Rates

Half-Day Visit: $450 plus travel and other expenses
One-Day Visit: $825 plus travel and other expenses
Evening Event: $325 (available only when you book a school visit)

Biography

Darren Sardelli (a.k.a. "The Funniest Poet in School") is an award-winning poet and children's book author. Darren's poems are featured in 8 LAUGH OUT LOUD BOOKS in the US and the UK. His poems have also been published in various educational books, magazines, newspapers, newsletters, literary journals, and school year books. Aside from writing, Darren enjoys bungee jumping, cliff diving, snorkeling, jet skiing, and building snowmen. He is a huge fan of ice hockey. In fact, Darren has played hockey in Germany, France, England, Ireland, Italy, Switzerland, and Canada! His favorite foods include spaghetti and meatballs, chicken noodle soup, and chocolate chip pancakes!

Event Description

A typical school visit includes two 45 minute assemblies in the morning, poetry workshops in the afternoon, and a book signing. (Programs K-8)

During an assembly, Darren entertains students with his funny poems, talks about how he overcame his difficulty with reading and writing, and shows educators how humor can be an effective tool in the learning process. Darren also explains the importance of writing down ideas and the wonderful things that can be done with them. He helps students realize that they are capable of doing anything in life as long as they work hard and never give up. By the end of an assembly, students see that poetry can be entertaining, funny, and cool. Darren’s assemblies are highly interactive, awesomely funny, and extremely inspiring!

During a poetry workshop, Darren teaches students how to spice up their writing with humor, creativity, and imagination. Everybody gets a chance to contribute by sharing their thoughts and ideas with Darren. As ideas are being thrown around the room, Darren catches them in his Poetry Mitt and writes them down on a big sheet of paper. Once their ideas are written down, Darren brings them to life in a funny poem he creates with the class. Students are constantly expanding on their ideas as Darren finds ways to work them into the poem. Once the class poem is completed, students get the opportunity to write their own poem, receiving 1 on 1 instruction from Darren. During the last few minutes of the session, students may volunteer to read their poem to the class. Darren’s poetry workshops show students that writing can be a fun, exciting, and enjoyable experience!

Book Orders

After a school is booked, Darren will send out a book order form and a poetry packet (which contains a few of Darren’s poems, tips for writing, and information about Darren). Please call or e-mail Darren 7-10 days before his visit and place your order. All schools will receive a discount on books purchased. Please e-mail Darren at dribs68@aol.com if you are interested in purchasing books.

Testimonials

"Darren brought out the best in all of us! We all feel as though anything is possible now! But most of all we laughed so hard. It was a true pleasure meeting Darren. Everyone, including the hard-to-make-smile teachers were laughing out loud! We will remember his visit for as long as our brains will allow. Darren’s keen and very funny spin on life makes everyone smile. We all need to stop and chuckle at life, and ourselves. Darren did that for us and we thank him."
—Mary Sanders, Country Harbor Day School, St. James, NY

"I have to tell you, I have been booking author visits for Longwood for many, many years and I have to say I have never seen such positive feedback (from teachers, students, and parents) as Darren is getting at the Middle School. His assemblies and poetry workshops are amazing! Everyone is already looking forward to his return next year."
—Elaine Short, Longwood Middle School, Longwood, NY

"Thanks for making this world a better place by letting us ease up and learn to laugh."
—Dana Parrott, Elementary School Teacher, Amarillo, Texas

"My 6th grade students were very responsive to Darren, especially the boys who think writing is dumb. All they wanted to do was write humorous poetry as soon as they got back to the classroom. I’ve never seen anything like it."
—Kim Harrington, 6th Grade Teacher, Blairstown Elementary, Blairstown, NJ

"Darren Sardelli's poems had all of the teachers and students laughing and rolling in the aisles. His simplistic style and sharp wit made it easy for our students to relate to him and his work. The students who attended his writing workshops were amazed at how easily they could create funny poems in just a short period of time. When the day was done, Darren Sardelli had convinced even the reluctant poets that writing poetry could be fun and cool!"
—Wendy Seeley, Assistant Principal, Meeting House Hill School, New Fairfield, CT

"Mr. Sardelli’s assembly was extremely upbeat! He is a dynamic speaker who knows how to hold the students’ attention. The students were engaged the entire time. They seemed to really enjoy how Mr. Sardelli got his start as an author. They got a kick out of his humorous poetry too!"
—Marni Nelson, Library Media Specialist, Rushmore Elementary School, Carle Place, NY

"The children absolutely loved every minute of Darren’s assembly. They were inspired by his creativity. Darren showed the children how anyone could become a poet. He really got them excited about writing poetry. It was a special treat for the children to construct a poem with a published author. We all had a wonderful time when Darren was here."
—Colleen Walsh, 1st Grade Teacher, Lewisboro Elementary, South Salem, NY

"Darren had my students laughing the whole time he was here. They absolutely loved him! I was very impressed with his poems and I liked the fact that he got the whole class involved. Five of my students bought notebooks to write in after his visit (I did not ask them to do this!). My students can't wait until Darren comes back to our school. They were excited about reading and writing when he was here. I hope he gets a chance to visit more schools so he can share his gift with educators and students. He is a true inspiration."
—Barbara Haining, Mills Pond Elementary, St. James, NY

"During P.A.R.P. month at Bretton Woods Elementary School, Mr. Sardelli read a selection of his poems to grades 2, 3, 4, and 5. He was very well received by both students and teachers. His poems are funny, witty, educational, inspirational, and fun. We all had a wonderful time when Mr. Sardelli was here. Students and teachers are looking forward to his return."
—Joanne Lonetto, assistant principal, Bretton Woods Elementary, Hauppauge, NY

"The children in grades one through four of St. Edward the Confessor School in Syosset, New York, were privileged to hear Mr. Sardelli read a selection of his poems to them. The children absolutely loved these humorous, rhyming poems which touched on a variety of subject matter. The teachers were also very impressed and asked Mr. Sardelli to return when time permitted to read more of his poetry to the children. As an educator for over twenty-five years, it is my opinion that his poems will be well received with enthusiasm by other educators for their respective facilities."
—Anne M. Schaefer, principal, St. Edward the Confessor School, Syosset, NY

"It was a pleasure having Darren come to our school. He is a true inspiration to students and teachers. His poems were fantastic! It's amazing how he combines humor and learning. We are all looking forward to purchasing his first book."
—Lisa Butera, Washington Drive Primary School, Centerport, NY

"The students of School #8 had a blast when Darren was here. He had their attention the whole time and included each and every one of them in his presentation. The humor of his poems is incredible, the rhyming patterns are wonderful, and the creativity is exceptional. Shel Silverstein may be gone, but his legacy continues."
—Leslie Krasnoff, Sixth Grade Teacher, Fulton Avenue Elementary School #8, Oceanside, NY

"Darren's presentation was amazing! His poems will be part of the poetry section in my language arts curriculum. I most definitely will recommend Darren's poems to everyone who teaches. They are funny, interesting, and easy to relate to."
—Diane Galazka, O'Neill Elementary, Central Islip, NY

"Darren was very entertaining at our assembly. The students couldn't wait to hear what he was going to say next. Anytime you can hold a child's interest while they are learning is PRICELESS! Darren has helped me want to teach more poetry in my class. We look forward to his return."
—Barbara Kirby, Ronkonkoma, NY

"Darren's poetry assemblies and workshops were outstanding! We loved all of his poems. Students and teachers were able to identify with his subject matter and humor. His poems held the students attention and inspired them to write their own poems. It was a pleasure having Darren at our school."
—Christine Murray, Oakdale, NY

"Darren's poems are very clever. They are filled with humor and spirit. His poems reflect young people's perspectives on daily life. I would definitely recommend Darren (and have already) to teachers in other schools. The students had a blast when he was here."
—Armando Pulido, Third Grade Teacher, New Lane Memorial Elementary, Selden, NY

"I loved all of Darren's poems. I'd put Darren in the same category as Jack Prelutsky and Shel Silverstein. The staff and students loved the variety of what Darren presented today. We thought the combination of his riddles, funny poems, and nonfiction poems (like MLK) were great. I thought it was great for the students to see a cool, young guy writing poetry. I think Darren is someone the children can look up to!"
—Venera Hirsch, Oxhead Road Elementary, Centereach, NY

"Darren's poems are fun and energetic. The students enjoyed his energy and sense of humor. It was great for the students to see someone young writing, publishing, and enjoying poetry. He has already inspired a few of my students to become authors."
—Carrie O'Brien, Teacher, Suffolk County, NY

"When Mr. Sardelli was at our school, he did an assembly for the 1st and 2nd grade, the 3rd and 4th grade, and the 5th and 6th grade. His poems were a joy for students and teachers to listen to. I was impressed with the positive messages in Mr. Sardelli's poems. Mr. Sardelli is an excellent role model for people of all ages. Our teachers and students were very excited to have him at our school."
—Jeffrey Schlissel, Principal, Oaks School #3, Oceanside, NY

"Darren Sardelli is upbeat and enthusiastic about reading and writing. His creative and funny poems grabbed the children's attention and inspired them to use their imagination. Both adults and children can relate to his poems. We plan to use his poems in our curriculum."
—Teachers in Centereach, NY