School incursions with impact
School visits 2027
Author-Illustrator school visits and incursions, Melbourne & Regional Victoria
Sarah Allen is a Melbourne-based children's author and illustrator available for primary school and library incursions, including CBCA Book Week visits. Her Busy Beaks and Ingenious Insects presentations combine storytelling, illustration demonstrations and hands-on art workshops, and are popular with schools across Melbourne, and regional Victoria.
Bookings are now open for Term 3 and CBCA Book Week 2027.
Curriculum connections
My presentations and workshops support outcomes across the Australian Curriculum, including:
Science — living things, adaptations and habitats (Biological Sciences)
Visual Arts — exploring materials, techniques and visual conventions to express ideas
English — narrative structure, author's purpose, and visual literacy
Design and Technologies — following a creative process from idea to finished product
Happy to provide a more detailed outcomes list on request if it helps with your booking approval.
Collage workshops
Collage workshops are ideal for students from Years 2 and above.
Duration - 1 hour
Cost - $15.50 per student + GST
Group size - minimum 20 students, maximum 35 students.
I will supply
A range of hand-painted collage papers for your students to work with.
Professional reference materials, key for great results!
Drawing workshops
Drawing workshops are suitable for all ages (P-6)
Duration - 1 hour
Cost - $12.50 per student + GST
Group size - minimum 20 students, maximum 50 students.
I lead the students through guided drawing exercises. We break the steps down in a way that is fun and not intimidating. Students will create 2 or more drawings.
Testimonials
Some nice words from recent incursions
“The children were absolutely transfixed. Sarah wove together a full sensory experience – bird sounds, photographs, sketches, and completed artworks. Sarah is not only a gifted creator but also a natural educator. Like the birds she so beautifully portrays, she knows when to bring calm and when to inspire pure exuberance.”
“Sarah was a dream to work with. She made organising her visit so easy and ran interactive and engaging workshops for children from Prep to Grade 6. All of the kids loved working with her and were incredibly proud of the birds they made and were able to take home.”
“Sarah and her collage workshops were absolutely fantastic for our school’s Book Week celebrations. She presented such special sessions for our students, they were so engaged both with the storytelling and creative hands-on activity. Sarah was such a pleasure to work with and comes highly recommended for any school visit.”
Please get in touch
Register your interest for Term 3 and CBCA Book Week 2027
Frequently asked questions
Where do you visit?
I am located in Flemington in Melbourne’s inner west and happy to travel throughout Victoria for school visits.
Do you have minimum bookings?
Yes. To cut down my travel time I have a minimum of 3 x 60 minute sessions per booking. This ensures I spend less time on the road and more time with students.
Minimums for regional visits
If you’re locate more than 1.5 hours from Melbourne, I am happy to travel but I have a booking minimum of 8 x 60 minute sessions over 2 consecutive days. Often small/regional schools will get together to arrange for me to visit multiple schools.
What does the school supply?
For collage, the school provides: glue sticks and scissors for all participants. I provide everything else.
For drawing, the school provides: Blank paper, coloured textas/markers, coloured pencils, pencils and erasers. Clipboards if the students will be sitting on the ground
Please also set up a laptop connected to a screen to show my presentation.