| When | Thursday 1:00 - 2:00 |
| Teacher Name | LizAdams |
| Target Age Range | None - None |
| General Grade Level | Middle School, Lower High School, Upper High School, College |
| Ability Level | Intermediate, Advanced |
| Skill Requirements/Prerequisites | I do not believe "target age" is relevant; desire to learn and skill level are. Students MUST be willing and able to: write a substantive amount of intelligible text within the time allowed for the study group; ask questions when they're unsure or confused; participate constructively in a group setting. Parents, please discuss with your children what their goals and interests are before registering--unwilling participation will not be any fun for them, their fellow study group members, or me. |
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| Family Provided Materials | whatever the student requires to write quickly and consistently. If that's paper and pen, provide that; if that's a laptop, provide that. Just provide it, every week, please. |
| Instructor Provided Materials | handouts, large quantities of encouragement, and the occasional cookie. |
| Study Group Style | Seminar, Activity |
| Description | You can already write; how do you become a better writer? What makes good writing, anyway? What can you learn from past masters of the art while still retaining your own voice? What does that have to do with academic writing (and do we even care)? We will use our time this semester to try and find out, by practicing as much as possible. I will introduce (or possibly repeat, if we've worked together before) a number of different techniques for working around writer's block, and will also suggest ways of creating variety in your work. I tend to focus on helping writers become more aware of structural choices in written work, and on guiding greater precision with language. I will provide writing exercises, samples of different technical choices, and (occasionally) (if you are very good) (and I don't forget) cookies. Nothing is so terrible that a good cookie can't make it a little better. Expectations: This is not intended to be a first introduction to structured writing. Accordingly, participants will have some experience with writing, preferably for an academic audience, and will have discovered their own areas of difficulty. I intend to address those difficulties to the extent possible. Please expect to write during group time every week, and come prepared and equipped to do so. More extended pieces will require work outside study group time; participants should therefore also expect to do some writing and reading on their own time. I am happy to work with students individually as time allows, or answer questions via email. |