programs, and corporate.

 

Media Literacy

 Decoding the News: If It Bleeds, It Leads… or Does it?

Our news feeds are jammed with stories that incite more than inspire. How can we filter this barrage of headlines, cut the informational clutter, detect half-spun truths, distill facts, and draw conclusions? Join award-winning journalist, author and educator Tim O’Shei for a tour through the media industry. You will discover what it’s like to cover a Trump rally, a prison break, big pop-culture events, hate-group protests and refugees fleeing for – and from – the United States. You will weigh the factors a reporter considers when probing deep societal issues, learn how content decisions are made, and play the role of journalist by actually making those choices and discussing the consequences. Students and teachers will take home strategies for decoding the news and will be empowered with tools to help them utilize facts as the foundation for forming opinions.

Format: Keynote or assembly; can be extended into a hands-on workshop.

Audience: Students grades 4 and up (content is leveled for age appropriateness); staff development workshop; colleges; general audiences