Creative Writing:

Changing the Course for 2013-2014

Please take the time to write out your responses to these ideas to help improve the course.

FEEDBACK for Creative Writing:

·         Keep most things the same, with a few exceptions.

·         Keep policies lax, giving up a little focus for a lot less stress (Sunrise tardies are often out of a student’s control)

·         Time to write is sacred in our busy schedules. No other classes at Buckley are like Creative Writing.

·         More reading aloud (but not when students aren’t ready yet)

·         More feedback from the teacher, an occasional private meeting to discuss writing style and which areas to work on.

·         Free choice of genres (except at the beginning of the year)

·         Quarter 1: short warm up every day gets students writing with something similar to share and builds up work stamina as well as a safe community. Daily five-minute warm-up writing exercise (like six word memoirs)

·         Occasionally take a break from large projects and write poems, or six word memoirs, and bring everyone together for a day or two. Structured assignments helped push me more as a writer. More “out of the box” assignments to learn writing styles and patterns

·         More guest speakers from inside and outside the Buckley community. Change up the pace occasionally (Dr. Totland, visiting poet)

·         Deadline to turn in work in progress every Friday

The Questions:

What, in your opinion, should stay exactly the same? Which might be tweaked a little?

·         Free choice of genres

·         Little organized activity; lots of time to write

·         Few grades

·         Lax policies on sunrise tardiness

·         Lots of quiet time to think

·         Lax policies for doing work for other classes

·         High degree of trust of students

Respond to the following ideas or proposed changes:

Pick those items you think will enhance the class and those you think will not.

·         More accountability of arrival time

·         More feedback on writing from the teacher

·         More feedback on writing from the class or a partner

·         More publishing of works on websites and in print

·         More focusing in first semester of trying different genres:

o   Poetry,

§  spoken word,

§  haiku

§  six word memoir

§  Lost Photo poems

o   Short stories

o   (creative) Nonfiction

o   Plays

o   Screenplays

·         Guest speakers, like the spoken words poet and Dr. Totland

·         Units of study in first semester

·         More study of technique:

o   How to characterize

o   How to visualize and describe setting

o   Rising conflict leading to climax of the plot

o   Sentence variety

o   How to use telling details

o   Short Exercises to master various fiction techniques

o   Software to help writers

·         Five minute warm ups at the start of every class

          

Creative Writing: 4th Quarter Deadlines

Deadlines for Creative Writing Class

Deadlines for Seniors:

·         Push to finish your writing during the weeks of April 8, 15, 22, and 29

·         May 2: All works completed (before APs begin, May 6-15)

·         May 6-10: Complete Portfolio (paper and electronic) of all works from the year with commentary and a cover letter outlining your creative journey

·         May 10 & 13: Share, Read aloud (or have someone else read), and celebrate

                                           (also give feedback on the course)

Deadlines for the whole Class:

·         Mon. May 20: All works completed (before finals begin)

·         May 29: Complete Portfolio (in lieu of a final; both paper and electronic) of all works from the year with commentary and a cover letter outlining your creative journey

·         May 30-31: Share, Read aloud (or have someone else read), and Celebrate.

Portfolio (to provide closure to our year of creative writing)

·         Put works in order, starting with your best work (and detail the reasons why)
UPDATE 4/15: All students seem to be well on track for finishing their longer works by the deadlines, though at least one student wants to continue writing this summer. Seniors have till May 1, the rest of the class till May 20. Then we will spend some time on the portfolio and reflection.

·         Detail growth and skills, giving specific examples. In various pieces and tracing the evolution of your writing, examine sentence fluency, risk taking, voice, character development, new genres, storytelling, whatever you notice in the progression of your work.

·         Also comment on some or all of these categories: Most difficult to write, and why; Most enjoyable to Write, and why; Piece I would like to burn, and why; Most personal; Most influenced by my reading; Most effective ending; Most effective revision; etc.

·         In the margins of the paper copies, indicate places you are proud of and why