Welcome to the online home of New Shoots, an educational partnership between the Vancouver School Board and UBC’s Creative Writing program. My name is Natalie Thompson, and as the New Shoots Coordinator for the 2011/2012 school year, I’d like to welcome all New Shoots alumni—students, teachers, parents—and incoming talent to this year’s exciting partnership.  This website is our new e-home!  Here, you can look forward to receiving up-to-date information on the program’s goings on.  This year, we’ve got a fantastic lineup of events to look forward to.

So we can hit the ground running, here are a few items of note:

1.  The call for New Shoots instructors will be put out in the first week of September.  If you’re a UBC Creative Writing graduate student interested in sharing your expertise in a classroom environment, be sure to inquire by email at newshoots.creativewriting@gmail.com.

2.  In early October, there will be a meet and greet between New Shoots instructors and Vancouver School Board (VSB) teachers.  This is where New Shoots instructors will be partnered with VSB teachers.  Together, they’ll design a lesson plan arc, establish a schedule, and trade ideas on how to teach writing in the coming year.

3.  This year, each school’s UBC New Shoots instructor will nominate one or two of their students to be a writer of the month.  Writers of the month are featured on the website with a bio and excerpt of their writing.

4.  I am available to address any and all questions, comments, or concerns via e-mail at newshoots.creativewriting@gmail.com.  Are you a VSB secondary school student hoping to have a New Shoots teacher come and teach at your school?  If you’re a secondary school student, do your parents want to know more about the program?  Don’t hesitate to contact me.  I want to hear from you.

5.  Copies of the 2010/2011 New Shoots anthology are available!  Please request your copy at newshoots.creativewriting@gmail.com.

6.  UBC New Shoots instructors can look forward to 3-4 training seminars throughout the coming year.  They’ll learn how to lesson plan, engage various learning styles, teach public speaking skills to youths, reflect on their own teaching styles, ask discussion-provoking questions, lecture effectively and so much more.  Instruction of these seminars will be provided by John Mavin, a teacher at UBC’s Centre for Teaching Learning and Technology.  Did I mention this is a fabulous thing to put on a resume?

 

For now, I’ll leave you with this quote and say ciao for now:

Most of the basic material a writer works with is acquired before the age of fifteen.

~Willa Cather