The Vermont Council on Reading Spring Conference is back with Ralph Fletcher!

One of Ralph’s greatest hits!

The Vermont Council On Reading (VCR) invites you to attend this fabulous in person event with Ralph Fletcher, writer extraordinaire on Friday, May 5, 2022!  Registration is open on our website!  We are hosting this conference at the Sugarbush Resort in Warren, Vermont.  Ralph is not only an author of many children’s books, he is also a teacher of writing with even more books to his name!  As always, Ralph is a warm and personable presenter.  He is sure to spark your interest and enthusiasm when it comes to supporting young writers in our classrooms, no matter the age. Take advantage of our early bird pricing of $195.00  until March 5, $225.00 after March 5th. Don’t miss this literacy event – food – fun and learning with others! 

Share

VCR is Looking for Mini-Grant Recipients – it could be you!

vcr logo

The Vermont Council on Reading is looking for mini grant proposals.

Purpose. These grants are to support initiatives by teachers or specialists in schools to enhance literacy instruction within the school.

Amount. The Vermont Council on Reading will award $500 annually. We will accept applications for grants up to $500.00.

Eligibility. All

Proposal Form. To apply submit an digital proposal to Carol Millett. When sending your application by email, please indicate “VCR Mini Grant Application” in the subject line.

Share

VCR Spring 2022 Conference Postponed!

The Vermont Council on Reading’s spring conference
with Ralph Fletcher has been postponed to April 28, 2023.

Our Vermont Council on Reading Spring Conference with Ralph Fletcher scheduled for April 29, 2022 at Sugarbush Resort has been canceled for this year.  While we were hopeful and put every effort into planning a safe, COVID friendly in-person conference, the events of this new year and the Omicron variant have caused us to have to cancel.  While we are saddened by this news, we are excited to announce that we will plan ahead to Spring of 2023!  We have a date secured with Sugarbush Resort for April 28, 2023.  With that in hand we will move forward with planning an exciting and engaging VCR Spring Conference and hope that our world will look a lot more “normal” a year from now.  Please stay tuned to the VCR website for more information on the 2023 conference, including speaker information.  Thank you for your support of VCR and we look forward to a bright future ahead!

Share

Attention Writers!

Written by Jes Hathaway

Do you aspire to be one of the 100,000+ people to write a fifty-thousand-word novel in 30 days?! If so, NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) might be the thing for you! Every year in November enthusiastic and determined writers from around the world participate in this ‘write’ of passage.  When I first heard about NaNoWriMo, I never thought I’d succeed, that I’d actually write 50,000 words in 30 days, but here I am, a NaNoWriMo winner!

What’s it like to write 50,000 words in one month? Remember the commercial for pizza bagels? “Pizza in the morning, pizza in the evening, pizza at supper time. When you can have pizza on a bagel, you can have pizza any time!” Now substitute the word pizza with some form of writing and you get the gist of how the month goes.

First, you have to conceive of an idea, no matter how far-fetched it may be. Where might one get an idea for a book? Imagination and creativity are key to becoming a NaNoWriMo winner. My book idea came from a dream of all things and will become part of a young adult science fiction series one day.

Next, you must carve out time to write. Nowadays most of us have our phones on us 24-7. It’s a natural place to jot down ideas. If you want to go the old-fashioned route, get yourself a cute journal. It doesn’t matter what you use, just be prepared to have something to write with or on when inspiration hits!

You’ve set yourself up for success. Now there’s just one last thing to do…write, write, write!! Write immediately upon waking up before your feet even hit the floor, even before that first cup of coffee! Write during breaks at work, during lunch, maybe even write in your head on the ride home from errands. Write before dinner, during dinner, and keep writing until you can’t keep your eyes open a minute longer. Many nights you’re up past 11 pm writing away. Just…one…more…. word.

By the tenth day of November, you’re up to 12,000 words, and you think, “Wow! I’m doing great!”  Morning, noon, and night, writing consumes your world.  Every word, big or small, counts!  Little by little your word count adds up.  It’s day twelve, and once again after 11pm, but you’ve made it to 14,000 words!  Now, you can sleep well.  May inspiration find its way into your dreams.  

It’s day 15, and you’ve officially made it halfway through the month!  You call upon your friends to send you inspiration, quotes, phrases, pictures, anything that you can write from.  You’ve reached nearly 18,000 words and in the back of your mind you can’t help but think, 50,000 words in 30 days, really?  Was I a fool to undertake something so huge?  But then two days later you hit a major goal: 20,000 words!  Well really, you’ve reached 20,135 words!  

Although writing is your world, you take the time to take care of yourself by attending a class at a gym or doing your own workout at home, but once that’s done, you’re back at it, tea in hand and getting those words down.  

As the days wind down, you set daily goals for yourself. Some seem unrealistic, but you are determined to succeed.  Plus, you still have some weekends to get those words in!  So, you set a goal of 5000 words one day, 3000 the next. Sunday Funday-you’ve knocked out 7804 words!  Not too shabby and above your original daily word count goal!  

It’s November 30.  You’ve reached the end of the challenge!  You’ve written as much as you can! It’s just about time for bed, just about time to close the chapter of your book, but before you close those tired eyes of yours, you must do one final word count.  It’s now or never.  

And there it is…50,159 words!  You made it!  You’re a NaNoWriMo winner! 

Young Writers Program logo

For more information about NaNoWriMo and all they have to offer, please visit nanowrimo.org

So, what is NaNoWriMo?

NaNoWriMo is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that provides tools, structure, community, and encouragement to help people find their voices, achieve creative goals, and build new worlds — on and off the page.

NaNoWriMo believes in the transformational power of creativity. We provide the structure, community, and encouragement to help people find their voices, achieve creative goals, and build new worlds—on and off the page.

Share

A Day with Ralph Fletcher, April 29, 2022

Vermont Council on Reading

9:00-9:15 Welcome and brief business meeting

9:15-10:30: Lifting the Chill in the Writing Classroom

In recent years the writing classroom has become more academic and less student-centered. Real choice in writing has become an endangered species. I’ll talk about how teachers can bring back the spark and sizzle to the writing classroom. This session will springboard off my book Joy Write: Cultivating High-Impact Low-Stakes Writing (Heinemann).

11:00-12:00 How Mentor Texts Lift Student Writing

Young writers need vision to get an idea of what good writing looks and feels and sounds like. The writing in a classroom can only be as strong as the literature that surrounds, supports, and buoys it up. This session will build on my book Mentor Author, Mentor Texts (Heinemann).  It will include a short writing exercise.

12:00-1:00 Luncheon and Awards

1:00-2:00 Engaging Boy Writers

 Empirical and anecdotal evidence shows that boys struggle in writing classrooms. Why is this so? What specific challenges (such as handwriting) handicap boys? How can we widen the circle and make the writing classroom a place where boys  can find their stride as writers? Ralph is the author of Boy Writers: Reclaiming Their Voices. 

2:00-2:45 Using Photography to Teach Writing

The world is becoming more visual. Students author their lives not with notebooks and pens but through the photos they take on their cellphones. The lexicon of photography (angle, focus, background, zoom) provides a language that is concrete and familiar to students, and one that will make it easier for us to explain the craft of writing. Ralph’s newest professional book is Focus Lessons: How Photography Can Illuminate the Teaching of Writing (Heinemann). 
Register on the Spring Conference page.

Share