#ywp

[animal-photo-a-day]

Polar bear in Yorkshire Wildlife Park (where they have 10 acres of land to roam in).

[tracey-cauchemar]

Thinkin about local celebrities on the internet.

Like, 99% of people have NO CLUE who Heather Dudley is but she fucking SHAPED my teen years

I think about her sometimes. It’s November. How’s her NaNoWriMo goal going this year?

[nanowrimo]

Back to School: Interview with Mike Fillbrandt, Young Writers Program Educator

NaNoWriMo’s Young Writers Program helps over 85,000 kids, teens, teachers, and families set creative goals and tell stories they care about. We asked some of our amazing YWP educators to share how they take on the NaNoWriMo challenge in their classroom. Today’s advice comes from Mike Fillbrandt, who teaches 9th grade English at a charter school. 

Q: What grade/ age level do you work with? What type of NaNoWriMo group is it (whole class, club, homeschool, elective, etc.)?

A: 9th grade classes, 8-12 grade club

Q: How long have you been doing NaNoWriMo with your students?

A: 5 years

Q: How do you structure the entire project (for example, do you start prepping in October and write in November, do you have kids work on it all year, etc.)?

A: Prep in October (or March depending on the year), and write in November (or April).

Q: What does a normal NaNoWriMo day look like for your students?

A: Brief self-check questionnaire, then the rest of the period to work. Some days are set aside for students to discuss their projects in small groups, to share successes, struggles, and get suggestions. Some days I hold one-on-one conferences with students to give feedback on excerpts of their projects and make suggestions for improving their writing.

Q: How do you set and manage word-count goals?

A: Students need to complete 4500 words for full points. Students who exceed 10,000 can earn extra credit. For students with special needs, I coordinate with their case manager to determine an appropriate way to adjust word goal. Students who do not reach their word count goal receive a prorated portion of the word-count points.

Q: How do you manage grading? Do you grade?

A: Yes, I grade. Grades are based on two required excerpts submitted for feedback, along with their final word count. The first excerpt, students can choose to be graded either on setting descriptions or on character building. For the second excerpt, students can choose to be graded either on plot development or on their use of dialogue. Each excerpt is worth 30 points (60 total), and the word count is worth 40 points, with a possibility of earning 50 by meeting the extra credit goal.

Q: How do you approach revision/ publishing (if at all)?

A: In my most recent classes, I have only been able to give students post-writing suggestions/materials from the packet. In previous years, we were able to use an excerpt for practice with editing/revising skills.

Q: Any NaNoWriMo tips or tricks to share with other educators? Hard-won lessons? Ah-ha moments?

A: Don't try to read every word of every student story - you'll drive yourself crazy. Instead, find a way to get a snapshot of a student's work.

Begin the process of brainstorming ideas well in advance.

Be vigilant for signs of plagiarism and/or cheap tricks to pad out a word count without actually doing any work.

Q: Have you ever run into resistance from your administration about doing NaNoWriMo, and if so, how did you manage it? What do you say to people who don’t see the point of having students write novels? 

A: When I first began, there were concerns over word count goals, which I adjusted in later years.

Q: What are the most meaningful things you or your students take away from the project? What's your best NaNoWriMo memory?

A: Confidence, belief in their own abilities, a stronger sense of time management.

My best memory was the smile on a student's face during an excerpt grading, when I told them how wonderful I thought their writing was.

Q: Anything else you'd like to add?

A: I love this project. I've been doing NaNoWriMo longer than I've been a teacher.

Mike teaches 9th grade English at a charter school. He has participated in NaNoWriMo since 2005, and has had his students participate since he's been teaching. He enjoys reading, writing, video games, disc golf, and attending a weekly writing group. He lives in Minnesota with his wife, daughter, one snake, two cats, along with an imaginary dog and an imaginary raccoon.

[nanowrimo]

Back to School: Interview with Ellice Gullet, Young Writers Program Educator

NaNoWriMo’s Young Writers Program helps over 85,000 kids, teens, teachers, and families set creative goals and tell stories they care about. We asked some of our amazing YWP educators to share how they take on the NaNoWriMo challenge in their classroom. Today’s advice comes from Ellice Gullet, who teaches special education, general education, and gifted and talented. 

Q: What grade/ age level do you work with? What type of NaNoWriMo group is it (whole class, club, homeschool, elective, etc.)?

A: I have worked with grades 2-7, whole group, and special education resource room.

Q: How long have you been doing NaNoWriMo with your students?

A: I have been doing NaNoWriMo with my students for 8 years.

Q: How do you structure the entire project (for example, do you start prepping in October and write in November, do you have kids work on it all year, etc.)?

A: September, we learn the parts of a story, using a basic story map. Then since they are elementary students, we read a couple of examples and put them on the mountain to practice recognizing the parts. In October, the students are given their own story map where they start to build their story. This takes all month and there is often revision as some of them will have a story with no real climax, or no real thread.

When they are done with these, we use them to write our stories in Nov. In November, we write in Google docs so we can use Google classroom, and they can use talk-to-text if they don't have typing proficiency. We write in parts, and then in January we do self editing, two rounds of peer editing, then I do teacher edits. Then in March we have our stories put in an anthology and published for the students to purchase for home. 

Q: What does a normal NaNoWriMo day look like for your students?

A: We are fifth grade, so it usually includes 10-20 minutes of writing on school days, and no writing at home.

Q: How do you set and manage word-count goals?

A: I have learned to set them low, or they ramble and don't get a good story. Again, they are 5th graders, so their stories are 2-3 pages only.

Q: How do you manage grading? Do you grade?

A: They get a grade for completing the project. 

Q: How do you approach revision/ publishing (if at all)?

A: In January, they read their story and fix anything they find glaring. As fifth graders, they don't do a lot of grammar editing as much as plot changes. Then they have two student peers read their story and make comments. After they have finished that, I read them and make comments. Students fix the grammar and plot questions I have. 

Q: What are the most meaningful things you or your students take away from the project? What's your best NaNoWriMo memory?

A: Parts of the story. Students who can identify a part of a story to write, can read and identify them which increases reading comprehension. Also several of my students have decided that they are in fact Authors, that when they grow up they want to be a writer. So that is amazing. Also some of the creative imagery these students come up with is amazing. 

Q: Anything else you’d like to add?

A: Set guidelines on what they can't write about, like suicide, violence at school, violence against a student, but give them as much freedom to write as you can. Some like to write horror and let that be okay. Also prewarn your monitor for your school computer system, so they don't pull kids with concerns because of their content!

Ellice Gullett is a highly qualified teacher of special education, general education and gifted and talented. She has been teaching for 23 years. Writing is a large portion of her class. She is also an aspiring author herself.

[nanowrimo]

Back to School: Interview with Teresa Lyons, Young Writers Program Educator

NaNoWriMo’s Young Writers Program helps over 85,000 kids, teens, teachers, and families set creative goals and tell stories they care about. We asked some of our amazing YWP educators to share how they take on the NaNoWriMo challenge in their classroom. Today’s advice comes from Teresa Lyons, a long-time writer and teacher going on her 23rd year.

Q: What grade/ age level do you work with? What type of NaNoWriMo group is it (whole class, club, homeschool, elective, etc.)?

A: High school creative writing, 9-12 graders, whole class, semester long elective. Previously, I used it with my 7th & 8th graders, whole class, during our narrative unit.

Q: How long have you been doing NaNoWriMo with your students?

A: 5+ years

Q: How do you structure the entire project (for example, do you start prepping in October and write in November, do you have kids work on it all year, etc.)?

A: We begin quick writes in September as we go over story elements. Then we take those and select several to blow up to completed short stories. In mid-October, we begin prepping for NaNoWriMo using elements from the provided pre-writing book and writer's workshop. We create our novellas in November and then do edits and turn in a sample of the work, called a NaNoWriMo First Look, in December. If I had the kids all year, I would wait and do the edits in January but I don't have that option.

Q: What does a normal NaNoWriMo day look like for your students?

A: During November, we write a full class period four days a week. On Fridays, we have writers' groups for 20-25 minutes, where students can talk about their stories, share excerpts, discuss any issues they are having, etc. Then when writers' groups are over, they have the rest of the period (about 30 minutes) to apply any feedback they got in their writers' groups and to continue working on their stories.

Q: How do you set and manage word-count goals?

A: Students are allowed to choose their own word count as long as it meets or is above the class minimum. The minimum is 5,000-8,000 words, depending on the class. I also participate in NaNoWriMo and set a higher goal, typically 10,000-15,000 words depending on what their minimum is. If they beat my goal, they get a little prize and bragging rights for outwriting me.

Q: How do you manage grading? Do you grade?

A: My students get two grades for NaNoWriMo. One is a grade for the word count. They get whatever their percentage is as their word count grade. This goes in the classwork grading category of my grade book (which is a small category to begin with). The other grade they get is for their NaNoWriMo First Look. For this assignment, they turn in revised and edited excerpts of their novel for me to grade. They create a book cover, a synopsis of the novel, and then hand in their best examples of indirect characterization, the main conflict, meaningful dialogue, the climax, and their favorite scene.

Q: How do you approach revision/ publishing (if at all)?

A: Since my class is only a semester long, we begin revisions a few days into December. They revise and edit specifically to create their NaNoWriMo First Look assignment. I have always wanted to publish their writings in a book but the timing doesn't work out. If there was someplace we could just submit the PDFs when they are done with them, then I might be able to pull off getting it published.

Q: Any NaNoWriMo tips or tricks to share with other educators? Hard-won lessons? Ah-ha moments?

A: Be super excited and start talking it up early. I introduce it the first week of school and the students can tell I am pumped up about it. I refer to it often and I call it their "Great American Novella". My excitement helps them be more excited about it.

I assure my students who might be anxious about it that they will have several weeks in October to prep and plan out their story. I tell them that they will have characters planned, the basic plot line mapped out, and so on. I also do story starter quick writes with my students and a lot of them use one of those as a bouncing off point for their novella.

The fact that I write with the kids really motivates them because I am not asking them to do something that I can't or won't do. Also, some just really want to outwrite me. I always give the ones who do a little wooden ornament that says NaNoWriMo and the year on one side and I outwrote Mrs. Lyons on the other side.

When I did this with my 7-8th graders, I would do two Write Ins, one at the beginning and one at the end of November. I would take over a big room after school and they could come and write for a few hours. I ordered pizza and sodas. They loved it. Even if they weren't always writing, they were talking about their stories and bouncing ideas off of each other (even if they didn't realize it). Those who wanted to focus brought in headphones and listened to music while they wrote.

I let my students listen to their own music while they write. What works for me when writing may not work for them and visa versa. They really appreciate being able to do this.

Q: Have you ever run into resistance from your administration about doing NaNoWriMo, and if so, how did you manage it? What do you say to people who don’t see the point of having students write novels? 

A: I have been fortunate that my admin has always been at least somewhat supportive. When I did this with my middle schoolers (7-8th graders), it was part of a regular ELA class. I timed my narrative unit to be October and November. I would give them one class day a week to write and then their only homework from me was working on their NaNoWriMo. I never had any pushback or complaints.

Q: What are the most meaningful things you or your students take away from the project? What's your best NaNoWriMo memory?

A: The most meaningful thing that they take away is the sense of accomplishment at doing it, meeting their word goal. No other writing assignment seems overwhelming when you have written a 7,000ish word novella. The kids who think there is no way that they can do this and then do, the confidence it gives them lasts for years. I have had previous 7-8th graders reach out to me when they are in high school to let me know that while their classmates might be panicking over a three page paper, they are stressed a bit because they know they can write that because they have and so much more.

My favorite memory of NaNoWriMo has to be the Write Ins I did when I was at the middle school. All those kids coming together, on their own time, sharing their stories and ideas and just so excited about what they were doing. It was great.

Mrs. Lyons is a teacher going on her 23rd year, but she has been a writer much longer than that. She currently teaches high school, senior English and creative writing, but most of her career has been spent at the middle school level teaching 6-8th grade ELA. She is excited to bring NaNoWriMo to her students every year and to be given the chance to write as well. Mrs. Lyons has been working on a book during NaNoWriMo that she needs to finish soon because her youngest daughter wants to know what happens to all of the characters.

[nanowrimo]

Back to School: Interview with Sarah Lile, Young Writers Program Educator

NaNoWriMo’s Young Writers Program helps over 85,000 kids, teens, teachers, and families set creative goals and tell stories they care about. We asked some of our amazing YWP educators to share how they take on the NaNoWriMo challenge in their classroom. Today’s advice comes from Sarah, a middle school ELA teacher in Richmond, Virginia.

Q: What grade/ age level do you work with? What type of NaNoWriMo group is it (whole class, club, homeschool, elective, etc.)?

A: Whole classes, grades 6-8

Q: How long have you been doing NaNoWriMo with your students?

A: Since 2019

Q: How do you structure the entire project (for example, do you start prepping in October and write in November, do you have kids work on it all year, etc.)?

A: We don't do much prep and I always regret it. Students use class time to write throughout November. Some students already have an idea of what they'd like to write, others are pantsers like me!

Q: What does a normal NaNoWriMo day look like for your students?

A: Arrive to class and settle in, open laptops and begin feverishly typing!

Q: How do you set and manage word-count goals?

A: I allow students to set their own goals, though I've started to require no less than 7,000 words.

Q: How do you manage grading? Do you grade?

A: I ask students to submit an excerpt of their novel each week and post them on the wall in the classroom. This helps with accountability and sharing.

Q: How do you approach revision/ publishing (if at all)?

A: I don't grade their novels, instead they revise an excerpt for a grade and a public reading.

Q: Any NaNoWriMo tips or tricks to share with other educators? Hard-won lessons? Ah-ha moments?

A: Every year I wish we had done more prep.

It's more fun when I write WITH them.

Students really like it when I read their work, so the excerpts are key.

My writers always hit a wall at some point, but I trust the process (and tell them to just keep typing) and the NaNoWriMo tools and they always get through it! They are natural-born storytellers.

Q: Have you ever run into resistance from your administration about doing NaNoWriMo, and if so, how did you manage it? What do you say to people who don’t see the point of having students write novels? 

A: Thankfully, no. I do send the Common Core standards to parents and admin so they see how this aligns.

Q: What are the most meaningful things you or your students take away from the project? What's your best NaNoWriMo memory?

A: That they CAN DO IT! The first class that participated set their own goals and wrote feverishly every class period and during the weekends. One student was out of town for the last couple days, sick in a hotel bed, and stayed up to meet her goal. Her parents were absolutely amazed at her commitment.

Q: Anything else you'd like to add?

A: In order for this to really work, students need to write everyday. It's hard to keep momentum over weekends and especially over a week-long Thanksgiving break. I'd love advice on how to keep students writing at these times—maybe set short term word count goals?

Sarah is a middle school ELA teacher at Sabot School in Richmond, Virginia, a progressive Reggio-Inspired school for children ages 2-14. She is a wife, mother, dog-mom, writer, food-lover, and amateur potter.

[nanowrimo]

Back to School: Interview with Virginia Pratt, Young Writers Program Educator

NaNoWriMo’s Young Writers Program helps over 85,000 kids, teens, teachers, and families set creative goals and tell stories they care about. We asked some of our amazing YWP educators to share how they take on the NaNoWriMo challenge in their classroom. Today’s advice comes from Virginia Pratt, who has been an educator for over 35 years.

Q: What grade/ age level do you work with? What type of NaNoWriMo group is it (whole class, club, homeschool, elective, etc.)?

A: I teach 4th/5th Grade gifted/talented ELA.

Q: How long have you been doing NaNoWriMo with your students?

A: 4 years (this will be year 5)

Q: How do you structure the entire project (for example, do you start prepping in October and write in November, do you have kids work on it all year, etc.)?

A: I use the month of October to prep. We do a reading/writing workshop, and I find that the materials are great for helping me work with the students on understanding literary elements as we read in October and prepare for the writing in November. As students are working on crafting their own characters, we are studying the arc of character in reading—seeing how different events impact them, how they change over time, what conflicts they face, etc. We do this with setting, with plot arc, etc.

Q: What does a normal NaNoWriMo day look like for your students?

A: In November, once we are writing the stories, kids have their independent writing time to work on their stories. I read their work and confer with them, and they also have writing partners with whom they meet during the week. As they encounter struggle—dialogue, for example—we have mini-lessons on those things and then students continue to move forward. While they only have 20 - 30 minutes of writing time during the day, many kids opt to write at night and in other "choice times".

Q: How do you set and manage word-count goals?

A: I give the kids an example of what different word counts look like, once typed. I tell them the length of some texts they are all familiar with. I tell them my work count, and explain that I write/type much more quickly than they do. When they make their goal, I let that stand unless they come to me later and say they want to change their goal. Changing a goal (either increasing or decreasing) is not ever an issue.

Q: How do you manage grading? Do you grade?

A: Grades come from what I see them doing as a result of our entire process. I take grades on their reading comprehension and understanding of literary elements, figurative language, etc. All of those things are positively impacted by their work actually manipulating them in their own writing. I do give a grade based on effort and growth, and the students have a rubric/checklist of things I am looking for in their writing. They all get good grades because they are working with me in conferences and they are motivated to participate.

Q: How do you approach revision/ publishing (if at all)?

A: We do some revision work—as kids bring up areas that are causing them difficulty - during November, but we save most of that work for the month of January and the "Now What?" phase.

Q: Any NaNoWriMo tips or tricks to share with other educators? Hard-won lessons? Ah-ha moments?

A: I think it is really important to be accepting of what the kids want to try to do. The way the program materials are set up, if a child tries to write a piece with little to no substance, it's easy for me to go back to the workbook and say, "Okay, but why is your character doing this?" "What made him/her act this way?" "What conflict is impacting your character? " They realize pretty quickly that they are missing a lot of key information that they NEED to make a good story.

If a kid wants to do a comic book or graphic novel, I find a way to let them do that. We use storyboards or software that helps them put that together, and then handle the word count manually.

My focus is on getting them excited to write, and having them actually do writing. We can polish and improve the work later, but just getting them to tell a story and take the risk to put it out there is the most important part.

Q: Have you ever run into resistance from your administration about doing NaNoWriMo, and if so, how did you manage it? What do you say to people who don’t see the point of having students write novels? 

A: I haven't had any issues. Generally if anyone does question what we are doing, they stop questioning when they see how engaged the kids are.

Q: What are the most meaningful things you or your students take away from the project? What's your best NaNoWriMo memory?

A: The best part for us is that there is a true sense of being part of a greater community of writers who are all struggling/working together to get closer to a dream of being a published writer. We watch some of the videos NaNoWriMo posts that are appropriate for 10-11 year-olds, and we've also used some video tape of some of the write-ins where a topic is given for everyone to write on for 10 minutes. If I select those carefully, they really open the kids up to a different way of thinking about their writing. The best memories are around those kids who are so proud of how much they've written, or if they've met their goal.

Q: Anything else you'd like to add?

A: For me, the whole thing is about feeling and acting like a writer. The kids don't know it's possible until we let them try. Some surprise themselves AND me with what they can do. Even those who don't start off thinking of themselves as writers come out understanding more about the process and seeing where some of their strengths lie. It gives them something to build on as they move on through school and are asked to write. It's important that NaNoWriMo represents a measure of success for every kid. That works wonders in helping them to take further steps as writers.

Virginia Pratt has been an educator for 35 years, and currently works with 4th and 5th grade students. An avid reader and notebooker, Dr. Pratt loves bringing an appreciation of story to her students and strives to help them to feel like successful readers and writers every day. Dr. Pratt loves music, roller coasters, and naps and enjoys spending time with her family and friends and traveling.

[nanowrimo]

Back to School: Interview with Aly Mirasol, Young Writers Program Educator

NaNoWriMo’s Young Writers Program helps over 85,000 kids, teens, teachers, and families set creative goals and tell stories they care about. We asked some of our amazing YWP educators to share how they take on the NaNoWriMo challenge in their classroom. Today’s advice comes from Aly Mirasol, a middle school Humanities teacher in West Seattle, Washington.

Q: What grade/ age level do you work with? What type of NaNoWriMo group is it (whole class, club, homeschool, elective, etc.)?

A: 6th-8th grade

Q: How long have you been doing NaNoWriMo with your students?

A: 2 years

Q: How do you structure the entire project (for example, do you start prepping in October and write in November, do you have kids work on it all year, etc.)?

A: We start prepping at the beginning of October, write all of November, and edit in December/January! I then send the books to be published in February and they usually arrive in March.

Q: What does a normal NaNoWriMo day look like for your students?

A: We'll do 15 minutes of writing to start class—some instrumental music to set the tone—but since it's a combo English/History class, we move into other curriculum after. The first and last days of November are full writing days; other than that, they're encouraged to keep writing at home, and most of them really go for it.

Q: How do you set and manage word-count goals?

A: We have conferences at the end of October to determine individual goals. They'll do a 15-min practice session to see how many words they can get in that time, and then we'll look at examples of different story lengths. Halfway through the month, they have the option to change their goal if they talk to me and provide ample reasoning.

Q: How do you manage grading? Do you grade?

A: I grade based on effort—are they trying to write every day?—and then we have an editing checklist for after November. I try to keep the month itself low-stress and more about their creative process, less about worrying over a grade.

Q: How do you approach revision/ publishing (if at all)?

A: I use Barnes & Noble, which we really enjoy since the books come out looking very professional! They'll grab an editing partner and work through formatting, grammar, etc., and I help them with that as well.

Q: Any NaNoWriMo tips or tricks to share with other educators? Hard-won lessons? Ah-ha moments?

A: We made a progress chart that the kids could opt-in for, and they really seemed to enjoy coloring their graphs each day with how much progress they made!

Q: Have you ever run into resistance from your administration about doing NaNoWriMo, and if so, how did you manage it? What do you say to people who don’t see the point of having students write novels? 

A: Luckily, no resistance. To people who question it, I just talk about the passion that comes out of it & how great it is for the kids to have the freedom to write about whatever they want and come out of the process as a published author.

Q: What are the most meaningful things you or your students take away from the project? What's your best NaNoWriMo memory?

A: I had an 8th grader this year who I was having trouble connecting with at first-- very withdrawn, quiet-- but he went all-in on this project and just started to shine. Now that he's graduated, he still emails me and is working on publishing a short story now, and we started a book club for over the summer! I just think it's so great to see kids come into their own during this project.

Q: Anything else you'd like to add?

A: I love NaNoWriMo so, so much, and my kids do, too. Thank you for everything you do. :) Aly Mirasol is a middle school Humanities teacher in West Seattle, Washington. Aside from all things reading and writing, they like to spend their time swimming in the ocean, coaching, playing outdoors, and relaxing with their two cats. Their current project is building a massive bookshelf to hold an ever-growing collection of books—some of which are their students' own NaNoWriMo projects!