Imagine that a friend invites you to a fancy dinner party. Everyone will be dressed up but you only have casual clothes and sneakers. Your friend says that’s fine with them so you decide to attend. How does it go?
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Here’s the next installment of our ongoing series where we share testimonies of some who’ve been transformed by their online class experience with Brave Writer. Enjoy!
What class are you giving feedback on today?
Middle School Writing Projects
Tell us a bit about your student.
Isabelle was 11. Very social, lots of friends, obsessed with reading. Had read entire Harry Potter series, lots of Nancy Drew, boxcar children, Pegasus series, Valkyrie series, keeper of the lost cities series, Dune, The Hunger Games, the maze runner series, the Grimm sisters books, the giver, any and everything dystopian (age appropriate), I don’t even know how many books/what she’s read. She also started running with my last year.
She is a classic oldest child, very capable, responsible, and a high achiever. She’s incredibly organized, and keeps track of everything in her planner! She’s now a pro at google docs as well, and since the class I often find several pages long essays saved in there! She has learned some Russian & mandarin on Rosetta Stone, as well as some coding through scratch & khan academy.
She was born during winter break, our second year of law school. In utero she attended lectures by Justice Scalia, and when she was a few months old she attended 1 Art Law lecture. She’s now 5’4” and will turn 12 in December!
Tell us a bit about you.
Isabelle has been homeschooled since kindergarten (2012). We take lots of fieldtrips and are members of 15 or so local homeschooling groups.
Personally, my husband and I are both licensed California attorneys. We are high school sweethearts. I work in the evenings as a legal writer/copywriter. I am currently training for my first marathon, and the kids “run” with me (scooter) every Monday for PE. I read lots of non fiction and drive my kids all over the Bay Area for ballet, soccer, baseball, Hebrew school, piano, violin, park day, field trips, book club, etc! I order my groceries online through amazon bc that’s unimaginably better than braving the store with these 5 tornadoes!
When your student entered our class, how would you describe your student as a writer? Were there ongoing writing challenges?
I think she had it in her, but it seemed intimidating. I didn’t know how to bridge getting it out of her without it seeming inauthentic. The writer’s jungle didn’t work bc she was too old, and I had too many other kids to do all the things properly.
What prompted you to try a Brave Writer class?
My friend is obsessed with BW, and she gave me very helpful feedback about the Middle School Writing Project class in particular.
What was your experience with the class?
It was exactly what I was looking for. There was a high level of engagement, tons of feedback from the teacher to my daughter, social interaction with other kids through the forum, tons of scaffolding in teaching structure, and open line of communication between the teacher and the parent. (Sorry that’s a run on lol)
Anything else you’d like to share with us?
I highly, highly recommend this class, and I plan to have my younger daughter take the class this summer!
The safest place to live is a home where each person can express individual feelings and needs, and where parents and children can talk about how to meet them creatively, with love.
Sometimes it’s not the math book or the pencil grip or the poetry. Sometimes the complaining and foot-dragging are the result of unmet needs and suppressed feelings. We all pay lip service to the idea that we honor our kids’ experiences and that we care for them when they are hurting.
Before we can hunker down to the times tables, it helps to take an inventory of how each person is doing. If a child is fighting you, find out what they are actually fighting for: more sleep, a needed cuddle, some humor, a walk outside in the fresh air, a chance to explain how sad they are over getting beat in a game, worry that they can’t complete the assignment by themselves?
If you feel frustrated with resistant kids, can you state your feelings and be heard? You might let them see that vulnerable side—”I put a lot of thought and care into selecting this book, or setting this table, or planning this outing. I feel cast aside when you immediately resist the very thing I took care to do/make for you.” Once all the feelings are out, you can problem-solve together.
There’s a lot of space for recovery when we honor the real feelings that surface. If we go from resistance to insistence, no one wins and we set a pattern that can become an entrenched (no one wins) habit.
Take the time it takes to help everyone feel right side up again, including you.
This post is originally from Instagram and @juliebravewriter is my account there so come follow along for more conversations like this one!
This month’s Dart, Arrow, and Boomerang selections will transport you to brand new settings. From an animal sanctuary, to a camp full of magic, and on to Malawi, we’ll see the world in brand new ways as we explore:
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The One and Only Bob by Katherine Applegate
Bob sets out on a dangerous journey in search of his long-lost sister with the help of his two best friends, Ivan and Ruby. As a hurricane approaches and time is running out, Bob finds courage he never knew he had and learns the true meaning of friendship and family.
Bob, Ivan, and Ruby have touched the hearts of millions of readers, and their story isn’t over yet. Catch up with these beloved friends before the star-studded film adaptation of The One and Only Ivan hits theaters in August 2020!
Amari and the Night Brothers by B. B. Alston
Amari Peters has never stopped believing her missing brother, Quinton, is alive. Not even when the police told her otherwise, or when she got in trouble for standing up to bullies who said he was gone for good.
So when she finds a ticking briefcase in his closet, containing a nomination for a summer tryout at the Bureau of Supernatural Affairs, she’s certain the secretive organization holds the key to locating Quinton—if only she can wrap her head around the idea of magicians, fairies, aliens, and other supernatural creatures all being real.
Now she must compete for a spot against kids who’ve known about magic their whole lives. No matter how hard she tries, Amari can’t seem to escape their intense doubt and scrutiny—especially once her supernaturally enhanced talent is deemed “illegal.” With an evil magician threatening the supernatural world, and her own classmates thinking she’s an enemy, Amari has never felt more alone. But if she doesn’t stick it out and pass the tryouts, she may never find out what happened to Quinton.
The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind (Young Readers Edition) by William Kamkwamba and Bryan Mealer
When a terrible drought struck William Kamkwamba’s tiny village in Malawi, his family lost all of the season’s crops, leaving them with nothing to eat and nothing to sell. William began to explore science books in his village library, looking for a solution. There, he came up with the idea that would change his family’s life forever: he could build a windmill. Made out of scrap metal and old bicycle parts, William’s windmill brought electricity to his home and helped his family pump the water they needed to farm the land.
Retold for a younger audience, this exciting memoir shows how, even in a desperate situation, one boy’s brilliant idea can light up the world. Complete with photographs, illustrations, and an epilogue that will bring readers up to date on William’s story, this is the perfect edition to read and share with the whole family.
