Today we had the hilarious author, Oliver Phommavanh, visit our school. He had us in tears (from laughter)! We have been reading one of his novels, Punchlines, and it was great to meet him in person. He not only kept us entertained with his crazy sense of humour & stories he told with his vast collection of stuffed toys, but he also gave us some hot tips on how to be great writers.
First he said to read lots. Good writers read lots!
Secondly, he said to be creative with the characters in your stories. Water Bottle Man was a thrilling example of how to do this!
As many of Oliver's stories are based on his real life experiences and observations, he suggested this as a writing strategy. Starting with your own experiences is great, but it's even better to use your imagination to take everyday stories to new levels that are even more entertaining.
And finally, Oliver shared with us how he uses lots of opposites to make things funny. For example, we might name a blue bear 'Pinky'.
Thank you, Oliver, for visiting us, entertaining us, and helping to give us some great tips on how to be great, comedic writers! We loved meeting you and can't wait to get writing!
Charades - Adam is acting out a word that Oliver has written down on his card. Can you guess what the word is?
Oliver fixing Jordan with his light saber
Oliver and Fatty
Oliver, Taylah and Jacob doing the Dinosaur Dance
Oliver, bringing simple, stuffed toys to life, using his wild and wacky imagination