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Join Angela Stockman and other K-12 writers and teachers for a week of remote making, writing, and learning.
Scroll down to learn more, and please register soon. Class sizes are limited to 20 writers and ten teachers, in order to ensure a quality experience.
Imagine a classroom where teachers learn from the writers they serve and where every writer in the room begins to learn more about who they are and how their chosen modes of expression can make them of real influence in the world.
Imagine a learning community where multimodality serves the production of sophisticated alphabetic text and print–where kids who claim to hate writing learn how to expand their definition of what it is and why that richer definition really matters.
Imagine spending one week of this summer participating in a remote, intensive #MakeWriting Studio session.
All young writers who register will receive a make writing toolkit full of the materials needed for this course prior to our first meeting. The cost of these materials is included in the registration fee. All teachers will receive their choice of one of Angela’s books. This is also included in the registration fee.
This course is also open to participants across the United States and Canada. If you live outside of these areas and would like to participate, please contact Angela to share your time zone and discuss this potential.
Fireside chats will be hosted each evening, via Zoom. Peer review sessions, guided by Angela, will be facilitated this way, too. Each day, writers will engage in playful, well-guided independent learning and writing experiences offline. At the end of the week, each writer will have a draft that they may continue working with throughout the summer. They will be invited to join their peers in weekly meetups through the end of August as well, and those who are interested in pursuing publication will be supported to do so.
Teachers will be offered varied entry points and opportunities to learn about supporting multimodal composition up close and across the distance. All who register will be invited to complete this asynchronous, self-paced course on their own schedule, and only if they wish. There is no additional cost for this. They will also be invited to attend all synchronous sessions with young writers, and they will have full access to the lessons and materials provided to them. Fireside chats will be hosted each evening. This is where we will debrief and synthesize our learning.
This document provides an overview of the week’s content.
This document offers a peek into the structure of our days.
This is true for all participants–writers and teachers alike.
All of the profits from these sessions will be donated to the Kenmore Village Improvement Society (KVIS). What is KVIS? It’s a nonprofit organization that makes my small community better, and I’m committed to contributing to local, grass-roots organizations like these.
All participants will explore a variety of uncommon multimodal mentor texts and compositions, and they will gain access to a significant digital archive that they may return to over time.
Teachers will be able to choose from any one of Angela’s four books to keep for their own. Two of these books focus on bringing making into the writing workshop, one speaks to school culture, and her most recent book, to be published this year by Routledge, challenges the myth of the resistant writer. Orders will be placed on site, and deliveries will be made directly to teacher’s homes.
Young writers will have the opportunity to select and order a book about writing authored by an experienced writer and created for writers their age. They will select from a variety of titles that will be made available to them during the week. Orders will be placed on site and deliveries will arrive at each writer’s home. They will also receive a toolkit full of the materials necessary for our week together, ahead of our start.
Testimonials are available here, for those who might be interested in perusing.
Please select your age group or register as a teacher.
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The answers to the questions that are asked most frequently are found below. If you need further support, just contact Angela.
Are the sessions multi-age?
Yes. The sessions for young writers ages 5-12, and the teen sessions are for writers 13-17.
Are group sizes limited?
Yes. Twenty writers will be accepted into each program on a first-come, first-served basis. Ten teachers will be accepted into each program in the same manner.
What will writers each day?
Most materials will be provided, but if you or your child prefers to use a specific device, please plan to use it.
What makes this experience different from other writing camps?
#MakeWriting Studio sessions encourage multimodal composition. Rather than merely privileging print, we write using all expressive modes: visual, spatial, gestural, aural, haptic, and alphabetic. Multimodal composition is also used throughout each writer’s process, in order to support the development of far more sophisticated alphabetic text and print.
Our sessions center the writers in the room, in order to serve their unique needs, interests, and unique well. Each writer will learn how to define and express these things, and the projects that they pursue will align accordingly. Here, writers choose their own topics, forms, and structures. They also choose the best modes of expression, depending on their greater purposes, too.
So, what will writers actually create?
Most writers will plan and begin to create a multimodal composition of their own choosing. Digital storytellers may create narratives and begin designing stop motion videos that bring them to life. Dancers might choreograph arguments and prepare to perform them. Researchers might investigate topics that intrigue them and then produce infographics that enable them to share their expertise. The possibilities are endless, and what each writer creates will differ, depending on their interests and needs and the influence they hope to have on their users and audiences.
What if we register and then need to cancel?
Your payment will be refunded in full until July 15, 2020. After this time, refunds will only be given if another writer registers in your place.
Can we join a wait-list?
Yes. If you are unable to register because a session closes, please contact Angela and ask to be added to the wait list.
Will these sessions include academic or test writing practice?
No. These sessions include authentic writing experiences that are based on writers’ interests and needs.
Will you tutor my child in academic or test writing?
I’m sorry, but this isn’t possible at this time.
If I'm a teacher, may I register for only one or two days?
Teachers must register and attend for the entire week.
If I'm a teacher, may I earn professional learning credit?
Certainly, with your district’s approval. Documentation of your participation will be provided.
What updates can we expect after we register?
Upon registration, expect to receive a welcome packet one week prior to our start, along with a Make Writing toolkit. These will be delivered to your home.
If you would like to connect with writers and teachers prior to your session, consider joining the Building Better Writers Facebook group.
Who is Angela Stockman?
I’m an experienced, certified teacher, an author, and a professional learning facilitator. I’m also the founder of the WNY Young Writers’ Studio, the organization sponsoring this event. You can learn more about me here.