In partnership with NYS TESOL, Herstory will be offering up to ten 10-week workshops for students who wish to write their stories.  Students from all over New York State will be guided in a unique process where they explore with one another the best way to help a reading stranger to walk in their shoes.  Each summer cohort will become a family in this time of isolation, working together to determine where they’d like their stories to travel in the world, to help other students keep their hopes and dreams and to let their parents, teachers and communities know who they are.   The workshops will take place in English, to allow all language learners to participate, regardless of their country of origin, with the freedom to write in the language of their memories and dreams at the heart of the project.  These workshops are part of a larger Herstory “Student Stories for Our Time” online project to foster leadership, community building and a story-based strategy to ensure the core values of empathy, equity, and inclusion for all.  

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Susanne Marcus, former president of NYS TESOL, writes: Storytelling can transform our perceptions of the world.   When we share one another’s stories, we enter the power of the human spirit. Now, more than ever, our ELLs need to share their stories.

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Since the pandemic has thrown us all into a new world of remote learning, many of our ELLs are without daily face-to-face interaction with their teachers or other English-speakers. We know this has negatively impacted their progress in developing proficiency in English.
 

The incidental learning that occurs through daily interactions at school cannot be overestimated.  This includes our content-based, as well as hidden curriculum. The challenges of remote learning have left our most vulnerable students behind, and with the uncertainties of summer programs looming, we risk seeing a decline in overall achievement in the future.

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This summer, Herstory Writers Workshop will be offering small group, virtual writing workshops to allow high school and college students to create a sense of community and hope. Students will learn special techniques to generate stories strong enough to move their readers to compassion while deepening their understanding of urgent issues of social justice.

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Students from high schools and colleges/universities across the state are welcome to join this exciting online workshop.

• Do you have students with whom you wish you had more 1:1 time?

• Do you have students who can benefit from an in-depth writing workshop this summer?