Judy Pettet
By Judy Pettet
High School English
September 18, 2018
Forest Ridge students write a lot, and their experience really pays off when they go to college. Consistently, returning graduates report that they are among the strongest writers in their classes. Students who may not have thought of themselves as accomplished writers in high school often tell us that their peers are now asking their help on college essays. We are proud of their expertise and, knowing how much hard work is needed to attain those skills, we continually look for ways to encourage and support our student writers.
One opportunity the English Department offers is a series of weekly drop-in writing labs for students. Writing Lab is an opportunity for students to have informal conversations about writing, to hear immediate feedback on their work, or to get help with revising essays. This year we created our writing labs in response to the help students typically request at various times in the year, such as:
- College essay writing: seniors are invited to drop in on Wednesdays during September and October for feedback and coaching.
- ACT and SAT preparation: in advance of test dates we will hold tutorials, offering tips and strategies for writing the essay portions of these tests.
- Revising and editing: over the course of the year we will periodically offer tutorials and drop-in sessions to support students in these skills.
- Creative writing: students interested in fun and invention will practice writing in “non-academic” modes such as dialogue, narration, and flash fiction.
Students, we encourage you to join us. Watch for our chalkboard invitation outside room 8208!
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