Over this first term, many of the students from First Story have
come and approached me to talk about what they are reading or writing. It is
incredible how fast they become confident in sharing with you, wanting to know
what you think.
Today, I felt like Kate really broke through with some of the new students in our group. We drew from a poem by Simon Armitage called 'It Ain't What You Do, It's What It Does To You'. Kate encouraged us to think about our dreams - where we wanted to go, what we wish we could see and taste - and to contrast them to things we have seen and done - things unique to our families, our homes, our city.
I found myself thinking about all the great places I have visited, including Southeast Asia, Scandinavia, the United States. There is so much more I want to do with my life, but I found myself contrasting these amazing experiences with the more personal things I want to see and do, like seeing my friends get married, seeing my brother continue to mature and having a family of my own.
There is still some work to be done on this, but maybe I will put it online soon.
Meanwhile, the students produced some incredible pieces. Whereas mine had been an optimistic dream of my future, others had contrasted the boredom and discolour of Britain with their fantasies of other countries and cities. Some had compared their dreams of world travel with home comforts, such as food, family and friends. There was one student in particular who we really felt achieved her first piece of great writing today, in which she used incredibly beautiful imagery to describe her love of her family.
When all the students had left, Kate and I shared the excitement of her breakthrough. This is what First Story is all about!
I found myself thinking about all the great places I have visited, including Southeast Asia, Scandinavia, the United States. There is so much more I want to do with my life, but I found myself contrasting these amazing experiences with the more personal things I want to see and do, like seeing my friends get married, seeing my brother continue to mature and having a family of my own.
There is still some work to be done on this, but maybe I will put it online soon.
Meanwhile, the students produced some incredible pieces. Whereas mine had been an optimistic dream of my future, others had contrasted the boredom and discolour of Britain with their fantasies of other countries and cities. Some had compared their dreams of world travel with home comforts, such as food, family and friends. There was one student in particular who we really felt achieved her first piece of great writing today, in which she used incredibly beautiful imagery to describe her love of her family.
When all the students had left, Kate and I shared the excitement of her breakthrough. This is what First Story is all about!
Click here to see my work from this session.
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