Teachers Writing for Civic Engagement

Writing is tricky business. Whether you are creating your own practice, helping young people find their voices, or building communities of connected, committed thinkers and doers, writing brings us together in powerful ways. But, it’s difficult to know how to begin.

The Chicago Area Writing Project team is in the process of post-Pandemic beginning. We spent last year in a fellowship of educators connecting through writing on behalf of ourselves and our students. We focused on writing for civic engagement, which means that we engaged as educators around issues of civic life, writing for positive change in our schools/communities, and connecting the profession of teaching to our wider socio political context. We loved it. We loved it!

Here’s a picture of some of us celebrating at a local pizza restaurant and a link to our final Writing for Civic Engagement Anthology.

How did we do it? We met regularly – once per quarter– and wrote using the exercises included here. Many of us took these exercises into our classrooms to share with our students, and all of us enjoyed them as a helpful addition to our own writing practices.

The writing tasks are small, and decidedly low-tech, but they propelled us to deeper thinking, meaningful connections, and in some cases, publishable pieces. Each box below includes the information you need to do the same. We’ve included example pieces for each exercise to inspire you, as well as a complete collection of works from our time together.

Step One: Getting Started Writing about Topics that Matter

Let’s start at the beginning! The writing exercises in this section – “What Do I Do?,” “Kernel Essay,” “Search History Writing” – will help you identify the issues that are important to you, as well as those where you can use your resources to make a meaningful contribution. Home in on a topic and start to explore the words and ideas that move you.

Step Two: Bringing Play and Creativity and Your Writing Practice

Now that you have focused on a topic, follow the writing exercises linked here to help you think deeply and creatively. They’re fun and easily portable to a classroom! In step two, you will be guided through three exercises: “Constrained Writing,” “Cubing,” and “I love you, but…” which is a riff on a wonderful essay poet Beth Ann Fennelly wrote for The Poetry Foundation. You can read our collection of “I Love You, But..” poems here, in our anthology.

Step Three: Taking Your Writing Public- Extending the Reach of Your Writing

At the Chicago Area Writing Project we focused our efforts on issues of civic engagement. Our writers published in EdWeek, California Educator, National Public Radio, and Chalkbeat Chicago. We raised our voices on issues that touch all of us both personally and professionally. This section will help you get started thinking about taking your writing public, with a specific focus on OpEd writing.

Step Four: Reflection and Praxis

What are some ways to sustain a writing practice? How can you encourage your students to write for civic engagement? The resources in this section will help you reflect on your writing practice and suggest pedagogical extensions to keep your students writing and engaged with the world around.