Handbook & FAQ

In an effort to provide answers to routine questions, this handbook has been developed for participants who seek detailed information when preparing for specific elements of the Summer Institute. It is not intended to provide answers to all questions or to replace valuable interaction between participants and members of the site’s leadership team. The handbook is offered as a means for enhancing each Fellow’s Summer Institute experience. Participants are invited to seek clarification and further explanation from any member of the leadership team.

The Workshop

The founding principal of the National Writing Project is that teachers are the experts of their craft and have the most to offer other teachers. The central purpose in the National Writing Project‘s fostering of Summer Institutes across the country is that teachers demonstrate their best practices for other teachers; therefore, participant workshops are the heart of the Summer Institute. Workshops are also referred to as demonstrations and presentations since those terms also describe the workshop experience.

A member of the site‘s leadership team is paired with each participant to serve as a coach. It is essential that participants meet early with coaches so that valuable time is not lost on an idea that won‘t be suitable for presentation. From topic to post-workshop self-reflective evaluation, coaches are an excellent resource for all phases of workshop development.

Participants develop three valuable types of materials in preparation for the workshop. The first of these materials is the abstract; the document which reflects the workshop‘s topic, purpose, and components. A time table is included detailing allotted minutes for each activity. The abstract not only guides the participant through the presentation of the workshop, it is a valuable tool in the hands of the teachers to whom the workshop is presented. Teachers taking the teaching-practice back to their classrooms need a concrete formula adaptable to the individual setting in which they teach. Included in the abstract are resources such as books or web sites that can provide further information or ideas for using the writing practice in the classroom.

Second are the materials teachers need to participate in the workshop. These are the handouts the teacher would give students when using this writing practice in the classroom. The last material needed is the workshop evaluation. This is a valuable tool in the presenter‘s hand as it allows participants to shed light on ways and areas in which the workshop can be more valuable in future presentations.

Participant workshops do not begin until after the first week of the Institute during which time several workshops will be presented by guests. These are valuable workshops, not only because of their “tried and true“ topics, but also as examples of appropriate materials and overall presentation.

Here is last year’s SI schedule: 2013GREATBEARSISCHEDULE

Writing

On Mondays, participants turn in a piece of writing. Participants submit one digital copy to the wiki or other digital platform being used by the site. For individual comments a hard copy can be submitted to the director and co-directors (a photocopier is provided for this and all other Institute related copying). The majority of the writings can be of any genre and length; however, participants are encouraged to explore different genres for each submission. The final piece, for those participants choosing to take the additional inquiry group coursework, is a collaborative exploratory paper or multi-media presentation: the writing groups each explore a question about writing and teaching writing and develop a piece that helps to answer the question and suggest further opportunities for investigating what they were unable to definitively answer.

Author‘s Chair

The last thirty minutes of each day are set aside to allow participants an opportunity read their writing in large group. These readings may come from the daily warm-up, writing in response to workshop prompts, one of the required writing pieces or any other original work. Author‘s Chair is an important time for new writers to discover and develop writing voices. Participants are expected to contribute to an atmosphere which invites tentative writers to share their work and receive positive feedback.

Poster Presentations (Introduction of Summer Reading Books)

On the first day of the Institute, participants choose a book, from those provided, to own and take with them from the Institute. Participants read the book during the first few weeks of the Institute and make a presentation poster in an afternoon session during the last week. The presentation of the book is a five minute commercial, as opposed to a book report. The purpose of the presentation is to convey the purpose of and audience for the book. An intriguing quote can be offered to motivate participants to read the selected work.

Institute Portfolio

Before Great Bear became a paperless site, the Summer Institute concluded with a portfolio party. Participants were given time to read each other‘s portfolios and leave words of praise or recognition spread throughout using sticky notes. Our paperless environment no longer makes this a feasible activity, however participants are encouraged to post within the National Writing Project’s digital anthology and Connect pages and to leave comments about other participants posted writings.

Writing Groups

Throughout the Institute, participants will meet in randomly created small groups for the purpose of reading and commenting on original works. Participants are expected to bring drafts or revised works to the writing group meetings each week. The writing group is an excellent opportunity to receive constructive comments for revision on pieces such as the required writings.

Inquiry Groups

Participants are grouped by the grade levels they teach to meet in inquiry groups that will choose one original question about which they will gain knowledge and present to participants in the last week of the Institute. Presentations do not have a standard format; inquiry groups are encouraged to use creative methods for expressing the content and value of their findings.

All-Day Writing Marathon

On one of the days of the Institute, usually the second Friday, participants meet at an off campus location, such as downtown Conway or Little Rock and traverse the area with their notebooks, telling all who ask what they are doing, “I‘m a writer.“ Periodically, they stop to write what they observe, sharing writings in small groups. The marathon concludes in the early afternoon when participants meet at a pre-determined location to share the events and writings of the day. Included on the institute wiki is “The New Orleans Writing Marathon,“ by Richard Louth, the founder of the writing marathon concept. Participants read this article before the marathon to become familiar with marathon history and practice.