It was a lovely summer's afternoon when the Young Writers met at Ashburton Park in Lower Addiscombe Road. Numbers were down as I expected them to be, but I am sure that those who were able to make it got something out of it. I suggested they sit and listen for a few moments and then write a list of all the sounds around them. Then I asked them to look at all the colours and list those. This is an excellent exercise to carry out in the outdoors because our own perceptions are much higher, not only because we are outside, but also because we are not inside where our perceptions are blocked to a degree by the walls and ceilings surrounding us. It is a great tool if you want to write poetry about nature, or summer holidays because outside there is no limit to our imaginations, no ceilings or walls to hold us back. It really does make a difference.
Once the lists were done I asked the Young Writers to use at least some of the words from their lists in a short poem or story. I am quite happy for them to work on this all through the summer holidays since I did not set a specific assignment due to the peak holiday season. I will hold one session at some point in August and I will let you know when next time I write a post for this blog.
After 45 minutes of diligent work - which could not have been easy given the lure of the swings and roundabouts - the youngsters went off to exert some energy and the grown-ups squeezed onto Lisa's picnic blanket for half an hour or so just to chat. I gave out copies of the Parent Questionnaire and also information about the Big Short Story Competition which is open until 1st September. I will be dropping copies of the competition sheets at PMT and also at local libraries over the course of the next week or so, and posting out the questionnaires as I really need some feedback from yourselves in order to take the group forward. This is imperative if I am to continually improve the group so please please do your best to fill them out and either drop them at PMT or post them back to me; I'd really appreciate it.
All that remains to be said now is have a great summer, enjoy your holidays and day trips - and we will see you in September.
Good writing!
Tuesday, 30 July 2013
Tuesday, 16 July 2013
See You In The Park ...
Well - it looks as if the good weather is going to continue so I thought I'd remind everyone that this Sunday - 21st July - will see the Young Writers' session take place at Ashburton Park, Lower Addiscombe Road, between 3 and 4. There is a play area to the rear of the park and I thought we could meet there to start with. Don't forget that your children can bring any completed assignments with them to hand in. It would also be a good idea to bring along any drinks, hats, sunscreen - and maybe some snacky bits like crisps or crackers to keep them going. The idea behind this is not only to socialise (as with the Polka Theatre trip), but also to look, listen, sniff and write about what we are hearing, seeing and feeling out in the open air. Please drop me a text if you can't make it but hopefully at least some of you can.
I will bring along all the work I seem to have accumulated over the past couple of months to give back - and also some certificates still waiting to be awarded - and the prizes for the Mother's Day Poetry Competition. I shall also bring a short Parent Questionnaire and details of the AYW Short Story Competition.
As I said in the last Post, there will be only one other session this summer - around mid-August (tbc) and then - hopefully, in September, we can get back on a more regular footing, with regular sessions once again in place to help your Talented Scribes further develop their Creative Writing skills.
The article about the group looks likely to appear in the September issue of Writing Magazine (available mid-August), so I will keep a look out for that and let you know for sure.
Finally I would like to wish you all a very long, hot, sunny and pleasurable summer.
I will bring along all the work I seem to have accumulated over the past couple of months to give back - and also some certificates still waiting to be awarded - and the prizes for the Mother's Day Poetry Competition. I shall also bring a short Parent Questionnaire and details of the AYW Short Story Competition.
As I said in the last Post, there will be only one other session this summer - around mid-August (tbc) and then - hopefully, in September, we can get back on a more regular footing, with regular sessions once again in place to help your Talented Scribes further develop their Creative Writing skills.
The article about the group looks likely to appear in the September issue of Writing Magazine (available mid-August), so I will keep a look out for that and let you know for sure.
Finally I would like to wish you all a very long, hot, sunny and pleasurable summer.
Monday, 8 July 2013
Session In The Park ... (or Not)
Hi everyone. Here I am - back from two lovely weeks in lovely Ireland. I feel well rested and refreshed and I have a lot of Young Writers admin to do so I will be busy over the next few nights. The first - and most important - thing to do is update the blog, so I am seated at my desk, in my study, window open to allow access to any passing evening breezes, and raring to go.
First thing I need to do is let you know that a little birdie has told me that the Norwood Festival finale takes place this weekend on Woodside Green and finishes on Sunday. Because of this I have moved the Session In The Park to Sunday 21st July rather than this Sunday so that there is more chance of getting a bigger group. If it rains on 21st, we will be at PMT as usual 3 - 4. Please let me know if your young writer can make it as that will be the last main session before the summer break. As I said before, there is likely to be one session in August - just to keep our toes in the door - and then in September, once the new school year has begun, we will get back to the more regular get-togethers. And I am still hoping to get back to one weekly and one Sunday session per month so that everyone has a fair chance of getting along.
At the 21st July session, I will have the parent's questionnaire ready, as well as entry forms for the Big Young Writers Group story writing competition I mentioned a couple of blogs ago, so please please drop me a text if you can make it on that Sunday. I also still have a number of prizes to give out for the poetry competition held back in March and it is very important I present these as the young winners earned them.
I know things have been a bit bumpy this year but I am still sure we can make this group work - and the exciting things is that the article I wrote about it looks most likely to appear in the September issue of Writing Magazine which is available mid-August time and I think that will also raise our profile a bit, so fingers crossed.
In the meantime, the invitation is still open for anyone to get in touch with me with any thoughts, ideas, comments or suggestions - but above all, I would really appreciate it if you could let me know about 21st.
Good writing!
First thing I need to do is let you know that a little birdie has told me that the Norwood Festival finale takes place this weekend on Woodside Green and finishes on Sunday. Because of this I have moved the Session In The Park to Sunday 21st July rather than this Sunday so that there is more chance of getting a bigger group. If it rains on 21st, we will be at PMT as usual 3 - 4. Please let me know if your young writer can make it as that will be the last main session before the summer break. As I said before, there is likely to be one session in August - just to keep our toes in the door - and then in September, once the new school year has begun, we will get back to the more regular get-togethers. And I am still hoping to get back to one weekly and one Sunday session per month so that everyone has a fair chance of getting along.
At the 21st July session, I will have the parent's questionnaire ready, as well as entry forms for the Big Young Writers Group story writing competition I mentioned a couple of blogs ago, so please please drop me a text if you can make it on that Sunday. I also still have a number of prizes to give out for the poetry competition held back in March and it is very important I present these as the young winners earned them.
I know things have been a bit bumpy this year but I am still sure we can make this group work - and the exciting things is that the article I wrote about it looks most likely to appear in the September issue of Writing Magazine which is available mid-August time and I think that will also raise our profile a bit, so fingers crossed.
In the meantime, the invitation is still open for anyone to get in touch with me with any thoughts, ideas, comments or suggestions - but above all, I would really appreciate it if you could let me know about 21st.
Good writing!
Monday, 17 June 2013
Session 22 - Feedback
Yes - I know we didn't have a Session 22 exactly! But here's a quick update anyway. I was going to be collecting assignments about dads to tie in with father's day, so if your talented scribblers haven't had time to finish, they have got an extension to 14th July to get it done - that is a poem or story about dad, granddad or uncle. What I was going to start looking at was short poems like haiku and tanka. I thought it would be good to steer them away from fiction writing for a while, and most of them seem to enjoy writing poems. Won't go into the rudiments of such poetry forms just yet; I will wait until I see everyone, but to get them in the mood, I think the next assignment should be to write a nature poem, either about the seasons, wildlife, flowers, clouds, animals, birds - whatever they like as long as the central theme is nature. Here's a couple of mine from my book "Nature's Magic" which was published a few years back:
SITTING ON THE FIELD
So many shades of green,
dark - almost brown,
bright - almost glowing.
Leaf by leaf.
Tree by tree.
Grass by grass.
Hedge by hedge.
In the distance,
the hills look
almost turquoise.
So many shades of green!
(c) J P Henderson-Long - 2004
PUDDY MUDDLE!
I'm so excited,
I have to go,
the garden outside
is full of snow.
I run and play
then rush for a cuddle
after slipping into
a puddy muddle.
"A puddy muddle!" says my mum.
"A muddy puddle's
much more fun!"
(c) J P Henderson-Long - 2004
Please feel free to share these with the Young Writers so they get an idea of what I am looking for.
The next session will be from 3 - 4 on Sunday 14th July and it will be the Session in the Park (weather permitting). Ashburton Park is only ten minutes down Lower Addiscombe Road (towards Elmers End) and there is loads of space to spread out and write and a good park to play in afterwards. Bring along some snacks and drinks (and sun cream if it is really nice) to make something of an occasion of it, and maybe a picnic rug to sit on. Naturally if it is raining we will meet at PMT as usual. Should be good if we can have it in the park, though, so fingers crossed.
Think that is it for now. I am off to Ireland on Saturday so will be gone for a couple of weeks - but you can still email or text me if you have to, I will have my beloved Nokia with me.
Once again, sorry about yesterday's session - but I am sure with their writing and enthusiasm, the members will soon make up for it.
Good writing everyone!
SITTING ON THE FIELD
So many shades of green,
dark - almost brown,
bright - almost glowing.
Leaf by leaf.
Tree by tree.
Grass by grass.
Hedge by hedge.
In the distance,
the hills look
almost turquoise.
So many shades of green!
(c) J P Henderson-Long - 2004
PUDDY MUDDLE!
I'm so excited,
I have to go,
the garden outside
is full of snow.
I run and play
then rush for a cuddle
after slipping into
a puddy muddle.
"A puddy muddle!" says my mum.
"A muddy puddle's
much more fun!"
(c) J P Henderson-Long - 2004
Please feel free to share these with the Young Writers so they get an idea of what I am looking for.
The next session will be from 3 - 4 on Sunday 14th July and it will be the Session in the Park (weather permitting). Ashburton Park is only ten minutes down Lower Addiscombe Road (towards Elmers End) and there is loads of space to spread out and write and a good park to play in afterwards. Bring along some snacks and drinks (and sun cream if it is really nice) to make something of an occasion of it, and maybe a picnic rug to sit on. Naturally if it is raining we will meet at PMT as usual. Should be good if we can have it in the park, though, so fingers crossed.
Think that is it for now. I am off to Ireland on Saturday so will be gone for a couple of weeks - but you can still email or text me if you have to, I will have my beloved Nokia with me.
Once again, sorry about yesterday's session - but I am sure with their writing and enthusiasm, the members will soon make up for it.
Good writing everyone!
Saturday, 15 June 2013
Sorry ...
Hi everyone. Have tried to contact you all but in case I missed anyone, tomorrow's session has had to be cancelled as the coffee shop is being used for a private function. I only found this out this morning or I'd have let you know sooner. Next session will be (weather permitting) Picnic Session In The Park on Sunday 14th July - watch this space for details. Once again - huge apologies.
Jilly
Jilly
Friday, 14 June 2013
Sunday, 2 June 2013
Session 21 - Feedback (and a suggestion ...)
Nice session at PMT today. Great to see Teva and Oliver back and to welcome three possible new members - Eloise, Issi and Ella (I hope I have spelt those correctly). I understand some of you are away because of Half Term so will hopefully see you at the next session which is Sunday 16th June (yes Dads - your big day) 3 - 4 as usual.
Today we were writing about our dads and the assignment was to take those ideas and put at least some of them into a poem. No prizes for this one - but don't forget, all completed assignments count towards the next Certificate, so still worth having a go. Since the next session actually falls on Father's Day, of course, I know you may not be able to make it, but even if the Young Writers have family commitments, they are still welcome to take part.
One of the things I suggested today was one of the July sessions being held in a local park (weather permitting, naturally), because sometimes, being in the fresh air, in different surroundings, heightens the senses - and to make it a special occasion, we could take drinks and snacks along and have a mini picnic. And once the writing's done, there is always the swings etc to let off steam with. Perhaps 14th July would be a good one because summer holidays will have begun by 28th. And hopefully by the 14th, the weather will have settled down.
Now mums and dads I have been very seriously thinking about the best way to keep the momentum going with this group. I am not prepared to give it up after everything the Young Writers have achieved and one of the possible ways forward would be to compromise on sessions. Since we started doing the Sunday sessions, several new members have come along because they cannot make it during the week. This is encouraging. It means we are reaching even more youngsters than before. But I also know Sundays are, by tradition, family days, with visits to grandparents, or days out planned, which makes it difficult for some of the Young Writers to attend.
I have settled in well enough at my new job to perhaps wrangle it so that one session per month can go back to a weekday afternoon, and the other session each month can stay on a Sunday. I know you are all rather shy and not over keen on being vocal, but it would sooooo help me out if you could come back to me with feedback on this idea ASAP. You can text me, email or phone, or, if you prefer, pop a comment on at the end of this post. Once I have your feedback, I will see what I can do and let you all know. This may be the best way forward - ensuring that those youngsters that have been missing out since the Sunday sessions began, can once again get involved - and also that those youngsters unable to attend midweek because of other after schools activities, can stay with us and continue to develop their skills.
Did not get the chance to chat with Amanda yesterday, by the way, so still cannot confirm about the Guest Speaker but I will get back to you on this, at least, before very much longer.
Still have the prizes for the poetry competition to give out, so please let me know when you'll be there so I can make sure I bring them to the session. And I completely forgot, today, to give back the work I have accumulated over the past few months, so please let me know when you will be around so I can make sure I have got it with me.
Don't forget you can contact me anytime and, in the meantime, Good Writing!
Today we were writing about our dads and the assignment was to take those ideas and put at least some of them into a poem. No prizes for this one - but don't forget, all completed assignments count towards the next Certificate, so still worth having a go. Since the next session actually falls on Father's Day, of course, I know you may not be able to make it, but even if the Young Writers have family commitments, they are still welcome to take part.
One of the things I suggested today was one of the July sessions being held in a local park (weather permitting, naturally), because sometimes, being in the fresh air, in different surroundings, heightens the senses - and to make it a special occasion, we could take drinks and snacks along and have a mini picnic. And once the writing's done, there is always the swings etc to let off steam with. Perhaps 14th July would be a good one because summer holidays will have begun by 28th. And hopefully by the 14th, the weather will have settled down.
Now mums and dads I have been very seriously thinking about the best way to keep the momentum going with this group. I am not prepared to give it up after everything the Young Writers have achieved and one of the possible ways forward would be to compromise on sessions. Since we started doing the Sunday sessions, several new members have come along because they cannot make it during the week. This is encouraging. It means we are reaching even more youngsters than before. But I also know Sundays are, by tradition, family days, with visits to grandparents, or days out planned, which makes it difficult for some of the Young Writers to attend.
I have settled in well enough at my new job to perhaps wrangle it so that one session per month can go back to a weekday afternoon, and the other session each month can stay on a Sunday. I know you are all rather shy and not over keen on being vocal, but it would sooooo help me out if you could come back to me with feedback on this idea ASAP. You can text me, email or phone, or, if you prefer, pop a comment on at the end of this post. Once I have your feedback, I will see what I can do and let you all know. This may be the best way forward - ensuring that those youngsters that have been missing out since the Sunday sessions began, can once again get involved - and also that those youngsters unable to attend midweek because of other after schools activities, can stay with us and continue to develop their skills.
Did not get the chance to chat with Amanda yesterday, by the way, so still cannot confirm about the Guest Speaker but I will get back to you on this, at least, before very much longer.
Still have the prizes for the poetry competition to give out, so please let me know when you'll be there so I can make sure I bring them to the session. And I completely forgot, today, to give back the work I have accumulated over the past few months, so please let me know when you will be around so I can make sure I have got it with me.
Don't forget you can contact me anytime and, in the meantime, Good Writing!
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