Nothing But Bliss & Admiration for @reallyrosebrock @JanaeMarksBooks @gordonkorman and the HOPE They Brought to @CWPFairfield Youth

I wasn't sure if maintaining the record for excellence was going to come forward at the Writing Our Lives & Winning With Hope youth conference because I'm accustomed that something always has to go wrong, and we went two for two of youth conferences without a glitch. At the beginning of the week, too, I was presented with unnecessary drama about place and accommodation, too. Things worked out, however, so it was a matter of I-95 traffic for the middle school and prayers to the Great Whatever that all three Author guests arrived without incident.

AND everything worked out better than could be imagined!

I'm so proud of the hard work of workshop presenters, kids, teachers, and especially the authors: Dr. Rose Brock, Janae Marks, and Gordon Korman. What a tremendous panel of individuals sharing their writing, their faith in young readers, and their wisdom for a better world. They were the best way to end a semester  and, of course, young people are always the reminder we do what we do. 

I love / to believe / in hope & the warriors that do the same. 

Gordon, Janae, and Rose were remarkable and I cannot champion the new book, Hope Wins, enough. It is a must have for classrooms and libraries, and a very teachable text (especially for National Writing Project teachers). The possibilities are endless. In my own workshop yesterday (100 kids at a time), I used selections from their writing to prompt the 8th graders to sketch a first draft for themselves. Wola! It worked.

I was equally proud of my graduate student, Ally Freeland, for conducting the second workshop of her career this summer, and for receiving a shout out for one young writer for the exercises and prompts she offered on retelling fairytales and fables with 21st century twists. They loved it. 

Also, Colin Hosten, Rebecca Dimyan, Lauren Anderson, and the Ubuntu team of Jessica Baldizon and William King rocked the facilities. It was a remarkable event and I'm snapping fingers for all who invest in the power of National Writing Project work for teachers and young people.

Today, however, I sleep and grade. I need a low-key day. Hello, Saturday!

All love to Allison Fallon who makes the middle school magic come alive!