Note: This class is open to high school students only.

Girl, Woman, Other by Bernardine Evaristo “follows the lives of twelve very different people in Britain, predominantly female and Black. Aged 19 to 93, they span a variety of cultural backgrounds, sexualities, classes, and occupations as they tell the stories of themselves, their families, friends and lovers, across the country and through the years” (from Evaristo’s website). It is written in a hybrid poetry-prose style that illuminates themes of modern womanhood and intergenerational histories. 

In 2019, the year it was published, this book crushed many bestselling lists and, more importantly, was on the favorite-books-of-the-year lists of Barack Obama and Roxane Gay. It also won the Booker Prize. 

In this class, we will read, analyze, discuss, and write about this stunning book. It will be really fun. Take this class if you wanna learn how to read with purpose and write with power and engage with an excellent narrative.

Note: This class is open to middle school students only.

The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo is about a girl’s discovery of slam poetry “as a way to understand her mother’s religion and her own relationship to the world.” The main character, Xiomara Batista, feels unheard and unable to hide in her home of Harlem. “But Xiomara has plenty she wants to say, and she pours all her frustration and passion onto the pages of a leather notebook, reciting the words to herself like prayers…So when she is invited to join her school’s slam poetry club, she doesn’t know how she could ever attend without her mami finding out, much less speak her words out loud. But still, she can’t stop thinking about performing her poems. Because in the face of a world that may not want to hear her, Xiomara refuses to be silent” (from Acevedo’s website).

A National Book Award winner, this novel – written in poetry rather than prose – examines themes of religion, sexuality, immigration, and culture. In this class, we will read, discuss, analyze, and write about the book, including writing poems of our own.

In this class, we will practice the foundations of writing: how to craft a strong variety of sentences and paragraphs; correct grammar, punctuation, and spelling; parts of speech; detailed word choices, etc. This class will be composed of mini-lessons, writing prompts, and editing sessions. It is open to all – I will adjust the lessons based on what kind of practice students need and where yall are at. This can also be a space to receive help on writing assignments for other classes.