One of the funny things about parenting as an educator is that often, your children teach you a great deal about things you think you already know a few things about. Take, for instance, protocols. “We’re doing these things called modules in my English class,” my daughter Nina explained over dinner one autumn evening at the beginning of her eighth grade year. And I’ll admit, my stomach clenched. I wasn’t well acquainted with the New…
When it comes to building a writing community, much depends on the quality of the feedback that writers provide to one another. Solid feedback is timely, aligned to the needs defined by the writer, and criteria specific. Compliments and criticism have no place at the table, and protocols like those I share in the LiveBinder below can ensure greater equity as well. Peer review is tough stuff. Writers rarely come to the table full prepared…
On the first two Wednesdays of every month, I get to hang out with some of the friendliest and most talented writers in Buffalo. These meetings of our adult writing group at the WNY Young Writer’s Studio have become very important to me over the last two years. Writing can be a lonely endeavor, and a good peer review group is hard to find and sustain. I’m fortunate and so very grateful for the company,…