Reading and Writing Winter Bootcamps Recap
Our winter bootcamps have come and gone again! For six days, students get the chance to experience the streamlined version of our full curriculum in a fast-paced environment that demands more of the students but rewards heavily. Our Reading and Writing programs were busy as usual, but it’s always remarkable how quickly students demonstrate marked development in such a short span of time.
Our brand new playwriting course underwent its first bootcamp iteration, with Broadway-trained teacher Kaela G. educating the group on what makes an outstanding short play. With examples from Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, as well as a series of plays oriented towards young students, the group gained an understanding of how to write characterizations, make realistic dialogue, and come up with scene parameters that could realistically be put on in a professional theater.
One student who quickly adapted to the class was Audrey. While shy at first, she embraced the oratorical nature of the class, reading aloud as different characters from Ms. Kaela’s pre-assigned works as well as the works of her peers. When it came to writing her own play, however, she puzzled over the kind of ending she wanted. She wrote, rewrote, received feedback, and rewrote again. In her initial draft, one friend betrays the other, but by the final, they help each other. On the final day, she watched with a big grin as the group read her play aloud.
Another one of our most popular courses was Mr. Moses’s creative writing course for grades 4–6. Students from the United States and Canada logged on daily to learn the standards of descriptive writing, dialogue exchanges, and even poetry! The class encourages student creativity, and sometimes students are keen to show that in more ways than just their writing. One student, Duke had a natural sense of humor from the jump. On one of the first days of the bootcamp, the class discussed instruments they can play.
“I can play the guitar,” said Mr. Moses.
“I can play the violin,” said a student.
“I can play Minecraft,” said Duke, with a wide grin on his face.
But often the students trying hardest to assert their wits are the ones with some of the most creative writing. On the poetry day, students were asked to examine this haiku:
I write, erase, rewrite,
Erase again, and then
A poppy blooms.
The general understanding of this haiku is that the “poppy” refers to the markings left behind by the eraser. Duke, however, suggested a new context — that of a soldier writing a letter home, then suddenly seeing an explosion (“a poppy blooms”).
Ultimately the class was a hit, with students bemoaning that it had to come to an end. We will be announcing our spring break bootcamps very soon — why not join in on the action?
