Fred Bowen

Children's sports author and Washington Post/KidsPost sports columnist

EVENTS
2017-18 SCHOOL YEAR


SEPTEMBER 23, 2017
Black Eye Susan Conference
Westminster, MD

OCTOBER 10, 2017
Fancy Gap ES - Skype visit
Fancy Gap VA

OCTOBER 20, 2017
Maryland Assoc. of School Librarians
Upper Marlboro, MD

NOVEMBER 10, 2017
Little River ES
South Riding, VA

NOVEMBER 17, 2017
Payne ES
Washington, DC

DECEMBER 4, 2017
John F. Kennedy ES
Canton, MA

DECEMBER 5, 2017
The Bell School
Marblehead MA

FEBRUARY 14, 2018
Oakridge ES
Arlington, VA

MARCH 14, 2018
Emerick ES
Purcellville, VA

MARCH 21, 2018
Hollymead ES
Charlottesville VA
and
Agnor-Hurt ES
Charlottesville VA

MARCH 22, 2018
Murray ES
Charlottesville VA
and
Walker ES
Charlottesville VA

MARCH 23, 2018
Red Hill ES
North Garden VA

APRIL 19, 2018
Yorkshire ES
Manassas, VA

APRIL 22, 2018
Booksigning @​ Scrawl Books
Reston VA

MAY 11, 2018
Thunder Hill ES
Columbia MD

JUNE 12, 2018
Frances Hazel ES
Leesburg VA

EVENTS
2016-17 SCHOOL YEAR


SEPTEMBER 22, 2016
Shipley’s Choice ES
Millersville, MD

SEPTEMBER 28, 2016
Fall for the Book
Chantilly, VA

OCTOBER 13, 2016
Nantucket ES
Crofton, MD

NOVEMBER 10, 2016
Walker-Jones ES
Washington, D.C.

DECEMBER 5, 2016
Bell School
Marblehead MA

DECEMBER 5, 2016
Village School
Marblehead MA

DECEMBER 6, 2016
C.C. Burr ES
Newton MA

JANUARY 12, 2017
Olney Adventist Prep
Olney MD

JANUARY 18, 2017
Emerick Elementary
Purcellville VA

FEBRUARY 15, 2017
Blessed Sacrament School
Washington D.C.

MARCH 2, 2017
Woodlin ES
Silver Spring MD

MARCH 8, 2017
Oakland Mills MS
Columbia MD

MARCH 9, 2017
Swanson MS
Arlington VA

MARCH 16, 2017
Steward School
Richmond VA
Skype visit

MARCH 19, 2017
North Carolina Reading Assoc.
Raleigh NC

MAY 20,2017
Gaithersburg Book Festival
Gaithersburg MD

MARCH 29-30, 2017
SoMirac (MD IRA)
Hunt Valley MD

APRIL 4, 2017
Winchester Authorfest
Winchester MA

Events
2015- 16 SCHOOL YEAR


SEPTEMBER 15, 2015
Hope for Henry
Georgetown Hospital
Washington D.C.

SEPTEMBER 26, 2015
Summer Reading
Super Readers Luncheon
Washington D.C.

SEPTEMBER 30, 2015
Mary of Nazareth Catholic School
Darnestown MD

OCTOBER 6, 2015
Deer Park Elementary
Centreville VA

OCTOBER 7, 2015
Poplar Tree Elementary
Chantilly VA

OCTOBER 8, 2015
Lee's Corner Elementary
Fairfax, VA

OCTOBER 14, 2015
North Chevy Chase ES
Chevy Chase MD
(evening event)

NOVEMBER 4, 2015
Politics and Prose
Washington D.C.

NOVEMBER 9, 2015
Kelly Writers House
University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia PA

NOVEMBER 17, 2015
Indian Hollow ES
Winchester VA
(morning sessions)

NOVEMBER 17, 2015
Middletown ES
Middletown VA
(afternoon sessions)

DECEMBER 1, 2015
C.C. Burr ES
Newton MA

DECEMBER 10, 2015
Colin Powell ES
Centreville VA

DECEMBER 15, 2015
Emerick ES
Purcellville VA

FEBRUARY 4, 2016
Steward ES
Skype Visit

FEBRUARY 12, 2016
Franklin, MA
Skype Visit

FEBRUARY 18, 2016
Spring Hill ES
McLean, VA

FEBRUARY 19, 2016
Daniel Run ES
Fairfax, VA

MARCH 8, 2016
Greenbrier East ES
Fairfax, VA

MARCH 11, 2016
Hillsmere Elementary
Annapolis MD

MARCH 14, 2016
NCRA Conference
Raleigh, NC

MARCH 16, 2016
Crozet Elementary
Crozet VA
(morning sessions)

MARCH 16, 2016
Joett Middle School
Charlottesville VA
(afternoon sessions)

MARCH 17, 2016
Agnor Hurt Elementary
Charlottesville VA

MARCH 18, 2016
Festival of Book Panel
Charlottesville, VA

APRIL 11, 2016
AuthorFest
Winchester, MA

APRIL 13-14, 2016
April Is for Authors
West Palm Beach, FL

APRIL 25, 2016
The Landon School
Bethesda MD

APRIL 28, 2016
Folly Quarters
Elliott City, MD

MAY 17, 2016
Aspen Institute
Project Play Summit
Washington, DC

MAY 21, 2016
Book Festival
Gaithersburg, MD

JUNE 9, 2016
Eagle View ES
Fairfax VA

JUNE 15, 2016
Union Mill ES
Clifton VA


What people are saying:


"Fred Bowen's enthusiasm for reading and writing comes across whenever he speaks to teachers and students. He inspires us to inspire our students. He uses the lessons that are learned from sports to develop readers' and writers' interests. I became a sports fan and a cheerleader for reluctant readers and writers while I was listening to Fred Bowen speak to teachers."

Annette Conley,
President,
Virginia Beach Reading Council


"Fred's presentation at our conference was both informative and humorous. The attendees especially liked his entertaining delivery and stories from real life. They also like his enthusiasm and very much appreciated his knowledge about his subject, "How to Turn Sports-Crazy Kids into Lifelong Readers." Their evaluations were overwhelming positive. I, too, greatly enjoyed his presentation and was very pleased that I had arranged his visit to our conference."

Cheryl Evans
VP of Children's Services Division
Maryland Library Association


"Fred Bowen was a delight to have as the luncheon speaker at the National Council of Youth Sports Leadership Training Conference. He spoke to a room full of America's top youth sports administrators, weary of the constant battle over escalating violence and rage, pervasive lawsuits, demanding parents, poorly prepared coaches, dwindling volunteer support and scarce resources. He spoke directly to the hearts of these folks and reminded them of the positive experiences sports bring to children. Through his anecdotes, he painted a beautiful picture of how sports can fulfill the everyday dreams of children and prepares them for the future. He touched their souls and gave them the strength to continue to advocate the values of youth sports and to keep on delivering those positive experiences to America's children."

Wanda L. Rutledge
President National Council of Youth Sports

SCHOOL VISITS AND CONFERENCES

This is a PDF file. AUTHOR VISIT GUIDE (64.3KB)
Practical tips for sponsoring an author visit at your school.


SCHOOL VISITS


When I go to schools, I talk to kids about writing—mine and theirs. I want them to look at me and say, "I can do what he does." One fourth grader took my message literally. He went home and wrote a new ending to my book Playoff Dreams—he said mine wasn't happy enough!

I have visited more than 200 schools and find that the visits are never dull. Schools in the greater Washington, DC, metro area are the easiest for me to visit. I live in Silver Spring, Maryland, just outside the city.

PRESENTATION DESCRIPTION: I begin by showing my original notebook—the one with all the scribblings for my first book, T.J.'s Secret Pitch. I want the children to see that I start my stories the same way that they start theirs: with pen and paper and imagination. Nothing else. I want kids to see that they can do what I do.

I also tell them that I put a lot of details in my writing so that my readers can "see" my stories and I try to get the children to think about putting more details into their own writing (and thinking). At one school visit, I asked the children to describe a recent blizzard. The children started off very broadly. One child said: "It snowed a lot." But I said: "I need more detail. I'm not getting a picture in my mind." Then another child said: "There was so much snow it covered the tops of the cars!" Another called out: "The whole world looked white." And I said: "Wow, now I'm getting a picture!" And we were on a roll.

My presentations are always very lively and interactive.


CONFERENCES


When I speak at conferences around the country, I try to get people to think in new ways about sports. Kids explore so many sophisticated issues through sports — fairness, flawed role models, failure and success, and more. Sports also introduce kids to history (the Jackie Robinson story), politics (Olympics boycotts), colorful language, and intriguing math. The breadth and depth of sports is extraordinary. That's why I am so enthusiastic about writing sports books and columns for young readers.

I bring a lot of energy to my presentations and always include lots of funny stories about the crazy, wonderful pull sports has on kids (and grownups). I want to get people thinking, but I also like to get them laughing.



WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING


"Fred's presentation was relevant to how we teach writing, creative thinking and planning. He was a dynamic presenter who engaged the audience."
-Sarah Wolf, Essex Elementary School, Essex, Massachusetts

"Fred did an outstanding job relating his writing process to the students. It was a wonderful reinforcement of our lessons, but with entertaining stories, facts, and energetic delivery."
—Katherine Stehman, librarian, Hans Herr Elementary, Lampeter, PA

"The children loved Fred Bowen. He not only speaks their language about sports, but engages them throughout his presentation. He is certainly one of the best author visits we have had at our school."
—Sue Tsiatis, media specialist, Summer Street Elementary School, Lynnfield, MA

"Both the boys and girls stayed very engaged and enthusiastic. It was a pleasure having him come back to our school."
—Suzanne Drapkin, Putnam Valley Elementary School, Putnam Valley, NY

"Mr. Bowen hit one out of the park! He held the kids spellbound with his funny stories and yet managed to slide in some solid pointers on writing. He was awesome!"
—Alethea Price, Reading Teacher, Tuckahoe Elementary, Arlington, Virgini

"All four teachers were really impressed. They particularly appreciated Fred's comments about the importance of reading and believing in your ability to get better at something if you keep working at it. He had great comments about his writing process. He really does an outstanding job."
—Barbara Ochmanek, librarian, St. Bernadette's, Springfield, VA