So I just did one of my favorite things ever – went to my buddy Gabe´s for a few days. He is a really busy guy too and we put on a small-scale scholarship writing class for some students ranging from 8-20 years old. It was a cool experience because all the kids really want to study and were very curious about how to kick butt on the essay writing portion of the scholarship. The students have to write three small essays ranging from describing themselves to why they want the scholarship. I kept it simple emphasizing a few main points – 1) be honest, 2) use your personal voice, and 3) show don´t tell. 
It was a great experience doing this workshop with Gabe because it was a challenge. Salvadoran students are taught to work as a community where US students are much more independent. So by telling them to use their personal voice, it took a lot of discussion, examples and practice to get my point across. Also, showing rather than telling was a great exercise. Instead of saying what we have done, like a list, I tried to tell the kids to tell stories and use imagery to show how they are as people and students rather than just stating it.
It was very hard to get across. In discussion, I asked the students to pick a word that describes them, many said handworker, intelligent, honest. When I asked them to show me that rather than tell they would get a little caught up. From there, I asked a kid to tell a story about his friend that gave an example about how he was honest. The attention was off the talker because he was talking about someone else, plus, it is always easier to write about how great your friends are! 
The kid starting talking and he told a great story showing that his friend was honest rather than just saying ´he is honest´. Suddenly, a light turned on in most of the kids are they just started writing – it was so great to be there.
It was a great experience doing this workshop with Gabe because it was a challenge. Salvadoran students are taught to work as a community where US students are much more independent. So by telling them to use their personal voice, it took a lot of discussion, examples and practice to get my point across. Also, showing rather than telling was a great exercise. Instead of saying what we have done, like a list, I tried to tell the kids to tell stories and use imagery to show how they are as people and students rather than just stating it.
It was very hard to get across. In discussion, I asked the students to pick a word that describes them, many said handworker, intelligent, honest. When I asked them to show me that rather than tell they would get a little caught up. From there, I asked a kid to tell a story about his friend that gave an example about how he was honest. The attention was off the talker because he was talking about someone else, plus, it is always easier to write about how great your friends are! The kid starting talking and he told a great story showing that his friend was honest rather than just saying ´he is honest´. Suddenly, a light turned on in most of the kids are they just started writing – it was so great to be there.
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