Informal innovation in firstyear composition–part 1

I’m one of those teachers who revises my syllabi at least a little—and sometimes a lot—every time I teach. Here is one new approach (at least new to me!) I’m experimenting with this semester in two sections of first year composition.

A lot of writing teachers begin every class with informal writing. My colleague Dr. Agnes Cardoni calls this “Writing yourself into the room” (a phrase I love). When it’s necessary to end the time for journaling, Agnes reminds students that they can always return to their writing (which I also love).

I teach on a MWF schedule, and each class is a meager 50 minutes long, so I struggle with fitting in everything I’d like to do in each class. I have therefore never prioritized informal writing.

Until now.

I decided that, if nothing else, I’d like students to leave my class appreciating and enjoying writing as a gift they can give themselves. Why? Well, partly I’ve been inspired by dipping into the blogs of Irv Peckham, and partly because someone (I can’t remember who!) told me that she started journaling in a writing class and never stopped. What an amazing practice to take with you when you go, right?

Here is my own adaptation of journaling at the start of class. Feel free to borrow and adapt….

1. Make it sexy

Alliteration is a beautiful thing that has given rise to Man Crush Monday, Woman Crush Wednesday, Throwback Thursday, and Flashback Friday. And I’m sure there are many more hip alliterative phrases that I’m not familiar with because when I try too hard to be cool I end up exposing how un-cool I actually am.

At any rate: I’ve seen the way these phrases have sparked posts across social media, so I piggybacked on the trend.

Enter: Music Monday
I am constantly reminded of the power of music to shape moods. I fondly recall how my three-year old son and I used to jam out to Def Leppard and Twisted Sister on the way to daycare as we finally found a way to make our morning commute pleasant for both of us.

Add: Wisdom Wednesday
Agnes Cardoni uses quotes that connect to the course in some way when she has students journal. Wisdom!

And Fun Form Friday
I observed the teaching of Professor Kevin McDonough and was impressed by the way he used a bit of extra time in the class to have students write thesis statements and supporting claims (connected with their class discussion) without ever telling them that’s what they were doing. I’ve extended the idea here. I give students forms of writing (maybe a sentence pattern such as parallelism, or a genre such as a recipe or a vanity license plate) and ask them to play with it. What works, what doesn’t work, and how ridiculous can we get when we use patterns and genres in unexpected ways?

Students can respond to the prompts associated with Music Monday, Wisdom Wednesday, and Fun Form Friday. Or they can simply write about what’s on their minds. I’m providing a path for students who want one, but I’m also leaving space for students who would rather carve out their own paths.

Here’s the assignment sheet if you’d like to check it out.

2. Give it value

I followed the advice in my Zentangle book—I asked students to treat themselves to a journal they loved and to writing utensils that they would enjoy using. When we use quality materials that make us feel good, we enjoy ourselves more and recognize that what we’re doing matters.

It’s cool to see what students choose when they choose for themselves. Writers have different preferences, and it’s good to appreciate that!

Students also earn credit for their journal writing. How do I judge it? They are in class and writing in their journals. That’s it. 5% of the final grade for the course. Value.

Oh: I also write in a journal I love right along with my students, and I’ve made that explicit. I deserve the gift of low-stakes writing, too! 🙂

3. Allow privacy, invite sharing

I’m not ever collecting and reading the journals. I’m giving the opportunity for students to write without judgment. I’m not interested in babysitting the process anymore than I’m interested in granting permission for students to leave the classroom when nature calls. Minimal oversight.

I do, however, offer opportunities for students to share their writing. Some students might want to share with the entire class. And some sharing can involve all students without making anyone feel vulnerable. For example, I asked students to share one word from today’s writing that seemed key to what they were saying, and we noticed patterns. Privacy is maintained, but writing is shared and valued.

4. Open it up

Students are invited to take charge of the prompts by bringing music, wisdom (that is, quotes), or a fun form idea to class. This leadership role is a way students can actively participate in class, and it also creates more buy-in from the students.

The best part? I get to learn from them.

***

I don’t have many results yet because it’s the start of the semester, so I hope to report back much later. But I can say that it felt good to be playing music on Monday as students were arriving in class. Really good.

The first unit of my FYC course is on using language to construct identity for various audiences (ugh—what a mouthful!). So I played “Introducing Me” by Nick Jonas (from Camp Rock 2) and “Dear Future Husband” by Meghan Trainor. Students reacted nostalgically to the former. The latter is making me think of writing a parody: “Dear Future Student.” Inspiration abounds!

For Wisdom Wednesday I used this quote:

“When did we see each other face-to-face? Not until you saw into my cracks and I saw into yours. Before that, we were just looking at ideas of each other, like looking at your window shade but never seeing inside. But once the vessel cracks, the light can get in. The light can get out.” —John Green, Paper Towns

And I’m not sure what I’ll do for Fun Form Friday, but my wheels are spinning.

If you’re also experimenting with informal writing in your class, I’d love to hear your ideas and what you’ve learned. Comment away!

Part of my FYC class (doing intro interviews; I was too busy writing to take photos during journaling!)