How to Teach Creative Writing to High School Students
Teaching your high school students to be great writers is not just a matter of drilling them in formal essay writing techniques. Techniques can be learned, but if your students do not develop a passion for the written word, they will never become truly great writers. A creative writing class is the best way to show high school students why learning to write matters.
Instructions
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Make the creative writing class as relaxed and informal as possible. High school students in particular will feel more comfortable expressing themselves in an informal environment. Set up the desks in a circle. Allow your students to choose whether or not they want to share their writing. Let the students lead the discussions as much as possible.
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Pick approaches to writing that your high school students may not have tried before. For a fiction assignment, you could have your students rewrite a favorite story from the perspective of a different character. For a poetry assignment, you could have them describe a favorite place by its smell, sound and texture.
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Show examples. Bring in a favorite poem or an excerpt from a story to demonstrate the kind of writing you assign.
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Participate in the creative writing process. Do the assignments yourself, and share your own writing with the students. By opening your own writing to the students, you can make them feel more comfortable sharing with you. They will also benefit from having the voice of a more seasoned writer.
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First loosen up, then tighten up. When the class is first starting, the goal is to make your creative writing students feel comfortable expressing themselves. Once they feel comfortable, you can teach them lessons about writing tighter prose, using more creative imagery or whatever other writing techniques you may want to include.
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Tips & Warnings
Keep the assignments flexible but not too open-ended. If students are given too little writing guidance, they will have trouble starting. If, on the other hand, they are given too formal a structure, they will not be able to loosen up and get creative.
Although plagiarism is never acceptable, derivative writing is. Some students may need to feel comfortable with a style of writing before making it their own. Allow them to use the examples you give them as a template.
References
- Photo Credit Jack Hollingsworth/Digital Vision/Getty Images
