NaNoWriMo for Brave Writers!

NaNoWriMo for Brave Writers

What is NaNoWriMo?

NaNoWriMo, which stands for National Novel Writing Month, is a month-long creative writing endeavor and the largest writing event in the world. Participants eagerly sign up to write a 50,000 word novel in 30 days! The challenge encourages a warm community and oodles of fun surrounding writing—speaking directly to our Brave Writer hearts!

The Young Writers Program

The Young Writers Program (YWP) is the K-12 version of NaNoWriMo. Instead of the 50,000 word-count goal of the adult-version, YWP helps students set individualized word-count goals and divide their work into daily, achievable milestones. Click here for a grade-based chart on choosing word count goals.

“NaNoWriMo gives kids a crazy task, but a real, authentic one: tell your story, whatever story matters to you. It doesn’t matter how you tell it, just that you get it out into the world. Students, even those who thought they hated writing, get invested. It becomes the best part of their day. By the end of the month, they’ve worked so hard, developed confidence and new skills, and have their very own novel to show off!”

—Marya Brennan, Young Writers Program Director.

NaNoWriMo for Brave Writers

The Young Writers Program offers an free online forum where students can

  • connect with other Wrimos through a private chat room,
  • update their novel writing progress,
  • receive encouragement and more!

The Young Writers Program is private and is only viewed by other members of the Young Writers Program. It is also monitored regularly by NaNoWriMo staff.

We have created our own online classroom where Brave Writers can connect. Brave Writer staff will occasionally check into this classroom, but please keep in mind we will not be reading students’ novels, assigning any grades or determining word count goals. We will check in to see how everyone is doing and provide plenty of cheerleading!

To join the Brave Writer classroom:

  1. Visit the Young Writers Program and sign up for an account.
  2. You will be prompted to join a classroom by entering a code. Our classroom code is: CKXQFLWR
  3. Our classroom name is NaNoWriMo for Brave Writers!

Free Resources

Will you join us in this fun, month-long roller coaster ride of words in November?

P.S. Keep your eyes peeled for chances to win fun NaNoWriMo swag!

NaNoWriMo for Brave Writers
Classroom Code: CKXQFLWR

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How to Be an Awesome Adult with Christy Thomas

Brave Shift Podcast S3E5 Christy Thomas

Today’s podcast features homeschool mom and awesome adult Christy Thomas! Christy came on my radar when I noticed that she did such a great job of selfcare and making personal growth a priority. She’s a stellar homeschool mama who helps other parents prioritize fun, play, and connection in their relationships with their kids.

Episode 5: Christy Thomas

Christy is a homeschool mother of three, military wife, daily runner, and co-founder of the popular community Play4Life Moms! Her mission: bring play and joy into the homeschool experience. This episode discusses how you can not only homeschool but be an awesome adult in your own right—growing, learning, and expanding as a person right along with your children.

I can’t wait for you to meet her!

Listen to the Podcast

Download the show notes here.

Download Show Notes

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Tune in to the Brave Writer podcast on iTunes, Stitcher (or your app of choice), and here on the Brave Writer blog.

Would you post a review on iTunes for us? You’ll help a homeschooler like you find more joy in the journey when you do. Thanks in advance!

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Friday Freewrite: Into the Book

Friday Freewrite Into the Book

You are magically sucked into your favorite book. What happens next?

New to freewriting? Check out our online guide.

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Movie Night: James and the Giant Peach

Movie Wednesday James and the Giant Peach

James Henry Trotter has lived with his ghastly aunts, Sponge and Spiker, ever since his parents were eaten by an escaped rhinoceros. Life is miserable… until a mysterious old man gives him a bag of magic crocodile tongues, which James accidentally uses to grow a peach the size of a house!

This fantastic fruit, and the friendly insects who live in it, might just be James’ path to a new life of adventure, if he can survive ghost pirates, robot sharks, and the return of the deadly rhinoceros, that is.

[This post contains Amazon affiliate links. When you click on those links to make purchases,
Brave Writer receives compensation at no extra cost to you. Thank you!]

Roald Dahl was and continues to be a beloved children’s author. James and the Giant Peach was one of Dahl’s first and most popular novels for children, and in 1996 it was adapted into a film. Produced by Tim Burton and Denise Di Novi, the film combines live action and stop motion animation elements (it took a whole week to animate one minute of film!) in order to contrast of James’ miserable “real” life with the fantastical adventure he goes on inside the giant peach.

James and the Giant Peach is a scary, warmhearted, and beautiful film for the whole family.

Discussion Questions

  • If you’ve read the original book, how do you think the film compares? Out of the changes that have been made, which ones do you think are the most successful?
  • Does James change during the film or is it just that his circumstances change? Explain.
  • What do you think of the combination of animation and live-action sequences? What other films can you think of that do this?
  • Do the occasional songs seem justified or out of place? Why or why not.
  • Are Aunt Sponge and Aunt Spiker evil or simply unpleasant? Give examples.
  • Do you think there is a moral to the story? If so, what is it?

Additional Resources

The official Roald Dahl website

The ArrowLearn language arts with the James and the Giant Peach (free sample) Arrow!

The Arrow is the monthly digital product that features copywork and dictation passages from a specific read aloud novel (you purchase or obtain the novels yourself). It’s geared toward children ages 8-11 and is an indispensable tool for parents who want to teach language arts in a natural, literature-bathed context.

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7-Day Writing Blitz HIGHLIGHTS

Brave Writer 7-Day Writing Blitz Highlights

Brave Writer’s 7-Day Writing Blitz upends the dynamics of writing and invites your kids to play with words in brand new ways!

Thousands of homeschooling families around the world launched their writing programs this year with the free 7- Day Writing Blitz Guide as a launch pad for creativity. These parents led their children into a creative romp with words that culminated in sharing their writing as a gift!

Kids wrote words everywhere! Words were scrawled on mirrors, pavement, fingers, t-shirts, and dishes. Kids wrote with chalk, paint, mustard, markers, and lipstick. Our Brave Writers wrote sitting in trees and blanket forts, cuddled with dogs and even hanging upside down!

You can use the Blitz any time you’d like to bust through boredom and recast the writing experience.

Each day of the blitz entices young writers to throw out their stale habits and embark on a new relationship with words: whether you trade the pencils for glitter pens, scribble on fence posts, or mash up a couple of poems to create a brand-new verse. The sky’s the limit!

Take a look at what thousands of children like yours did in our first blitz! Use the hashtag #bw7dayblitz when you share your children’s writing on social media so we can celebrate with you!

At the end of the 7 days, print certificates for your kids and celebrate! Your writing life is about to change. Can’t wait to see how! Download the 7-Day Writing Blitz Guide now. It’s free—just like writing.

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