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Workshops
Current WorkshopsWeekend WorkshopsWriter as Reader Workshops
Workshop OptionsOne-Day Writer As Reader WorkshopsReadings of canonical literary and biblical texts, contemporary fiction, poetry, essay, and historical documents are the focus of the eleventh in the Institute's annual one-day Writer as Reader workshops. This year's workshops emphasize important questions about reading: how does one work illuminate another? What happens to understanding when we use performance illuminate non-dramatic works of literature? How does personal writing connect the reader to a text and/or to a deeper understanding of historical distance? What can geographical and cultural boundaries teach us about differences between genres? Where are the roots of a persuasive argument? Workshops explore the connections between familiar, touchstone texts and more contemporary work. As in the past, the November workshops model Institute methods for encouraging "writing to read" (writing practices that show rather than tell students how writing clarifies the meaning of literary texts) as a central classroom practice. These concurrent workshops present writing strategies that allow the reader to make both personal and intellectual connections to the texts; support close, imaginative reading; and help students develop an appreciation for the intersections between related but different texts. A November workshop announcement with detailed descriptions of these workshops and the assigned readings will be mailed separately. If you do not receive one please call 845-758-7484 or e-mail jsmith@bard.edu. These eight concurrent workshops are not intended to be scholarly seminars, although they do offer opportunities for critical reading and discussion of the works presented. Instead, they explore writing strategies that allow students to make both personal and intellectual connections to the texts; support close, imaginative reading; and help readers to develop an appreciation for the intersections between related but different texts. The Writer as Reader workshops also model how writing and reading activities focus class discussion, help students engage with difficult material, and emphasize the social character of all learning. Weekend WorkshopsAll Institute workshops are guided by similar principles, and it is possible to learn these in any Institute workshop. Weekend workshops, offered annually in December and May, offer the best introduction to a range of the Institute's writing practices and especially of learning through writing. Although there are no prerequisites for most workshops, we encourage teachers to take Writing and Thinking or Writing to Learn first because these workshops most broadly address issues of teaching and learning through writing and offer an introduction to the Institute's writing practices. Other workshops—Thinking through Narrative, Writing to Read, Writing to Learn Math and Science, Fictions, and Poetry—apply the Institute's principles of writing instruction to particular disciplines and classroom goals. Weekend workshops begin with dinner and a first session on Friday evening and conclude on Sunday at 12:30. The workshop consists of seven 90-minute sessions. Weekend Workshop ScheduleFriday
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Weeklong WorkshopsEach July the Institute offers weeklong versions of many of its one-day or weekend workshops. The July workshops offer extended time for writing, small group work, and private reading, as well as for informal conversation and socializing. In addition, teachers collaborate on developing classroom strategies for using Institute writing practices. Furthermore, the July Writing Retreat for Teachers is especially offered for teachers who have previously participated in an Institute workshop and want to continue working on their own writing. The retreat leader and participants determine the daily schedule for the Writing Retreat. All other workshops are composed of 90-minute and two-hour sessions between 9:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. each day except Wednesday, when the afternoon is free after 1:00 p.m. During the July workshops, teachers live in single rooms on the Bard campus, eat meals together, and enjoy the beautiful setting and lively atmosphere of Annandale-on-Hudson in the summer. The five-day schedule allows time to explore the scenic Mid Hudson Valley; take trips to nearby historic sites such as Franklin Delano Roosevelt's home and library, Eleanor Roosevelt's home at Val-Kill, and the painter Frederic Church's home at Olana; hike in the nearby Catskills; shop in Woodstock; eat at the many fine restaurants in the area; and attend concerts at Bard, in nearby Rhinebeck, or at the Tanglewood Music Festival (a 75-minute drive from campus). Bard College athletic facilities, including the Stevenson Gymnasium's swimming pool, tennis and squash courts, and fitness center, are available to workshop participants. Scheduled events begin on Sunday, with registration from 2:30 to 5:30 p.m., a reception at 5:30 p.m., a buffet dinner at 6:30 p.m., and an opening workshop from 7:30 to 9:00 p.m. The workshop week includes a reception on Monday evening, guest speaker or visiting artist on Tuesday, and a celebratory reading and party on Thursday. Weeklong workshops conclude on Friday at 4:00 p.m. If necessary, workshop participants may remain in their rooms overnight Friday and leave after breakfast on Saturday. Participants in the Writing Retreat establish their own daily schedules. All other workshops are composed of 90-minute and two-hour sessions between 9:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. each day except Wednesday, when the afternoon is free after 1:00 p.m. Special Project WorkshopsThe Institute's Project on Writing and Science: In 2001–2003, the Bard Institute for Writing and Thinking collaborated with Bard College's Division of Natural Sciences and Mathematics on new Writing to Read Scientific Texts workshops. Funded through a grant from the Ira W. DaCamp Foundation, the project focused on writing practices for teaching challenging scientific research papers. Offered in connection with Bard's Distinguished Scientist Lecture series, workshop topics included Game Theory and Political Conflict; Stem Cell Research: The Ethical and Scientific Debates; Smallpox: The Death and Resurrection of a Virus. This collaboration resulted in cross-disciplinary conversations among faculty associates from many fields and Bard faculty in the sciences. The new series raised questions about how science, as an academic discipline and as a method, is uniquely important to the development of critical thinking. The project continues in 2003–2004 with new workshops on Implementing Writing to Read in the Scientific Classroom. |