Why I write…

A better title might be “Why I haven’t written”, but there is no good answer to to that, so instead I want to invite you and your students to participate in the “Why I Write”, a celebration of the National Day on Writing.

The National Writing Project offers a number of ways you and your students can participate:

Here are different ways you can participate or celebrate “Why I Write”:

Submit student essays to Figment.com: Figment will be accepting submissions from September 28 through October 29. Since “Why I Write” is a celebration of writing, there are no prizes, but a curated anthology of selected submissions will be available as an e-book later this winter. Submit to Figment.

New York Times Learning Network: The New York Times Learning Network will present a series of interviews with reporters who cover a range of beats and explore their writing process. These interviews will serve as the basis for lesson plans, prompts for students, discussions, and inspiration. More ›

Edutopia: Edutopia will be celebrating “Why I Write” with a series of blogs by NWP writers. Each blog will then invite readers to share why they write with others in the Edutopia community. These conversations will take place on the Edutopia.org website and within our communities on Twitter and Facebook. More ›

NWP Radio: On October 20 at 7 p.m. EST, the National Writing Project will air a live radio show to celebrate the National Day on Writing with interviews with New York Times education reporter Fernanda Santos, New York Times Learning Network editor Katherine Schulten, Figment founder and New Yorker staff writer Dana Goodyear, Figment teen writers, and NWP teacher and author Ashley Hope Perez, among others. More ›

Tweet #whyiwrite: Tweet why you write and include the hashtag #whyiwrite so that everyone can see the many reasons people write. More ›

Post on Facebook: We’d like everyone to post why they write on their Facebook pages on October 20 and encourage others to do so. Let’s create a national dialogue about writing! More ›

Week of October 13–20: Throughout the week leading up to the National Day on Writing, each partner will post Q&As about the writing process with New York Times reporters; novelists, including Anna Quindlen, Barry Lyga, and Ashley Hope Perez; writing teachers; and Figment writers.

There are also a wonderful series of essays to be found here on the NWP site.  I know it is a little late, but it is worth checking these out!

 

Poetry of Billy Collins in action!

I was thrilled to find a link to Billy Collins’ poetry, read by the author and animated.  They are wonderful!  Check these videos out!  Aside from playing the videos for our students, wouldn’t it be great to have them create their own videos for poems they write or for the poems of others?

 

Support for and from HPWP

Cynthia Gustamantes

April 11, 2011 at 10:54 am

Every day I find myself questioning the many responsibilities imposed on me to deliver quality instruction. I yearn to do right by my students. I want them to look at the world through the same eyes I do; questioning, wondering, consumed with curiosity and delight.
Yet the dark dragon that looms over education destroying constructive thinking can no longer hold power over me! It is through the HPWP and my sisters/brothers in battle that I continue on my journey of self discovery as a teacher. I realize that it is with the support and encouragement of the Writing Project that I do not stand alone in this battle for children. Every one of us knows something important about our teaching and the ability to share that knowledge is priceless. The professional development that HPWP provides keeps our inquiry alive and thriving. Together we dwell on the positive aspects of teaching!

 

A Shared Journey

Oh, what would I do without my HPWP colleagues? I picture myself fading away until I become less and less a teacher and more and more a deliverer of programs. It is my writing project colleagues that keep me inspired to live up to the calling of teacher. It is the reading, writing, and thinking I share with them that keeps me questioning, stretching, and growing in my profession. The wonderful world of writing project is a joyous and challenging raft ride down a rushing river! Without companions, I would never attempt it, but, with them, I can be more than I am alone. From this expansion, my students benefit.

 

NWP reaches our students

Leslie

April 6, 2011 at 10:20 am

I am proud to say that all my students consider themselves writers and poets, and this is due to the NWP and our local Writing Project. They actually ask me for writing prompts and funwrites. The fact that the students are comfortable with writing crosses over into all subject areas. They have learned how writing can help them in the learning process, by allowing them to see when they “know” something and when they really don’t, by giving them a process by which they can organize information and make vital conections within and across content areas, and by allowing them to express themselves. The Writing Project supports us in making writing a vital and enjoyable part of our curriculum.

 

In support of NWP

vn jones

April 5, 2011 at 7:33 pm

Although it sounds trite, it is true: NWP changed my professional life and had great impact on my personal life. Because I learned to love to write, my students caught on and their essays became real writing rather than “something to please the teacher writing.” My teaching became infused with excitement for writing. and my personal writing life has become a reality. I have published 2 books with two writing project fellows and am currently working on a third novel with another Writing Prioject Fellow. NWP has enriched my life professional and personal life..

 

Can someone help us out?

NWP is attempting to have 1000 blog posts in support of the Writing Project posted by April 8th.  I have written my post, and I wonder if someone else wouldn’t like to offer a few words here about what the Writing Project means to you.  If you write the post, I will come back in and tag it so it will count as part of the 1000.

We only have a few days left.  Won’t you help us?

 

Need writing prompts?

I found a link to a site I was not familiar with, thanks to Free Technology for Teachers.  It’s called Toasted Cheese.  The prompts are presented on a calendar, with one per day.  You can also access their archives of prompts by year.  2011′s can be found here.  They look pretty interesting.  Why not check them out?

 

What happened to the e-zine?

I am afraid that no one is asking that question, but I will answer it anyway.

The e-zine seems to have been something I was interested in, but it did not appeal to much of anyone else.  For that reason, I have let it slide.  The last  call for submissions only produced poems from Gretchen (Thanks, Gretchen!).   I can’t publish an e-zine with two or three poems.  Also, if no one is interested in it, there is no reason to continue it.

So, while I am answering the question of what happened to the e-zine, I would like to ask another question:

What do you want to happen to the e-zine?  Should it continue or is it not important to you or to our site?

I am not trying to guilt anyone into submitting pieces.  I am just trying to see if this is something we want to try to continue or not.  So please, think about it and leave a comment here to let me know what you think.

 

Workshop in Portales

Back in October Annemarie brought up the idea of doing a workshop in Portales. Before Nell and I got home from Roswell that day, we had most of it planned! We were excited!

Well, February 19th was the magic day. We had arranged to hold it in Victory Life Coffee House in Portales. We invited Portales teachers and, when they did not fill all the spots we had available, we extended it to Floyd and Tucumcari.

The day consisted of three presentations:

• Writing to Read: Reading the Research
• What Does Writing Look Like Today?
• What Can I Do on Monday?

I admit to doing the first presentation on research.  I tried to follow the Writing Project model and had participants read and discuss and write about the Carnegie Corporation report Writing to Read.  It went pretty well, I think.  I had more activities than time, I’m afraid.

Leslie and Cynthia made the second presentation, and they did a great job.   Their enthusiasm for writing and getting students to write, coupled with the examples of student work and the activities they had us engage in, really got people excited.   We drew shells and wrote poems and had a great time!

Dee made the final presentation, and it was especially meaningful to the teachers because she is one of their own.  She knows the curriculum they are forced to teach, and she was able to provide real insights into how to incorporate more writing into any  class — in spite of the curriculum but not in opposition to it.

There were not as many people present as we had anticipated or hoped, but it was a wonderful day nonetheless.  My thanks to Annemarie for making it possible and to Nell and the other presenters for making it a truly memorable day!