Secondary students looking to do something fun and meaningful this summer need look no further than the Young Authors Camp. This weeklong camp will inspire young minds to build new worlds, share ideas and explore their artistic selves through creative writing. Coordinated by Andie Lenhart, assistant teaching professor of English at NAU, the camp will not only provide learning opportunities to young minds but will also help English graduate students at NAU.
“This year we have grad students who will be teaching at the camp,” Lenhart said. “It will give them opportunities to get hands-on experience in the classroom and in helping design the curriculum.”
Those attending the camp will learn about creative writing through poetry, fiction and non-fiction. Campers also will create their own mini-zines and present their experiences to family members and friends.
“Students will be learning writing skills in all three genres,” Lenhart said. “They will work together to create a mini publication, including making the artwork. They will also learn revision and recitation skills since at the end of the camp they will choose a couple of pieces to read for parents and families.”
The students will get a camp journal to write their ideas and thoughts. They will start the day with a writing prompt that will vary depending on the day’s theme and will go outdoors to visit different campus locations to work on nature writing, sensory detail and other interactive prompts. After lunch, they will type up their work and get one-on-one feedback from the teachers, wrapping up the day with games related to writing and reading.
“We usually get students excited about creative writing,” Lenhart said. “They have a lot of strengths. They are very good at creating characters and writing fiction. I notice a lot of students enjoy writing fantasy and magical worlds.”
Campers will also learn to organize their ideas into different formats, since, according to Lenhart, that’s a skill many struggle with when writing.
“Writers need to learn the parts of narrative structure and how to make an idea cohesive to put it on paper. It is something that I’ve seen even college freshmen struggle with. Writing is a way to communicate ideas and share experiences and by learning those skills, they will gain confidence to project their voice and recite their work.”
The Young Authors Camp will be held at the Liberal Arts building #18 at NAU from July 7 to 11, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Scholarships are available through the Northern Arizona Book Festival.
For questions about the camp or registration, contact Andie Lenhart.