My name is Alicia Wells, and I have taught English 11, Honors English 11, and English 9  at Paw Paw High School since 2014.  I also made a quick stop in 7th grade at the middle school for a semester. I am currently pursuing my M.Ed. in Literacy Studies at Grand Valley State University, and like to use that as an excuse for participating in the Third Coast Writing Project for my third year. However, that would sell my experience over the past two summers short.

I was apprehensive to join TCWP in 2015, and am still finding my confidence as a writer. However, since I ask my students to do things that make them uncomfortable, it’s only fair that I experience the same challenges. My comfort and passion for English lies in literature and analytical writing, but listening to my students express how they crave a creative outlet, and reading their endless academic papers, I realized I needed to diversify my writing curriculum. I have since created a weekly writer’s workshop dedicated to just that. I have seen naturally creative writers excel, apprehensive writers grow, and I have gotten to know my students on a much more personal level. Due to my time with Third Coast, I have seen myself not only grow as a writer, but as an educator as well, and I am looking forward to further improving that craft.

Outside of school and PD, I love to try new restaurants and cocktails with my husband. We spent 5 years living in Grand Rapids, and worked hard to exhaust those dining options. Since moving to the Kalamazoo area, we have been lucky enough to experience a whole new city. When we’re not out enjoying food and libations, we’re at home with our neurotic mutt, Ned, and his cat, Arya. I also have a passion for coffee, and am always looking for a new book to enjoy with it, unless I get distracted by a show I can binge watch on Netflix.

Comments

  1. shaunwaymanJune 1, 2017 at 4:50 AM

    Saugatuck- coffee beer libations- and writing!!! Make sure Will is good to go as well!

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

First Post?

Image
Hey guys, A quick note about me and a test run for the blog. First, I am really excited! This summer is going to be fun, challenging, creative, focused on growth, and I know I already mentioned it, but fun! I teach English at Paw Paw High, mostly senior level AP Composition and college preparatory English, but I have also taught at least one freshman class of English for the last eleven years, too. My other experiences teaching include working as an English teacher in Japan in 2001-2, working as an instructional aid in Kindergarten at Kalamazoo Advantage Academy when it first opened, teaching English for Upward Bound at WMU, facilitating writing seminars for Read and Write Kalamazoo (RAWK), and most recently, I just finished a stint teaching creative writing at the Kalamazoo County Juvenile Home. I started doing Third Coast back in 2005 (2006?) and have only missed a few summers since then. Professionally speaking, it has been the most important component of my life. Hands down.
Read more
Hello to everyone waiting for the Third Coast Writing Project 2017 to begin.  My name is Nancy Gaines, and I teaching at Otsego High School.  My recent teaching assignments have been AP Literature and Composition, American Literature (our 11th grade offering), and English 2 (our 10th grade offering).  Our English department is looking to more fully implement the Reading and Writing Workshop model, so my main interest in this group is focusing more on examining how my personal writing can help my students achieve success in their writing. Our district is heavily entrenched in the Professional Learning Community model, and I serve on the K12 Vertical English team, the Student Services committee, and the School Leadership Team.  Our school is participating in the Allegan AESA initiative for RtI, and I would like to explore how to incorporate writing into our intervention plans. In off hours, I'm an avid reader and cook, and reader of cookbooks.  I'm obsessed with the latest re
Read more

Hi

Hi Everyone, This will be my second year participating in Third Coast, and I can't wait for it to be here. I taught high school English for 10 years - mostly freshman and reading intervention courses - in a Chicago suburb where I also wore the hats of a literacy coach and reading specialist. Last summer, my husband and I decided to take a chance, uproot from our lives in Chicago, and move to Kalamazoo (to make a long story short). Since then, I've been finding my footing here, teaching as a part-time instructor at Western and ultimately deciding to pursue doctoral studies in English Education so I can be a teacher educator - something I was fortunate to experience and get really curious about while teaching future teachers in a methods course this past spring. I'm also a wrangler, chauffeur, laundress, cheerleader, event coordinator, chef, and life-skills teacher for my two rambunctious boys, ages 3 and 5. When they are at school or asleep, I can be found gardening, r
Read more