Scott Gill's Blog - Posts Tagged "imagination"
Why My Teacher Made Me Write
“Coach, can’t I just tell you about rappelling in the mountains? Do I have to write about it?” Gaines griped, and he wasn’t alone. I’ve heard this question (which sounds like a whine) from nearly every student of every class I’ve taught. I understand their gripe (a little), we do write tons, but there is a reason why I’m such a maniac for putting pen to paper so before you just toss this blog for another teacher rant, read on.
“Writing is thinking through the pen,” in other words, writing stops you, makes you mull over matters. Surely, you’ve heard of people with “foot-in-the-mouth” syndrome, people who say things and wish they’d kept their mouth shut? Like the numerous times I’ve asked students about their boyfriends or girlfriends only to have tears well up in their eyes and a sobbing story ensue about their horrific break-up the night before (apologies, I don’t ask that question anymore). Writing makes you slow down and consider what you are saying and how you are saying it, and if the world needs people to think more before they speak or act, then writing is a key.
Ironically, in this growing electronic/paperless world, writing is center stage. From the email, to instant messaging, to the Facebook post, to tweeting and texting, this generation writes tons more than I ever did (Unless you want to compare tweeting to my “Do-you-like-me-check-yes-or-no” notes I’d pass to cute girls). In my classes, I teach kids to “write tight” which means that they have to write less but say more, which is not an easy skill. For instance, if they turn in a 200 word essay, I may give it back, telling them to cut 50 words out but still say the same thing. They have to really think about all the useless words they use and find powerful ones that could do the work of two or three. So, instead of writing, “Throckmorton ran quickly down the street,” they may come back with, “Throckmorton sprinted…” They have no clue I’m training them to text powerfully, to tweet something that could impact. Practicing tight writing just may be the answer to meaningful Twitter posts.
Ultimately, when you write, your words live beyond you, carrying potential to generations long after you die. Each year on the first day of school, I explain the power of words. Before my new students blow me off, I mention characters like Katniss Everdeen or Harry Potter and I ask how kids felt at the end of their stories. Many express their sadness when they reached the last page and often “Team Peeta” and “Team Gale” debates erupt. I remind them that these characters are not real and they’ve become emotional over mere imagined beings. We laugh about how worked up we get but the lesson is there: long after Suzanne Collins leaves this world, Katniss Everdeen will live on. That is only possible by writing and thank God a 14 year old girl, who didn’t think anyone would care about her writing, continued her diary because thirty million plus readers have been moved by the thoughts of Anne Frank some 60 years after her teenage life was snuffed out.
So, grab one of those little writer’s notebooks from Walmart and pen something, anything, for who knows who’ll be reading?
“Writing is thinking through the pen,” in other words, writing stops you, makes you mull over matters. Surely, you’ve heard of people with “foot-in-the-mouth” syndrome, people who say things and wish they’d kept their mouth shut? Like the numerous times I’ve asked students about their boyfriends or girlfriends only to have tears well up in their eyes and a sobbing story ensue about their horrific break-up the night before (apologies, I don’t ask that question anymore). Writing makes you slow down and consider what you are saying and how you are saying it, and if the world needs people to think more before they speak or act, then writing is a key.
Ironically, in this growing electronic/paperless world, writing is center stage. From the email, to instant messaging, to the Facebook post, to tweeting and texting, this generation writes tons more than I ever did (Unless you want to compare tweeting to my “Do-you-like-me-check-yes-or-no” notes I’d pass to cute girls). In my classes, I teach kids to “write tight” which means that they have to write less but say more, which is not an easy skill. For instance, if they turn in a 200 word essay, I may give it back, telling them to cut 50 words out but still say the same thing. They have to really think about all the useless words they use and find powerful ones that could do the work of two or three. So, instead of writing, “Throckmorton ran quickly down the street,” they may come back with, “Throckmorton sprinted…” They have no clue I’m training them to text powerfully, to tweet something that could impact. Practicing tight writing just may be the answer to meaningful Twitter posts.
Ultimately, when you write, your words live beyond you, carrying potential to generations long after you die. Each year on the first day of school, I explain the power of words. Before my new students blow me off, I mention characters like Katniss Everdeen or Harry Potter and I ask how kids felt at the end of their stories. Many express their sadness when they reached the last page and often “Team Peeta” and “Team Gale” debates erupt. I remind them that these characters are not real and they’ve become emotional over mere imagined beings. We laugh about how worked up we get but the lesson is there: long after Suzanne Collins leaves this world, Katniss Everdeen will live on. That is only possible by writing and thank God a 14 year old girl, who didn’t think anyone would care about her writing, continued her diary because thirty million plus readers have been moved by the thoughts of Anne Frank some 60 years after her teenage life was snuffed out.
So, grab one of those little writer’s notebooks from Walmart and pen something, anything, for who knows who’ll be reading?
