Scholastic Writing Contest Bootcamp

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  • Instructor:  Mr. Pape and Matt
  • Student Age:  Teens in grades 7–12 (ages 13 and up)
  • Schedule
    Group Class: 
    September 16th - October 14th
    Friday
    8:15 - 9:45pm (EDT) 
    5:15 - 6:45pm (PDT)
    1 on 1 Class will schedule with Mr. Pape and Matt.
  • Sections: 5 times  Group Classes, 5 times One on One Classes
    7.5 hours Group Class(from September 16th - October 14th
    5 times One on One Class, each class 1 hour, total 5 hours

COURSE OVERVIEW

The class will show a range of tools to learn the nuances of controlled, purposeful writing, including figurative language, effective structuring, and specific forms. Students will work directly with both literary and media texts as they plan and write their own. his class will help students prepare for the following competitions: NY Times Review Contest, and Scholastic Art and Writing.
Students will attend two writing competitions, to finish a writing works in this project and submit them to the Scholastic competition and  New York Times Review Contest

Only 18 students are admitted, places are limited.
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Competition Information:

The Scholastic Art and Writing Awards
The Scholastic Art and Writing Awards is the longest-running, oldest, and most prestigious literary and art competition in the United States, aiming to find creative works and original technical skills by students in grades 7-12. Since 1923, the Academic Art and Writing Award has recognized the vision, originality, and talent of young people, and has provided opportunities and academic awards for creative young people to express their talent. The high school award is a symbol for the pursuit of excellence and will help students stand out in university applications and scholarship applications.
Every year, in about 29 art and writing categories, teenagers in grades 7-12 submit more than 330,000 art and writing works. The judges are composed of the most outstanding figures in the field, and they will evaluate and select regional and national awards, on a regional level and national level.

Competition Timeline: September-December, 2022
Suitable for students: American/Canadian students in grades 7-12, international students in American schools
Website: https://www.artandwriting.org/
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New York Times Review Contest:
The NY Times invites students to play critic and write an original review for their New York Times Student Review Contest. Students can review anything that fits into a category of creative expression that The New York Times covers — from architecture to music.
Review Limit: 450 words or fewer, not including the title. One entry per student
Category: architecture, art, books, comedy, dance, fashion, hotels, movies, music, podcasts, restaurants, technology, theater, TV show, video games (Please note that The Times no longer reviews video games, but we still allow the category for our contest.)

Competition Timeline: September-December, 2022
Suitable for students: Students ages 11 to 19 anywhere in the world attending middle or high school can participate.
Competition Website: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/08/10/learning/our-7th-annual-student-review-contest.html

Class Introduction

Students will learn a variety of English writing methods, and they can choose to learn the preferred form of writing. In each class, students will write, discuss and analyze draft works together. The teacher will send reading materials before the beginning of each class.

Students will learn a variety of English writing methods, and they can choose to learn the preferred form of writing. In each class, students will write, discuss and analyze draft works together. The teacher will send reading materials before the beginning of each class.
By the end of the course, students will submit their writing work in the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards, and New York Times Review Contest. Students will submit 1-2 works in the following 3 categories:

Critical Essay: Writing designed to help readers to understand or be informed about a particular idea or topic, such as art or media reviews, persuasive essays, opinion essays, etc. (500-3,000 words)
Short Story/ Flash Fiction: A fictional narrative that is written in prose. (Short story 500-3,000 words; Flash fiction less than 1,000 words)
Review Essays: less than 450 words

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Mr. Pape

Mr. Pape recently retired from a Liberal Arts college where he taught, coached and won the Pi Kappa Delta national debate championship in four of the last five years.  
As a former NSDA executive and expert, Mr. Pape has conducted writing, speech, debate and communication workshops for K12 and college students for over 25 years.  
He is the curriculum coordinator for the Harvard Debate Summer Workshops in public speaking and debate. Some of the students coached by him have won top national awards in the US and China.

Matt

Matt Stannard has a J.D. in Law from the University of Wyoming College of Law. While he was coaching debate at the College of Eastern Utah and the University of Wyoming, Matt's teams won multiple national and regional championships in intercollegiate debate. He has directed or taught at dozens of high school debate institutes including the Harvard Debate Council Summer Workshops, where his public forum labs have won multiple institute championships. He currently teaches debate, public speaking, oratory, and quiz bowl to students in the United States and China. He has taught debate in Iraq, South Korea, and the United States. 

Course details

5 Group Lessons
5 One on One Sessions
September 16th - October 14th
Friday
8:15 - 9:45pm (EDT) 
5:15 - 6:45pm (PDT)
8:15AM - 9:45 AM(+1) BEIJING TIME
1 on 1 Class will schedule with Mr. Pape and Matt.

What you gonna learn in the group lesson

Introduction to Short Stories/ Fiction

Short Stories/ Fiction Activities

Introduction to Critical Essays

Critical Essay Workshop

Introduction to Review Essay:

one on one Class will schedule with Mr. Pape and Matt
1 on 1 Instruction between student and teacher in a pre-arranged class. We will concentrate on 1 – 2 of the student pieces in greater detail. This class will be an hour long.

Competition Materials

For the competitions registered by students, the competition introduction and detailed rules are explained, and relevant learning resources are supplemented, including the official database of the competition, previous model essays, competition experience, etc.

Brainstorm (First One on One)

Students will have a brainstorm with the instructor to confirm the topic and framework of the article and customize the competition strategy and time plan according to the students' own abilities and needs.

Article revision (2 - 5 One on One)

Students complete the first draft based on the brainstorming results, and the teacher makes the first revision and adjusts the article according to the requirements of the competition. The teacher will explain and discuss the revision of the article to the participating students.


After the students complete the second draft according to the teacher's revision opinions, the teacher will make a second correction and discuss the revision opinions with the students. The second revision will focus on polishing the details, improving grammar, vocabulary, sentence patterns, etc., and improving the quality of the article.

(Some competitions may require multiple revisions, which will be determined according to the specific competition content. Additional fees will be charged for the excess.)

Contest

Students must complete the final draft before the deadline and submit the article through the official channels of the competition. 

Course Lessons