Writing+Day


 * Step 1: What is personal writing? (40 minutes)**

Discuss the differences between personal writing and other styles (news, essays, professional):

Point of view Vocabulary Style

Read for 20 minutes. Choose at least one article from each category.

__Memoir and storytelling__
 * [|This is one of those life update posts]
 * [|Dealing with Guilt]
 * [|Web MD is Pretty Much Satan]

__Review__
 * [|The Book Thief] [book review]
 * [|Dear John, I would Like my Ten Dollars Back] [movie review]
 * [|Twilight Soundtrack] [music review]

__Opinion__
 * [|America the Beautiful...and Lazy]
 * [|Homework Stressl]
 * [|The Mosque at Ground Zero]

__Special Interest__
 * [|First hand guide to second hand fashion] [fashion blogging]
 * [|A Taste of St. Lucia] [travel blogging]
 * [|Cheesecake] [food blogging]
 * [|2010 NYC Marathon Race Report] [sports blogging]

Having read these blogs, did you learn anything new about what makes personal writing different from other styles of writing?

What did you think of these articles?


 * Step 2: Trying out different kinds of writing (40 minutes)**

Write 1-3 paragraphs for each style of writing listed above. We will write for 40 minutes. If you do not get to all of these styles, that's OK. Start with one that you are interested in.

If you need help getting started, [|click here for prompts].


 * Step 3: Blogging (20 minutes)**

Log into [|kidblog.org] using the information I gave you.

Choose one of the pieces that you have written and paste it into your blog. Spend at least 15 minutes re-reading it, editing it, cleaning it up, etc. Think about your audience and the fact that blogging is usually a public forum.


 * Step 4: Commenting (20 minutes)**

We will watch [|this video], and then visit each other's blogs to comment on them. Comment on at least three blogs. Be thoughtful in your commenting and keep the guidelines from the video in mind.

20 minutes will be reserved at the end of the workshop for us to read the comments left on our blogs and, if there is time, discuss them with the group.