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Goal

The goal of this project is to increase student engagement by having at least 80% of my students submit their best creative piece to be published in our school's literacy magazine.
Every year I energize students throughout the school to submit their best creative writing, artwork, and photography to our school's literary magazine, Revelations. Every student is eligible to submit whether they are in my creative writing class or not. So many students summon the courage to put themselves out there, to be vulnerable and let others see such personal work, but there is always a black cloud over their heads because our funding is always in question. The school does not have the money to pay for the printing of the magazine. 

 

What will be done with my students

My advanced creative writing students (levels 2-4) all submit. They can submit poetry, flash fiction, or short story.
My level 1 creative writing students are encouraged to submit, and many do, although it is not mandatory.
My students learn the fundamentals of poetry and fiction. They learn how to write a complete story with strong emotional impact in 250-500 words. They learn the value of effective word choice. They learn to revise their writing.
As stated above, any student may submit work to the magazine so other teachers (especially Language Arts teachers) are promoting the project and encouraging their students to let their creativity shine and overcome the fear of submitting.
In recent years, we even included a bilingual spread. ESOL students were encouraged to write poetry in their native language and then translate it to English. The selected works were run side by side in both languages. 

 

Benefits to my students

Wow....the benefits are incredible! These students simply glow when the magazine comes out and they see their names and their work in print. The effort that they all put into creating the work submitted is incredible. The school mobilizes around the magazine. Teachers buy class sets for their classrooms so that their students can read the work of other students. Kids can be seen reading the magazine at lunch and in the hallways, sharing with their friends. It's a beautiful thing watching literacy flourish.
Additionally, the 2021 magazine earned a Gold rating from the Florida Scholastic Press Association. We are awaiting FSPA results for the 2022 magazine. 

 

Describe the Students

My students run the gamut. Hollins is a low socioeconomic school. I have high performing Cambridge students. I have students who joined the class because they were once in my journalism class and liked me. Funny, but those kids have learned to love to write and, guess what, their reading improved! Funny how that works, right?  

 

Budget Narrative

Last year, I was able to locate a printer that printed the magazines at a high quality for $586.00 plus shipping expenses. This year, I am also requesting a number of books on writing. I stress throughout the year with my writers that it is possible to make a career out of writing although not always in writing fiction. However, writing for other means can provide income until they get published. :)

The deadline listed is because students normally submit in December. I would hate to have students submit if I do not have the funds to print the magazine.  

 

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