Appalachian Writing Project’s annual writing conference at UVa-Wise Oct. 6

Educators will learn fresh ideas for their own writing and for teaching writing at every level from kindergarten to college during the Appalachian Writing Project’s annual writing conference on Saturday, Oct. 6, sponsored by The University of Virginia’s College at Wise in partnership with the region’s public schools.
 
The event, “Write of Passage,” begins at 9:30 a.m. at UVa-Wise and continues until 2:30 p.m. The cost of the conference is $40 for those who pre-register by Sept. 24 and $50 for those who register on the day of the conference. The registration fee includes breakfast, lunch and materials. Registration at the conference will begin at 9 a.m. in the Chapel of All Faiths.
 
Participants will have their choice of several workshops throughout the day. Workshop topics include “An Eye for the I: A Guide to Teaching Biographical and Autobiographical Narratives,” “Using Picture Books to Inspire Writing,” “Writing Using the 5 W’s and an H” and “Student Ownership Learning: Motivating Students to Write in the Content Areas.” All workshops are geared toward the Virginia Standards of Learning.
 
Silas House, the acclaimed Appalachian author of “A Coal Tattoo,” “Clay’s Quilt” and “A Parchment of Leaves,” will be the keynote speaker at the event. House will provide a reading of his work at 9:30 a.m., followed by a book signing.
 
Appalachian Writing Project teacher consultants will lead the afternoon in-service demonstrations on the teaching of writing across disciplines.
 
The Appalachian Writing Project, part of the Center for Teaching Excellence at The University of Virginia's College at Wise, is a local site of the National Writing Project (NWP). Since its inception in 1974, the NWP has spread to 185 regional learning communities, which are comprised of school-university partnerships. The National Commission on Writing has high praise for the National Writing Project because its model of teacher education is collaborative and its track record remains superb. NWP believes that quality teaching comes from sharing best practices and exploring together the problems of assessment.
 
For more information, contact Amy Clark, director of the Appalachian Writing Project and assistant professor of rhetoric and communication at UVa-Wise, at aclark@virginia.edu. Registration forms are available at the Appalachian Writing Project website, located at http://people.uvawise.edu/awp. To register, fax an application to Jennifer Partin at 376-4530, or contact her by phone at 376-4528.

Posted Semptember 17, 2007