Preparation Information

Information you may want to know before you start, to help you best prepare for your session:

At The Story Studio, the goal is to make writing fun, inspiring, and engaging while helping writers build confidence, develop their skills, and provide an opportunity to practise and write for fun.

Upon enrolment, you will receive an email with your confirmed booked dates and your first session's Zoom code and password. This is to be entered into the 'Join' icon on Zoom.

The Zoom password changes every week and you will receive the new password via email, on the Monday prior to your session. If you do not receive an email by 6pm on Monday, please contact meganholden@thestorystudio.biz to receive it. -Please do not wait until your session time to make contact, as it is highly likely that you will not receive a reply.

The workshops run primarily on Zoom, therefore, it is vital that the application is working correctly. Please ensure you have your Zoom working correctly (I advise doing a practice run prior to the session). To set yourself up for success, in regard to technology, ensure that you are:

• Running the most recent version of Zoom,

• Download the Zoom App (this is not mandatory, however, it does improve your chances of everything going smoothly),

• Have an updated browser and computer/device,

• Ensure that Zoom is not blocked by any firewalls etc.

What to prepare for the session:

• Access to a suitable device

• Reliable internet connection

• Up-to-date Zoom account, preferably signing in through the Zoom app.

• A quiet space to concentrate and participate

• A pen/pencil to write with (this is recommended vs writing on a device)

• Paper/notebook (this is recommended vs writing on a device)

*Parent supervision is encouraged and advised. Parents are welcome to sit alongside and assist whenever necessary. However, please allow your child to do the thinking and form their own ideas. Try to limit the corrections to their work.

A few important notes:

To help create a positive learning environment, we ask all participants to:

• Be respectful and encouraging towards others;

• Participate in activities and give new ideas/activities a try;

• Listen carefully during teaching and discussion time;

• Remain on mute until addressed or to ask a question;

• Respect the zoom chat. Only enter the chat to ask questions, engage in the activity/share work you’re proud of, or to communicate with the teacher publicly or privately. Please refrain from using it to communicate with other participants or to distract others from the writing tasks;

• Ask for help, extension or clarification when needed. You may unmute and ask verbally or ask in the zoom chat;

• Students do not have to share their work -they may be invited to share and given the opportunity, but it is never an expectation. If students do not want to share with the group, they can politely say no, or if they only want to share with me, they can write their work in a direct zoom chat to me and tell me not to read it out loud;

• Students may choose to share the work they are proud of in the zoom chat for me to read out to the group or they can share it themselves verbally;

• Students may attend sessions with their screen turned off if it makes them feel more comfortable.

Writing is a creative process, and every writer develops at their own pace. Workshops are designed to provide guidance, practice, tools, and inspiration. Outcomes will vary depending on each participant’s engagement, experience, and individual goals.

Online Session Recording:

For safeguarding and professional protection purposes, online zoom sessions may be recorded.

By enrolling in online sessions, you acknowledge and consent to these recordings in accordance with The Story Studio’s Recording Consent Policy. Recordings are used for purposes such as maintaining professional records, reviewing session quality, improving workshop content, and providing feedback where appropriate. Recordings will not be publicly shared without additional consent.

Questions or Support:

If you have any questions before the workshop begins, please don’t hesitate to get in touch.

Thank you for being part of The Story Studio.

Megan