Children are a wonderful audience for stories. They are open to new ideas, and honest in their appreciation or criticism of them. If a child loves a book they will want it over and over again until it becomes almost a part of them, remembered forever. Children's books come in a range of formats for different ages and stages. In some, text shares the stage with pictures, in some text stands alone. It's a complex world, but a fascinating one. This course introduces stories for babies, for early readers, for middle grade and young adults, and challenges participants to have a go at them all, to discuss and share and develop their own ideas.
Course Dates
Course details
Tutors
Course details
Tutors
Key Features
Aims of the course
- To explore the range of fiction and book formats for different ages and stages of childhood.
- To show how to shape and write stories, sometimes to work with illustration.
- To allow participants to develop an understanding of the market, and how to pursue publication.
Learning outcomes
As a result of the course, within the constraints of the time available, students should be able to:
- understand what a story is, and how it works
- appreciate why different stories and styles suit different stages of childhood and book format
- make an informed attempt at writing for children of different ages
- understand what is involved in getting a story published
Course content overview
- This course will consider children of different ages and stages, and the books suited to them.
- An understanding of story will be developed, considering character, plot and writing voice appropriate to the young audience and readership.
- Information will be given in targeting different potential publication openings.
Welcome week (Week 0)
Purpose:
- personal introductions
- introducing the course
- useful reading
- personal objectives
Learning outcomes:
By studying this week, the students should have:
- become familiar with navigating around the Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) and from VLE to links and back
- test your ability to access files and the web conferencing software and sort out any problems with the help of the Technology Enhanced Learning team
- learn how to look for, assess and reference internet resources
- contribute to a discussion forum to introduce yourself to other students and discuss why you are interested in the course and what you hope to get out of your studies
Week 1: What’s the story?
Learning outcomes:
To explore what a story is and how to shape one. By studying this week the students should have:
- an understanding of the necessary structure of story
Week 2: Character and plot
Learning outcomes:
To show how character and plot are intertwined to achieve story. By studying this week the students should have:
- an understanding of how character powers plot
- the tools with which to create character through words
- The experience of writing a story opening that establishes character and sets a plot in motion
Week 3: Voice
Learning outcomes:
To explore how different writing treatments can achieve different effects. Narrative voice, first person, use of dialogue, letters and diary entries. By studying this week, the students should have:
- an understanding of different writing styles, and the effect those different styles can create
- experience in trying some of those different styles
- experience in assessing those styles, when written by others
Week 4: Words in partnership with illustration and design
Learning outcomes:
To show how pictures showing story can work together with words telling or animating a story. To demonstrate how book design can present story to dramatic effect. By studying this week the students should have:
- an appreciation of how words and pictures can work together to communicate story in picture book form
- an experience of writing with illustration in mind
Week 5: Aiming for publication
Learning outcomes:
To introduce the complex world of children’s book publication, highlight potential openings, and teach how best to approach publication. By studying this week the students should have:
- an understanding of the markets for children’s books
- an understanding of the different requirements from publishers aiming different formats of books for different ages of children and different markets
- knowledge about how best to approach publication
Week 6: what next?
- assessment of student learning
- assessment of student satisfaction
- encouragement of further study
This course is open to everyone, and you don’t need any previous knowledge or experience of the subject to attend.
Our short courses are designed especially for adult learners who want to advance their personal or professional development. They are taught by tutors who are expert in both their subjects and in teaching students of all ages and experiences.
Please note that all teaching is in English. You should have near-native command of the English language to get the maximum benefit from the course.
Each week of an online course is roughly equivalent to 2-3 hours of classroom time. On top of this, participants should expect to spend roughly 2-3 hours of self-study time, for example, reading materials, although this will vary from person to person.
While they have a specific start and end date and will follow a weekly schedule (for example, week 1 will cover topic A, week 2 will cover topic B), our tutor-led online courses are designed to be flexible and as such would normally not require participants to be online for a specific day of the week or time of the day (although some tutors may try to schedule times where participants can be online together for web seminars, which will be recorded so that those who are unable to be online at certain times are able to access material).
Unless otherwise stated, all course material will be posted on the VLE so that they can be accessed at any time throughout the duration of the course and interaction with your tutor and fellow participants will take place through a variety of different ways which will allow for both synchronous and asynchronous learning (using discussion boards etc).
Fees
The course fee includes access to the course on our VLE, personal feedback on your work from an expert tutor, a certificate of participation (if you complete work and take part in discussions), and access to the class resources for two years after your course finishes.
Concessions
For more information, please see our concessions information page.
Alison Fordham Bursary
University of Cambridge Professional and Continuing Education is proud to offer the Alison Fordham bursary, which is awarded to students who wish to study on one of our short online courses via our VLE, reducing the fee paid by 50%. The bursary is limited to a single award for each set of online courses.
Application criteria:
- applicants should set out their personal learning motivations since priority will be given to those who are returning to learning after an extended break, or have not previously engaged with fully online learning, or are seeking to use the online short course as a bridge towards undergraduate award-bearing study
- applicants who can demonstrate financial need
For more information, please see our bursaries information page.
A certificate of participation and a digital credential will be awarded to those who contribute constructively to weekly discussions, exercises and assignments for the duration of the course.
