Unleashing Creativity and Building Community
At Stanley Park High School, we firmly believe in the transformative power of words. Our annual Student Creative Writing Open Mic and Reading event is a testament to this belief, providing a platform for our talented students to share their original works and celebrate the written word.
This highly anticipated event is more than just a reading – it’s a gathering of our vibrant school community, where students, teachers, and families come together to support, inspire, and connect through the shared experience of creative expression.
The Art of Open Mic
The Open Mic event is a culmination of the hard work and dedication our students put into their writing throughout the year. Each student is required to participate, selecting a piece they have crafted and revised to share with their peers.
As the students gather in the school’s auditorium, the atmosphere is one of nervous anticipation and excited energy. Some students, brimming with confidence, eagerly volunteer to go first, while others may hesitate, unsure of the vulnerability that comes with sharing their personal words.
“Although the content varies by class, I see many commonalities,” shares Ms. Doucette, our talented Creative Writing teacher. “Sometimes confident students waver, shaking as they read, hurrying through each word, and sometimes the quietest students shine, reciting their words intrepidly.”
The act of standing in front of their peers and sharing their work is a powerful experience for our students. Link to school website Some may find themselves overcome with emotion, their voices trembling as they read their words aloud. Others may surprise themselves, discovering an inner strength and poise they didn’t know they possessed.
Cultivating a Community of Writers
But the true magic of the Open Mic event lies in the supportive and nurturing environment created by our school community. As each student takes the stage, their classmates become active listeners, putting away their phones and offering their undivided attention.
“Their phones are put away, they clap or snap enthusiastically, they encourage each other by asking for just a little more of the story, and they whisper accolades to each other as they wander back to their tables after sharing,” Ms. Doucette observes.
This sense of community is not something that happens by chance. It is the result of intentional efforts by our teachers to foster a safe and inclusive space for our students to express themselves. Throughout the year, our Creative Writing and English classes focus on building trust, empathy, and a shared appreciation for the art of storytelling.
“It is about the reciprocal nature of embodying and appreciating one another’s willingness to be vulnerable,” explains Ms. Donovan, a teacher at a neighboring school who has implemented a similar open mic protocol. “It is about recognizing that writers need readers and readers need writers. It is about valuing all the voices and authority of all the voices in our classroom.”
Celebrating Growth and Transformation
As the Open Mic event unfolds, our teachers become silent observers, witnessing the transformative power of words unleashed. They watch in awe as students, once hesitant and unsure, find their voices and captivate the audience with their raw emotion and authentic expression.
“Two years ago the first student who volunteered was a girl who had unexplained health challenges all year, even having a seizure in our class at one point. She bravely volunteered to read her poem, which detailed her struggles of the year but still ended with her optimism about the future and her love and gratitude for life. She cried while she read it — as did all of us,” Ms. Doucette recounts.
This moment, and countless others like it, are a testament to the profound impact that the Open Mic event can have on our students. It is not just about the sharing of words, but the personal growth, the building of self-confidence, and the nurturing of a vibrant community of young writers.
Fostering a Gradeless Classroom
At Stanley Park High School, we have embraced a gradeless approach to our writing instruction, a philosophy that aligns with the spirit of the Open Mic event. By focusing on student growth and creating a supportive environment, we empower our students to take risks, experiment with their craft, and truly develop as writers.
“Part of making that transition effective requires a reliance on student growth and a community of writers to support that growth, ideas that many teachers, including myself, desire but struggle to create,” Ms. Doucette explains. “But these students had grown. They had created something out of nothing at all, and then they shared it with the class, and then the class celebrated them.”
The Open Mic event becomes a tangible manifestation of this gradeless approach, where the focus is not on grades or test scores, but on the authentic expression of ideas and the fostering of a vibrant writing community.
A Lasting Impact
As the event draws to a close, the students leave the auditorium with a renewed sense of pride and accomplishment. They have not only shared their words with their peers but have also received the affirmation and encouragement that comes from being part of a supportive community.
“On this day, I saw it: the visible creation of my dreams — through hearing the words each student had diligently crafted and revised (words that didn’t exist a short semester previously), through seeing them so proud of these words, through their tears and their smiles and their support of each other. They truly were a community of writers,” Ms. Doucette reflects.
The impact of the Open Mic event extends far beyond the walls of our school. It is a testament to the power of words, the transformative nature of creative expression, and the invaluable role that community plays in nurturing and supporting the artistic growth of young people.
As we look towards the future, we are excited to continue this tradition, providing our students with the platform to discover and share their unique voices, and to build a vibrant, supportive community of writers who will go on to inspire and impact the world around them.
Get Involved and Discover the Power of Words
We invite you, the Stanley Park High School community, to join us in celebrating the power of words at our upcoming Student Creative Writing Open Mic and Reading event. Whether you are a student, parent, or member of the community, we encourage you to attend and support our talented young writers as they share their creative works.
To learn more about the event and how to get involved, please visit the school website. We look forward to seeing you there and witnessing the transformative power of words come alive.
