Students are encouraged to write with new reward program.
SAINT THOMAS - Danielle Parson had an interesting story to tell, but she wasn't sure how listeners would react to it.
"I didn't really think anybody would like it," Parson said.
For a writing assignment, Parson was to write a personal narrative. She chose to recall the time she attended a Rockets football game and ended the night in the emergency room. For her writing efforts on her story, Parson was one of 13 Saint Thomas Elementary students whose writing ability and perseverance were recognized at a special party Thursday morning hosted by Principal Andrew Kyle and Kelly Nair, literacy coach at Saint Thomas.
Parson knew her story was being submitted to Kyle, but she didn't know her piece had been selected as one of the winners until her teacher told her right before the party.
"I was like, me?" Parson said, describing her reaction to having her story picked.
Parson said when she was given the assignment, that particular story was the first one to come to her mind. But it was one that she never really talked about, hence her hesitation about how it would be received. Her fears were for naught, as Kyle and the other students enjoyed her story.
"It was really fun being able to share my story with other people," Parson said.
Students ranging from kindergartners to fifth-graders had the chance to celebrate their winning writing assignments with Kyle at a "principal's publishing party." Introduced for the first time this year, the principal's publishing party rewards students' writing efforts, and is not entirely based on how well-written the piece is.
Students were assigned to write either a fiction story or a personal narrative. Teachers submitted the completed stories to Kyle for review, and then rather than simply rewarding those who had the best pieces, Kyle selected those that were not only well-written, but also showed improvement and growth, understanding of the content, knowledge of their subject and their hard work and dedication to the craft.
"It's one way to get them excited about writing and to celebrate them as writers," Nair said, adding that the project not only builds confidence but also teaches that writing is meant to be shared with others.
Publishing parties will be held every six to seven weeks during the school year.
Ideas for rewards for future projects include ice cream or Popsicles or taking the winners outside during the nice weather while sharing their work. Students and their writing always will be the focus, and students are encouraged to read their piece themselves, if they want to.
The assignments Kyle chooses for these parties will be hung in the area of the front office and the cafeteria. If a student's work is not selected, it will still be displayed on a wall outside each student's respective classroom, which means every student will be able to see his or work displayed somewhere in the school.
Third-grader Ella Dean also chose a hospital visit to write about for her personal narrative. Like Danielle, she too had never written about or told anyone about her experience. She said being selected did make her want to work harder in the future so she can return to the party later in the year. Her favorite part was having lunch with Kyle and sharing her story.
"Kids get a chance to share with each other," Kyle said. "I think it's great to get them down here and writing and excited about the whole writing process."