Through The Trapdoor

lettersandlight:

Elementary teacher Nancye Blair sent along this video and blog post. We love hearing about how the Young Writers Program inspires students and educators—as Nancye discusses how her kids spurred on her own word count. Find out why all of Nancye’s students can say, “I am an author.”

Last month, I took on a challenge that I did not believe that I could accomplish and that I did not even intend to fight to achieve. That challenge was writing my first novel alongside sixteen of my fourth and fifth grade students as part of National Novel Writing Month. When I first looked into the NaNoWriMo Young Writers Program, I saw it as a unique opportunity to encourage my students to write while participating in a global endeavor. Having a clear beginning and end point, along with the knowledge that other kids were simultaneously writing all over the world was very motivating for my students. That, plus the idea that they would receive a real printed copy of their novel launching them to “real author” status, set the group of us into motion.

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