Keystone celebrates National Day on Writing

At a school that prides itself on how well students can communicate, it only makes sense that we celebrated National Day of Writing on the main campus with activities in nearly all grades.

National Day of Writing, created by the National Council of Teachers of English, aims to draw attention to the remarkable variety of writing in this country and to help make writers from all walks of life aware of their craft.

At Keystone, here’s some of what happened:

Second Grade celebrated authors. Students shared their small-moment narratives and received writing stars (compliments) from their classmates. They also participated in an NCTE-sponsored webinar with author Stuart Gibbs.

Third graders listened to Mrs. Steward reading “Abdul’s Story,” by Jamilah Thompkins-Bigelow. It’s a book about a young storyteller who has trouble writing his stories, until a visitor comes to his classroom. The students then shared why they write. Also, the third graders are working on informational writing.

Fourth graders participated in author Jason Reynolds’s “Write. Right. Rite.” video series, which engages creativity, connection, and imagination. The students listened to Reynolds tell stories and then wrote in response to his prompt.

Fifth graders wrote about write why they write, and then they composed ironic situations.

Sixth graders wrote about why they write, and then they composed poems.

Seventh graders made thought bubbles using one sentence to capture the idea of “why I write.”

Eighth graders watched a clip of author Jacqueline Woodson and then they read excerpts from essays by authors including George Orwell, about why they write. The students then wrote their own statements about why they write.

Ninth graders and juniors wrote community stories—telling the stories of those who need to be heard but often are not.

Tenth graders and seniors read and discussed “Why I Write” by George Orwell, before they launched into writing in a genre of their choice.

And in the Upper School Creative Writing class, students wrote flash fiction.