FEATURE STORY
Writers Loose
Teacher leaders create Project Write to respond to student needs. By Rhonda Lancaster
14
VIRGINIA JOURNAL OF EDUCATION | APRIL 2023
longer term projects. Students and “The benefit of Project Write is teachers from around the state (and that we take the pressure of school beyond) are welcome at both. Writing away,” says PWI Vice President and is a solitary activity, but often a writer Loudoun Valley High Writing Center needs an audiDirector Chrisence to spark topher Humemotivation. nik, a Loudoun Having an Education Assoinstructor to ciation member. facilitate their “There’s no growth and a grade coming, group of peers there’s no deadto provide line due. It’s ‘get feedback regwhere you can ularly pushes and be comfortthe writers to able with it.’” keep going. While PWI Bringteacher coning together sultants bring a Alicia D. Williams (above), author of Genesis Begins Again and the picture book biography, Jump at the teachers and wealth of classSun: The True Life Tale of Unstoppable Storycatcher students from room experience Zora Neale Hurston, leads young writers through her across the to the workshops, “Lists to Write From” exercise. state enthey, too, often Marisol Contreras (left), then a rising senior, reads one hances both benefit in ways of her pieces during the group share at the end of the day during last year’s summer workshop. Several online the individthat strengthen students on screen behind her await their turn. uals and the their teaching organization. arsenal. After the “Project Write seeks to build commupandemic shut down schools in 2020, nities of writers,” McCarthy says. “More PWI moved its summer workshop than ever, students need a place to online. Students were so hungry for feel connected. For those who want interaction that it wasn’t a struggle to write, Project Write can help you to get them to turn on cameras and find your way.” microphones for the authors, instrucMore information, for teachers tors, or their peers. And, while many of and students, is available at their teaching colleagues struggled to projectwrite.org or youngwriters@ adjust to online or hybrid learning that projectwrite.org or by following @ fall, the PWI instructors understood ProjectWrite on Facebook, Twitter, or how to engage students online. Instagram.l Project Write has continued to grow and adapt. The summer workshop is now offered using a hybrid Rhonda Lancaster, a Frederick County model with most writers attending Education Association member, teachin person, but those who live farther es English and creative writing at James away or whose parents can’t drive Wood High School. She is the president them daily can attend online. An of the advisory board for Project Write, Advanced Young Writers’ Workshop is Inc., and is a teacher consultant with offered virtually throughout the year Shenandoah Valley Writing Project. for writers devoted to developing
Why Write Here are some reasons your students will benefit from writing and from getting better at it, suggested by a variety of educators and education organizations: •
Writing is a form of lasting communication.
•
Writing is a form of expression and selfevaluation.
•
Writing develops critical thinking skills.
•
Writing encourages creativity and imagination.
•
Writing helps you organize your thoughts.
•
Writing improves communication, vocabulary and reading skills.
•
Writing helps you remember things you’ve learned, expanding your knowledge base.
•
Writing is a mindful activity.
•
Good writing is crucial for academic and career success.
•
Writing builds selfconfidence.
•
Writing can help you land the job you want.
•
Writing helps you connect with an audience.
•
Writing helps save your memories and provides a record that can affect the future.
•
Writing is a life skill that can affect the world in positive ways.l
VIRGINIA JOURNAL OF EDUCATION | APRIL 2023
15
Photo by Abby Frasure
S Turning Young
tudent-athletes of all ages have access to local youth leagues and recreation programs to hone their skills and pursue their dreams. What about students who are writers? That question led a small collective of teachers to found Project Write, Inc. in 2014, a nonprofit organization aimed at helping young writers in the Shenandoah Valley. The effort was led by founding president Patrick McCarthy, a high school English and creative writing teacher, and Erin Hubbard, who now works in education consulting, to create “new pathways for young individuals interested in the world of writing,” in McCarthy’s words. They had helped with student workshops through the Northern Virginia Writing Project, where they saw successful weekend workshops and a summer writers’ camp. “We were confident that we could provide a similar experience with one sizable benefit: a partnership with Shenandoah University’s Children’s Literature Conference (CLC),” says McCarthy. So, when Project Write launched, some CLC author-presenters also led workshops for young writers, a practice that has continued. Today, youth workshops run on weekends and in the summer, and both teacher-leaders and young writers find them energizing experiences. PWI has begun to see its first participants graduate from college, some with publishing contracts, and return as presenters. Andrew Joseph White, a graduate of Winchester’s Handley High School and a PWI participant from elementary through high school, published his first novel, Hell Followed with Us, in June 2022, and it landed on The New York Times YA bestseller list.