"Authors of Mystery and Horror"
Chad's "Authors of Mystery and Horror" program is a designed to highlight the lives and works of several classic authors including Edgar Allan Poe (Tell-Tale Heart, The Black Cat, Cask of Amontillado, Mask of the Red Death, Pit and the Pendulum, The Raven, and Fall of the House of Usher), Bram Stoker (Dracula), Mary Shelley (Frankenstein), Arthur Conan Doyle (Sherlock Holmes), and Harry Houdini - who also wrote a few books! Students will learn about some of the strange and mysterious connections between the lives of the aforementioned authors along with summaries and interesting facts about their works. After the program, your students will rush to the media center to check out the stories and authors that they just heard about - so it is always a good idea to have extra copies of the stories that are mentioned in the show.
If you would like to learn more about your school selling Chad's book "Magic of Mystery and Horror", just click on the book to get the details of how to save!
Finally, below you will find several comments about the program from other educators who have had the program!
"Thanks for the excellent
performance! The students, teachers, and I all enjoyed being
amazed by your magic and storytelling. Students have been
asking for specific Poe stories and books about magic tricks and
Houdini to the extent that my supply doesn't meet the demand. I
could not have gotten such a response from booktalking or
lecturing! Also, I believe that the presentation inspired some
of the reluctant readers to want to read. I enjoyed seeing how
you tied each trick together with specific themes, authors, and
books. Students have already checked out most of the books I
had available and they are still coming to me asking for them.
The show is fun and educational! You fit in a lot of
information and magic in a short time frame, and I appreciated
how you kept the students engaged." Amelia Sinclair, Media Specialist, Greer Middle
"The show gave interesting
backgrounds into the lives of these authors. I think it
encouraged the students to want to read the books even more
because they had more knowledge about the author and stories.
The students came in first thing Monday morning and all week
checking out the highlighted authors. The stories were
relevant, attention grabbing, and very effective in promoting
reading. I loved all the magic that was tied into it. You were
able to hold their attention with the stories and then
incorporate the magic in a very effective way! I can't wait for
you to come back next year! My students are still talking about
the magic and the books are flying off the shelf!!!"
Anna Kaigler, Media Specialist, Stallings
Island Middle
"The show definitely encouraged
reading. Lots of guys came in wanting the books on Houdini and Dracula and the stories by Poe.
They have also been asking for magic books, particularly the one
you said gave you your start. My favorite part of the program
was just watching these guys who are often difficult to motivate
be captivated by your show! I loved the levitating table, of
course, but I made my whole family listen to everything you
taught us about Houdini! I guess I would
have to say I loved the way your show
involved so much good information about authors,
magic, and the difference between
what you do and pyschics and "mind readers. I will recommend you
to other educators, and I
definitely want to have you back next year.
If you can entertain a group of
middle school boys and hold their
attention you have an amazing gift. Thank you so
much for coming to Stockbridge Middle. Our Guys Read program is my
passion, and I am always looking for ways to get
these boys to read! Thanks
again!" Betsy
Sierra, Media Specialist, Stockbridge
Middle
"I begin using Chad
when he first started performing in this area 5
years ago and he does a phenomenal job with
students! They are mesmerized from
the minute they sit down until the minute they leave.
The best part is
the books that move when the program is over. All levels
of reading are clamoring particularly for Poe but they are also interested in books
on Houdini, anything to do with
Sherlock Holmes, Dracula, and Frankenstein. If you haven't hosted him before, I would
certainly suggest you consider it. It is my experience that his
presentation has great staying power as students
will continue to ask for and check out these
books for weeks to come. Thank
you!"
Teresa Gray, Media Specialist, League
Academy
"I have had all my teachers say that it was
the best program ever brought here. I had to send out some
websites with all of the Poe stories for all of the students to read or print because they all wanted his books. I would
definitely recommend the
show
again!"
Andrea Young,
Media Specialist, Honea Path
Middle
"I love Chad's program "Authors of Mystery
and Horror," and all of our Poe,
Stoker, Shelley, Houdini, and Sir Arthur
Conan Doyle books are gone...and I
even added 11 new Poe books this year!"
Sandy Bailey, Media Specialist,
Northwest
Middle
"The books I
have pulled on Poe, Doyle, Stoker, and
Shelley have been highly circulated. In addition, we have checked out
several magic books. I purchased the magic book you mentioned in your show and it was
checked out less than 5 minutes
after being put out. My favorite part of the
program was hearing about the lives of the authors. I would
recommend the show as it was highly educational,
yet still very entertaining with the magical
tricks and the involvement of the students."
Deidra Ross, Media
Specialist, Calhoun
Middle
"This was my
second time having you and on both occasions I
got nothing but rave reviews. The "cliffhanger" method of sharing stories really gets the kids
hooked. I love how you use the students as
volunteers and the humor infused in the show. I
would definitely recommend the show because it sparks students'
interest in reading. My students said it
"creeped them out" and that's a real
compliment!"
Deana Dunn, RCMS
Media Specialist
"I loved the show. It was very educational,
and the way that you told them just enough of the
different stories then left them wanting to hear
the end will definitely have them check out the books! All of
the teens that I talked to were amazed and left
feeling like they had learned
something - I know I did! The show
is fantastic and your storytelling abilities wow me. I can't
imagine that anyone would be disappointed in the
show. You have a way of connecting with the group
and getting them to want to
volunteer. I enjoyed every minute of it and look
forward to this summer's
show!"
Jeanne Mann, Library Manager, Rome Library
"All of my students are wanting to read Poe's stories, and I
almost had a fight over a Houdini book the students
discovered on my shelf! Everything
was great. I love the fact that the students get to participate.
They are already asking if you can come back. I can honestly say
that after seeing the show 2 years in a row, it still exceeds my expectations! Thanks for
visiting our school. Please know
that the students were thrilled with your
show!"
Kay
Abbott, Teacher, Greer
Middle
"The kids get really excited about reading
the stories that are mentioned in the show. This
also allows me and the other
teachers to draw on that excitement and recommend similar
authors, etc. Solid fact: the
books on Edgar Allan Poe stay checked out for
months and months after your visit! I would recommend the show
without hesitation. You engage the students, incorporate
a good many into
the show, and inspire them to read! I'm a
happy
customer!"
Gaelyn Jenkins,
Media Specialist, Greer
Middle
"You gave great book teasers and tied it into
the magic. The students loved it. They were in right after the program to
check out biographies on Houdini and books on Poe - I call that positive feedback! I have recommended your
show to all the other librarians in our
district!"
Dana Turner, Media Specialist,
South Florence
High
"Many students will not expand
their interests in different genres/styles of
fiction and even some nonfiction due to the
historical references. I loved all of it -
integrating the stories with the
magic and including students in the magic (this
is what my students liked as well). Thank you for
using student volunteers instead
of teachers! I would absolutely recommend the
show to other educators. Students were completely engaged in a
very meaningful way...just a total positive experience. Several
students have mentioned they want to read more
about the authors and the stories in the
program."
D.
Kyle Wade, Teacher, Hull Middle
School
"Our students are excited
about reading, but the program opened their eyes
to some other literature that they might not have thought about
before. It was very positive and entertaining. The descriptions
of the stories really captured their attention. I loved the
audience participation. I can't keep the books in the media
center. I pulled every book I had on Poe, Dracula, Sherlock
Holmes, and Frankenstein and placed them on a
special table because I had so many requests. I
would recommend this program for
any middle school. The students were captivated by the stories
and by the correlation to the
magic."
Tracey Burel, Media
Specialist, Anderson 3
"I wanted to thank you again
for an outstanding day! The students have raved
over your performances, including my own son. I appreciate your time and efforts so much! Again, thank you so
much!
Teresa Bradley, Media
Specialist, Bethune
Middle
Email: chad @ chadcrewsmagic.com
Phone: 706-288-4672
Copyright 2024 Chad Crews Programs
