I have been thinking a lot recently about Alan Booth, my English teacher from the ages of 11 to 13. … More
Category: Writers in Schools
What we talk about when we talk about writing
The more I talk about writing with students, teachers, colleagues and other writers, the less I am sure that we … More
Stealing
One of the joys of working on the Teachers as Writers project is that I get to steal. As … More
Why poetry matters
The value of poetry is that it should matter … first to the writer and then to the reader. Michael … More
Making Poetry Happen
Announcing the publication of Making Poetry Happen: Transforming the Poetry Classroom (Bloomsbury, 2015). Making Poetry Happen provides a valuable resource … More
The man kept piling things on
I am driving to a thing. Not a famous thing, an out of the way thing. A classroom, perhaps. … More
How to be a writing tutor
Thanks to the vision and generosity of Jean Sprackland, between 1999-2001 I had the privilege of working with the great … More
The burnt horizon
I am at a thing. It is my thing, contributing to the thing of others, who I do not know. … More
Now the silences are right
I am completely torn apart -Rupert Loydell When I first read Raymond Carver’s Fires I loved and understood all of it, … More
The real test of a poem
I was very saddened to learn recently of the death of Michael Baldwin, the novelist, poet, writing tutor and former … More
The Write Team: Creative Writers in Schools
The Bath Festivals‘ Write Team was a creative writing project designed to develop pupil confidence and engagement in their learning. The … More
Lifesaving Poems: Tom Raworth’s ‘8.06 p.m. June 10th 1970’
As I say in my previous blog post, I owe my knowledge of ‘8.06 p.m. June 10th 1970’ to the … More
Creativity, Confidence and Challenge: The Write Team Research Report
‘I’ve learnt to be more confident with my ideas, because sometimes you have an idea that you just sort of … More
Can Poets Teach?: On Writers Teaching Writing -by Joan Houlihan at Poets.org
Like a Jules Verne novel, Dana Gioia’s famous essay “Can Poetry Matter” got the future’s big picture right, but the … More
The Write Team: Engaging Invisible Pupils Through Creative Writing
Download now or preview on posterous ESRC_The_Write_Team.pdf (423 KB) Emma Metcalfe from The Bath Festivals’ Write Team has created this poster … More
Writing and Silence
I love the silence that descends on a classroom full of people who are all engaged in the act of … More
