The current members of Writer's Club will discuss future plans on how to advance the club, dues, and other ideas on how to become a more productive club that'll be more recognized by the students of Southeast Raleigh High School.
NOTES: Suggestions
Grad projects (arranging thoughts)
Writing cursive (calligraphy)
Essay templates
Improving writing: structure & vocabs
How to create decent characters/characterization, plot, story flow
Activities
Writing prompts
TED talks
Inspiration videos
Videos on suggested topics
Grad project topic/workdays
Sharing days for problems, poems, songs, books
MCP workdays
Field Trips
Helping out in the community for a day
Read to the elderly
Visit museums, libraries, book signings, Barnes & Nobles, etc. on the history of different types of literature, authors, poets, etc.
Bringing special guests such as famous authors to speak to the club on their experience on writing, their motivation, their backstory, to ask questions, etc.
Celebratory field trips to Kings Dominion, Carowinds, Wet n Wild, etc.
**Field Trip Forms must be turned in 4 weeks at the least prior before the date of the field trip**
**Get approval from Mr. Horton**
Major Club Project
Each person create a story (life is unpredictable)
Requirement: finished by May 17, 2018
Must be atleast 100 pages
must involve unpredictable events (ups and downs)
nice flowing plot
characterization (1-2 or more characters change dramatically/dynamic/character who doesn’t change = static)
proper structure and grammar
sign in cursive at end
drawing of overall story/theme in your POV
Recruitment
Place few (enough) posters in the English classes and 2500 hall
Friday, August 11, 2017 (WELCOME NEW MEMBERS! #RecruitmentDay)
Welcome new members! We will be explaining more in depth on the different activities that we'll be doing together in Writer's Club. We'll explain the rules and expectations of the club, and the Major Club Project (M.J.C) that we'll all be working on throughout the school year and will later be compiled into one story. If there is time, we will do a writing prompt and also get a head start on one of the key lessons that will contribute to the M.J.C, which is characterization and world building.
World Building Lesson
Activity 1 Create a world that you find suitable to be used for your Major Club Project story. Remember to include: setting, time period, and other unique features you'd like your world to contain, especially if it's fictional. Ex: If you're world will be a fantasy, make sure to include your world allows people to have superpowers & fly!
Thursday, August 17, 2017
We will continue our workshop on characterization for our major club story. Lastly, if there is time, we will work on how to make a smooth flowing plot that is structured and written correctly. After all of these components are discussed, we will work on how to begin our story for the Major Club Project or to continue your story if you have already started. There will be a writing prompt along with fun activities associated with creating characters.
Writing Prompt
There is a prison where there are no guards, yet the prisoners are too afraid to try and escape. (Create a short story for a couple of minutes with this being the background knowledge. Be creative!) OR "I am way to sober for this." (Create a short story for a couple of minutes with this being the first quote in it. Continue from there. Be creative!)
Characterization Lesson
Activity 2 ICE BREAKER ACTIVITIES!!! Let's not be shy~ ;)
GETTING TO KNOW YOU #1 In groups of 3, each group must find 3 things that they share in common. The weirder the better! After time is called, each group shares what those 3 things are. We'll all vote to see which group had the weirdest things.
GETTING TO KNOW YOU #2 Talk to everyone in the room and get them to sign a square that's truthful about them. Get either 4 corners or a vertical, horizontal, or diagonal line through the BINGO board. You can only have one person per square. The winner will get to choose the discussion topic for next meeting!
Friday, August 25, 2017
We will be discussing songwriting, since Deja won the BINGO game from last meeting, and continue on with characterization in story writing. The meeting will start with a writing prompt as a warm-up, along with a brief moment to run through the website's contents and commemorate any members who are showing up for the first time in Writer's Club for this year, before proceeding to the songwriting & characterization activities. In the end, if there is time, we will do an ice breaker/characterization activity.
Writing Prompt
Write about a funeral from the dead person'a point of view. (Create a short story for a couple of minutes with this being the background knowledge. Be creative!) OR "What are you afraid of?" "You." (Create a short story for a couple of minutes with this being the first quote in it. Continue from there. Be creative!)
Songwriting Lessons (Deja Winner!)
Question 1: What is your favorite genre(s) of music? Question 2: Who is you favorite artist and why? Are they your inspiration, if not, then which artist would you aspire to be? Question 3: Have you written any mixtapes, songs, or parodies? What were they about? What were you thinking at the time?
Friday, September 8
The President is sick... so, the Vice President, Blair Rinehart, and Secretary, Sophia King, will take over for the meeting! We did a writing prompt and a poem activity where you practiced rhyme schemes (AABBCCDD...)
Thursday, September 14
We will be continuing our lesson on Characterization by doing an activity where we will create a good and bad character based off of what classified a character as well-developed or not as described in the video from the last Characterization lesson. The meeting will start with a writing prompt as a warm-up, along with a brief moment to explain the President's absence and ask present members how the last meeting went while she was gone, before proceeding to the poetry & characterization activities.
Writing Prompt
None
FINALLY Continuation of Characterization...
Activity 1 Create a good character and a bad character (not in terms of good & evil) (The bad character doesn't necessarily have to be bad, but a character who is static or created without flaws, etc. something that shouldn't be in a character to avoid it being "too perfect"/"boring") Make sure to include personality, age, gender, a mini backstory/life story they have, and other unique traits based off of the characterization videos you watched. Share one of your characters with everyone else and why you made them that way.
WELCOME BACK FROM FALL BREAK! LET'S RE-IGNITE OUR PASSION FOR WRITING
Thursday, October 12
We will be discussing poetry. Yes, we are all going to become poets today. Everyone will be expected to create a poem based off of the characters they will create, meaning one poem for your good character and a poem for your bad character. The meeting will start with a writing prompt as a warm-up, then we will go into creating our poems. If there is extra time, you can work on anything you want. At the next meeting, we will discuss poetry further and teach a lesson on another component that's vital in creating a story: Character Interaction
Poetry Lesson Part 1
SLAM POETRY (A type of Free Verse Poem)
DIAMANTE POEM
HAIKU POEM
Activity 1 Create a POEM, either a SLAM/Free Verse Poem, a HAIKU, or a DIAMANTE poem that is about your characters. Do ONE for your GOOD character and ONE for your BAD character. We will all share after everyone is done or if there is a lack of time, then we will share what everyone has completed by that time.
If there is remaining time, you can create more poems based off of anything you want, work on your story for the Major Club Project, homework, or anything else you need to do. :)
Thursday, October 19
We will be discussing character interaction and doing one last poetry lesson & activity. The meeting will start with a writing prompt as a warm-up, then we will go into creating one type of poem out of the ones that i will be discussing today. After the poetry lesson and activity, we will transition into learning about character interaction and its importance when writing a story.
Writing Prompt
Her childhood was normal in every way possible except... her parents taught her how to turn household item into a weapon. (Create a short story for a couple of minutes with this being the background knowledge. Be creative!) OR "I saved your life!" "You pushed me off a building..." (Create a short story for a couple of minutes with this being the first quote in it. Continue from there. Be creative!)
Poetry Lesson Part 2
IMAGERY POEM
An imagery poem helps the reader draw a picture in their mind. For example: William Carlos Williams' short poem The Red Wheelbarrow is a famous example of a short imagist poem:
LIMERICK POEM
A limerick is a poem that's whimsical or silly. It has 5 lines with an AABBA rhyme scheme. They usually tell a short, humorous story.
PASTORAL POEM
A pastoral poem is a poem that elicits wonderful senses of peace and harmony. For example: Keats' Ode on a Grecian Urn, which is also a type of ode (a poem that's typically sung). One stanza states,
Activity 1 Create a POEM, either an IMAGERY poem, a LIMERICK or a PASTORAL poem that is about your character(s), yourself, a friend, family member, or something else. Be creative!
LAST MEETING: Thursday, October 26
GAME DAY!
LAST MEETING: Thursday, November 2
Hello everyone! We will be learning about character interaction and dialogue within a story. Although dialogue can be included in character interaction, there was a request to focus specifically on dialogue between characters in a story. This can include how to write dialogue correctly with the right punctuation marks, what types of dialogue there are, and what dialogue should include. We will start the meeting with a writing prompt, as usual, and then transition into the 2 lessons, and finish with an activity based on the information we learned from the videos. The next meeting, we will delve deeper into other components that are vital in a story.
Writing Prompt
You're a kid's imaginary friend. He/She's growing up. You're fading away. (Create a short story for a couple of minutes with this being the background knowledge. Be creative!) OR His eyes were cold and lifeless as he stared at me. "You have no idea who I am, do you?" (Create a short story for a couple of minutes with this being the first quote in it. Continue from there. Be creative!)
Character Interaction Lesson
In a story, it's important to let the story flow through the different relationships that are built throughout the story. Whether a character is making acquaintances, friends, lovers, rivals, or enemies, it'll help readers connect to the story and the characters in it, along with making the story itself more interesting. You don't want to have a story consisting of only one person. Also, the fact that having a story consist of dialogue or some form of communication between the characters will keep the story flowing. By other forms of communication, I mean sign language, or even through sounds. Make sure to add some type of relationship in your story. These videos will give us an insight on how to do exactly that!
Dialogue Lesson
Although dialogue is a part of character interaction in a story, it's important to know how to properly write different types of dialogue. Dialogue can also help with story flow, along with creating relationships between the characters in your story. These videos will help with knowing how to write a variety of dialogues, how to properly punctuate your dialogue, and what type of information should be conveyed when writing dialogue a.k.a what dialogue should include; however, this is dependent on how you want your story to be. These are just examples.
This is for if you're truly struggling with writing dialogue and have committed time out to learn how to incorporate it into your story efficiently.
Activity 1
Create a small paragraph that includes 2 characters from your Major Club Project story/book interacting with each other. Make sure to include dialogue, body language of the characters, and some setting or scenery that the 2 characters are in.
LAST MEETING: Friday, November 17
Today, we are going to begin with a writing prompt, and then have a lesson on setting, but in more depth than the lesson on world building/creating from a couple of weeks back. At the end of the meeting, there will be an activity centered on creating a setting and how the characters will act in that setting.
Writing Prompt
You're an entity living in someone's dream. They are going to wake up within 7 hours. What happens? (Create a short story for a couple of minutes with this being the background knowledge. Be creative!) OR "I assume that I deserve this, but can you tell me why you want to kill me this time?" (Create a short story for a couple of minutes with this being the first quote in it. Continue from there. Be creative!)
Setting Lesson
Setting is important in a story, because it can help create the mood, tone, and even the plot of a story dependent on where the characters are. Therefore, it's vital for your setting to fit in with whatever social standards, theme, and plot you're trying to have your story display. These are a few videos that can help you create an appropriate setting for your story. :)
Video 1 Link: https://www.flocabulary.com/unit/setting/
Activity 1
Together, we are going to create a sample setting. A ball will be tossed around in a game of Hot Potato. If the countdown reaches 0 when you're holding the ball, you will be next to add an element to the setting. Whether it's time period, social standard, or a simple description. After the setting is established, whoever goes next will need to create a few characters that will interact and speak with each other. Let's put our knowledge to the test!
LAST MEETING: Friday, February 16, 2018
WELCOME BACK EVERYONE! I know it's late but HAPPY NEW YEAR! I apologize for all the inconveniences that have led us to having practically no meetings for the past month or so. This was due to the snow and Oke-bello being incapable of supervising us on days we planned to have meetings on. Today, there will be no writing prompt. We will be going straight into the 2 activities that will be focused on the characteristics & personalities of our characters, along with dialogue.
Activity 1 Everyone will receive a mask which will be a representation of the "mask" your character wears when around strangers, acquaintances, friends, parents, etc. Then, on the back of the mask, write down how your character is TRULY like. If it's the same as the "mask" they wear around other people (meaning they possess no hidden attributes/characteristics that they hide from others), then just write the same things you put on the front on the back.
Activity 2 Our next activity will be "telephone." In case you are unfamiliar of the game, it's when one person will start with a word or phrase. They will pass the message down by whispering it to the next person's ear. Once it reaches the end of the line, the last person will speak aloud what they heard. Then, the person who started the "telephone line" will say what the original message was. The goal is to keep the message the same throughout the line. However, it's entirely up to the person whether they want to change it or not to make it more humorous. There is also the possibility that a person mishears the message thus causing it to be changed down the line.
Purpose of Activities These activities are for us to get a better understanding of our characters and making them more human. Realistically, we all do not have just one side to our personality. We behave differently around different types of people. Also, "telephone" is to emphasize how, of course, how we communicate and also, how easily it is to misunderstand each other which can ultimately impact our interpretation of a person, event, or simply make us confused.
TODAY'S MEETING: Friday, February 23, 2018
Musical Chairs Activity Character + Dialogue Activity