Nwp Radio

Join us for this episode of NWP Radio in which we talk to Susie Wise about her new book Design for Belonging, a Stanford d.school guide. In her book, Susie talks about what it means to belong and some of the contexts, or moments, that can be designed using particular levers like space, role, ritual, and groupings. The Design for Belonging website also includes toolkits and resources to get started, wherever you are.

This summer, teachers are invited to join together with scholars, artists, and authors to strengthen writing and multimodal composing practices in a virtual, open institute co-sponsored by three MIchigan Writing Project sites. This NWP Radio show invited facilitators to describe how they will support participants in coming together to create brave spaces in writing instruction that centers writing and composing models at the intersections of queer, BIPOC, and feminist voices; that center intersectionality; and develop a community of folx to support these efforts and to stay committed with and alongside each other. Join us for this interview to learn more and find out how to get involved; registration is open until June 15, 2022.Related ResourcesInstitute flyerGuest bios

Interested in what writing looks and feels like outside of school in those professions that depend on writing like marketing or public relations? Join us for this conversation about writing in the work-a-day worlds marketing and business with Jim Rowe, author of Get Your Ducks in a Rowe. Rowe, who has worked, coached, and supported writers in these fields talks about what kind of support writers need when their goals are clarity and brevity.

Gilly Segal grew up in Florida, and graduated from Hebrew University, and finally decided to call Decatur, Georgia home. By day, she’s the chief legal officer of an advertising agency. By night, she is a caped crusader! No, just kidding (she wishes). Her real not-so-secret identity is author. She’s been writing in one form or another since she wrote her first young adult novel–a Sunfire YA romance fanfic–typed out on an electric typewriter. Although she will confess it was titled CLAUDIA, she will neither confirm nor deny that any copies still exist. Whatever you do, don’t ask her mom if it’s in those boxes stored in the closet of her childhood room.Kimberly Jones is an American author and filmmaker, known for the New York Times bestselling young adult novel, I'm Not Dying With You Tonight and for the viral video "How Can We Win" published during the George Floyd protest. The book, co-authored with Gilly Segal, was a finalist for an NAACP Image Award in 2020. That same year, a seven-minute video featuring Kim

Sarah J. Donovan, PhD, is a former junior English language arts teacher of fifteen years and an Assistant Professor of Secondary English Education at Oklahoma State University. She wrote Genocide Literature in Middle and Secondary Classrooms (2016) and the young adult novel, Alone Together (2018). Dr. Donovan was the Books in Review columnist for The ALAN Review (2019) and served as a state representative and board member for The Assembly on Literature for Adolescents of NCTE (ALAN). She hosts a weekly blog, Ethical ELA, and has contributed chapters to The Best Lesson Series (Talks with Teachers, 2018), Queer Adolescent Literature as a Complement to the English Language Arts Curriculum (Rowman & Littlefield, 2018), Moving Beyond Personal Loss to Societal Grieving (Rowman & Littlefield, 2018), and Contending with Gun Violence in the English Language Classroom (Routledge, 2019).Kristin Bartley Lenz is a writer and social worker who has lived in Michigan, Georgia, and California. Her debut young adult no

Natasha Bowen is a writer, a teacher, and a mother of three children. She is of Nigerian and Welsh descent and lives in Cambridge, England, where she grew up. Natasha studied English and creative writing at Bath Spa University before moving to East London, where she taught for nearly ten years. Her debut book Skin of the Sea was inspired by her passion for mermaids and African history. She is obsessed with Japanese and German stationery and spends stupid amounts on notebooks, which she then features on her secret Instagram. When she’s not writing, she’s reading, watched over carefully by Milk and Honey, her cat and dog.Stephanie Renee Toliver is an assistant professor of Literacy and Secondary Humanities at the University of Colorado, Boulder whose scholarship centers the freedom dreams of Black youth and honors the historical legacy that Black imaginations have had and will have on activism and social change. She is the author of Recovering Black Storytelling in Qualitative Research: Endarkened Storywork.

Renée Watson is a #1 New York Times bestselling author, educator, and community activist. Her young adult novel, Piecing Me Together (Bloomsbury, 2017) received a Coretta Scott King Award and Newbery Honor. Her children's picture books and novels for teens have received several awards and international recognition. Her poetry and fiction centers around the experiences of Black girls and women, and explores themes of home, identity, and the intersections of race, class, and gender. One of Renée’s passions is using the arts to help youth cope with trauma and discuss social issues. Her picture book, A Place Where Hurricanes Happen is based on poetry workshops she facilitated with children in New Orleans in the wake of Hurricane Katrina.Fredeisha Harper Darrington is an educator with the Fairfield City School System in Fairfield, Alabama and works as a teacher-consultant with the University of Alabama at Birmingham’s Red Mountain Writing Project. She is passionate about social justice as it relates to the educat

For over twenty years, Peter Kahn has been fortunate to employ the power of poetry to help give voice to those previously unheard. He has been a high school teacher at Oak Park/River Forest High School in Chicago since 1994 and has recently also taught at Roosevelt University. Peter was commended in the National Poetry Competition 2009 and 2017. He is a founding member of Malika’s Kitchen and co-founder of the London Teenage Poetry Slam. Peter holds an MA in English Education from The Ohio State University and an MFA in Creative Writing from Fairfield University. His 2020 book, Little Kings, is a book with interconnected poems and recurring characters that feels more like a book of poetic short stories that speak to one another. His new book, Respect The Mic, is an expansive, moving poetry anthology representing 20 years of poetry from students and alumni of Chicago’s Oak Park River Forest High School Spoken Word Club.Natalie Rose Richardson was born in New York City to a long line of border-crossers and pro

In this conversation with Rebecca Harper, director of the Augusta University Writing Project and author of Write Now & Write On: 37 Strategies for Authentic Daily Writing in Every Content Area, we will discuss writing instruction, daily writing, writing across the curriculum, and her upcoming Deeper Dive in the Write Now Teacher Studio.

Former teacher Laura Purdie Salas believes reading small picture books and poems can have a huge impact on your life. She has written more than 130 books for kids, including Lion of the Sky: Haiku for All Seasons (Kirkus Best Books and Parents Magazine Best Books of the Year), the Can Be… series (Bank Street Best Books, IRA Teachers’ Choice), and Bookspeak!: Poems About Books (Minnesota Book Award, NCTE Notable). Laura shares inspiration and practical tips with educators about poetry, nonfiction, and more.Lisa Lapina is currently teaching first grade in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She attended Bloomsburg University where she earned a bachelor's degree in Early Childhood and Elementary Education in 2011. Following BU, Lisa attended the University of Pennsylvania graduating in 2013 with a master's degree in Reading, Writing, and Literacy. She moved to Maryland in 2013 and taught first grade for five years. She moved back to Pennsylvania in 2018 and taught first grade in Upper Darby, PA before moving to The Scho

Tiffany D. Jackson is the New York Times Bestselling author of YA novels including the Coretta Scott King— John Steptoe New Talent Award-winning Monday’s Not Coming, the NAACP Image Award-nominated Allegedly, Let Me Hear A Rhyme, Grown, and her latest titles Blackout, White Smoke, and Santa in the City. She received her bachelor of arts in film from Howard University, her master of arts in media studies from the New School, and has over a decade in TV/Film experience. The Brooklyn native is a lover of naps, cookie dough, and beaches, currently residing in the borough she loves, most likely multitasking.Dr. Delicia Greene is an assistant professor in the Department of Literacy Teaching and Learning in the School of Education at the University at Albany, SUNY. She also holds an affiliate appointment in the Department of Women's, Gender, & Sexuality Studies in the College of Arts & Sciences. Her work enhances teaching and learning in the urban secondary literacy contexts. Dr. Greene's research is at the

Join colleagues from the Bay Area Writing Project as they learn alongside youth through a partnership with YRMedia called Teach YR. Through this partnership, teachers dig into the ways that youth media informs, mentors, and pairs with curricular design and the teaching of writing in their context and classrooms. This NWP Radio show will share inspirational media created by youth for public broadcast, explore the connected curriculum that has been created by teachers, and invite participation of students and teachers to be a part of an ongoing community of practice dedicated to bringing youth media beyond the margins.

K-Fai Steele is an author-illustrator who grew up in a house built in the 1700s with a printing press her father bought from a magician. She wrote and illustrated A Normal Pig and her latest book is All Eyes on Ozzy! She was a James Marshall Fellow at the University of Connecticut, a Brown Handler Writer in Residence at the San Francisco Public Library, and an Ezra Jack Keats/Kerlan Memorial Fellow at the University of Minnesota. Born in Charlton, Massachusetts, K-Fai now lives in Lausanne, Switzerland.Heather Locke was raised in Las Vegas, Nevada. She has been teaching for six years and currently teaches a fantastic group of second graders. As a kid, Heather had an amazing fifth-grade teacher who recognized her strengths and helped her grow. In high school, her volleyball coach and history teacher supported her through a difficult time. It is because of them that she achieved her childhood dream of supporting children through education.

Join us for a creative Write Out broadcast led by leaders of Outdoor Afro, the nation’s leading cutting edge network that celebrates and inspires Black connections and leadership in nature. Outdoor Afro leader Leandra Taylor and National Park Ranger Alanna Smith will lead us in creating and customizing journals to use for nature and historic writing. Don’t miss this event, just in time for Write Out and the National Day of Writing.Write Out (#writeout) is a free two-week event, led by the National Writing Project and the National Park Service. The event is organized as a series of online activities where educators, students, and the public are invited to explore national parks and other public spaces to connect and learn through place-based writing and sharing.The theme of this year’s event is "Palettes, Storyboards, and Cadences" and will run from October 10-24, 2021 (which includes the National Day on Writing on October 20). Sign up now to receive links and information to support your planning and particip

Join us for a “behind the scenes” exclusive as we engage in the power of stories, storytelling, and writing with partners from the Park For Every Classroom project. Park for Every Classroom (PEC) is a National Park Service partnership program that includes a network of educators, partners, and Park Rangers that collaborate to engage communities in place-based learning. In this special Write Out broadcast, we will learn about the work of PEC while we are also taken behind the scenes with Park Rangers who participate in both PEC and Write Out. We will get the inside scoop on how these Park Rangers selected their writing prompts for this year’s Ranger Sparks videos, and how they tie the prompts to the diverse stories of their parks. Learn more about Write Out at: https://writeout.nwp.org

Carmen Oliver grew up in Manitoba, Canada, surrounded by lakes and prairie grass where she built tree forts, caught tadpoles, and sailed on homemade rafts. She is the author of the picture book series Bears Make the Best Buddies (Reading, Math, Writing, and Science) as well as the nonfiction picture book biography A Voice for the Spirit Bears: How One Boy Inspired Millions to Save a Rare Animal, a Junior Library Guild spring 2019 pick. She’s also the author of the forthcoming picture books The Twilight Library and The Favio Chavez Story. Carmen’s work has been shortlisted for the Rainforest of Reading Award, The Writers’ League of Texas Awards and the CLEL Bell Picture Book Awards for Early Literacy. In 2014, she founded the Booking Biz, a boutique style agency that brings award-winning children’s authors and illustrators to schools, libraries, and special events. When she’s not writing, she loves gardening, cheering on her kids from the sidelines and blue-sky days. Carmen lives in Round Rock, TX with her fam

Varian Johnson is the author of several novels for children and young adults, including The Parker Inheritance, which won both Coretta Scott King Author Honor and Boston Globe/Horn Book Honor awards; The Great Greene Heist, an ALA Notable Children’s book and Kirkus Reviews Best Book; and the graphic novel Twins, illustrated by Shannon Wright, an NPR Best Book. Varian was born in Florence, South Carolina, and attended the University of Oklahoma, where he received a BS in Civil Engineering. He later received an MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults from Vermont College of Fine Arts, and is honored to now be a member of the faculty. Varian lives outside of Austin, TX with his family.Kim Tate is a fifth-grade dual language teacher at International Prep Academy in Champaign, Illinois, where she is a member of her school improvement leadership team, as well as co-chair of her school’s equity committee. In addition to being a children’s fiction enthusiast, Kim is a 2021-2022 Teach Plus Illinois Policy Fellow

Often the story of teaching, of teachers, and of literacy is told by outsiders to education—media, social media, TV, and movies. These stories contribute to a public narrative that is too often dismissive and demeaning of teachers and of research-based practices. Teacher voices/teacher stories—the stories of those who are actually in school—matter and can help shift that narrative into one that speaks to the realities of teaching and learning.In this episode, NWP Radio talks with Cathy Fleischer and Sarah Hochstetler about Everyday Advocacy, the kind of advocacy that teachers can do as part of their regular teaching lives. Our guests will also discuss resources from the book, and the launch of a new website that was made possible by a National Writing Project seed grant and the collective efforts of colleagues who share this commitment to advocacy.

Felicia Rose Chavez is an award-winning educator with an MFA in Creative Nonfiction from the University of Iowa. She is author of The Anti-Racist Writing Workshop: How to Decolonize the Creative Classroom and co-editor of The BreakBeat Poets Volume 4: LatiNEXT with Willie Perdomo and Jose Olivarez. Felicia’s teaching career began in Chicago, where she served as Program Director to Young Chicago Authors and founded GirlSpeak, a feminist webzine for high school students.Dr. Tonya Perry is a Professor and Director of the Red Mountain Writing Project. In 2000-2001, she was named Alabama Teacher of the Year and further awarded National Teacher of the Year Finalist. In 2012, she was named by colleagues and students the recipient of the UAB Teaching Excellence Award. On a national level, she serves as a member of the Research on Women in Education executive board affiliated with AERA, director of the NCTE Cultivating New Voices program, a member of the Beloved Community in the National Writing Project's Write Now Te