Illinois State Writing Project

The power of writing goes far beyond the joy of composing and sharing stories. We love this tale of creativity, audacity, intrigue, and contagious literary success. As they often do, librarians played a crucial role in moving this young author's story from contraband to high-demand item. Brave spelling (formerly called "invented spelling") was likewise essential.

An 8-Year-Old Wrote a Book and Hid It on a Library Shelf. It’s a Hit. Dillon Helbig, a second-grader from Idaho, wrote an 81-page book about his “Crismis” adventures. Now other children want to write stories.

A promising new resource from NCTE: "What Works in Writing Instruction: Research and Practice, 2nd edition." "Using teacher-friendly language and classroom examples, Deborah Dean looks at instructional practices supported by a broad range of research and weaves them together into accessible recommendations that can inspire teachers to find what works for their own classrooms and students." https://store.ncte.org/book/what-works-writing-instruction-research-and-practice-second-edition

Anonymous course evaluation from summer 2020: "The Illinois State Writing Project is the best professional development I've ever experienced as a teacher. I feel re energized, motivated, and ready for this next school year because of this class. This class reminded me that I do know a lot just from being a teacher and I was able to pursue answers that I cared about within my own pedagogy to continue my degree with professional development that matters and makes a difference." Click "Send Email" to learn more about our Leadership Institute (Eng. 409.06, "The Writing Project").