Workshops for Grades 7-9

 Welcome to the Horror Stories! In this class, you'll explore the art of crafting horror stories, developing terriying monsters and villains, and creating unsettling atmospheres that will leave your readers on edge. You'll learn how to build suspense, play with readers' emotions, and use pacing and tension to create a sense of fear and dread. You'll also discover the different sub-genres of horror, such as gothic horror, psychological horror, supernatural horror, and cosmic horror. If you're ready to explore the darker side of storytelling and tap into your inner fears, then this class is for you! 

This workshop meets for six 120-minute classes.

  Class times:  

Thursdays, September 18 - October 23, 2025

5:30-7:30 pm

Fridays, September 19 - October 24, 2025

1:30-3:30 pm (homeschool)

  Microfiction goes by many names, including flash fiction, short-shorts, sudden fiction, postcard fiction, and nanofiction, and it is becoming wildly popular. While authors typically challenge themselves to write longer, more complex works, the challenge in writing microfiction is to create meaningful stories with fewer words. We’ll practice important techniques in word economy and selectivity, and we’ll decide what it is that we truly need to tell stories and what’s better left on the cutting room floor. Creation, experimentation, revision, and collaboration will be our keys as we complete several projects of different genres and forms, and then we’ll compile our work into a self-published class book!  

This workshop meets for six 120-minute classes.

  Class times:  

Thursdays, November 6 - December 18, 2025

5:30-7:30 pm

Fridays, November 7 - December 19, 2025

1:30-3:30 pm (homeschool)

No class November 28-29 (Thanksgiving Break)

 Words have the power to ignite movements, challenge injustice, and inspire change. Power in Poetry is a dynamic and creative class where students explore the art of protest poetry—using rhythm, rhyme, and raw emotion to amplify their voices. Through the works of influential poets and artists, students will analyze how poetry has influenced change in our world and craft their own powerful verses on issues they care about. This course encourages students to harness their personal experiences, emotions, and beliefs to create meaningful poetry and develop confidence in their ability to use words as a force for change. Student poetry will be published as a collaborative journal so we may share our work with each other and with wider audiences.

This workshop meets for six 120-minute classes.

  Class times:  

Thursdays, January 8 - February 12, 2026

5:30-7:30 pm

Fridays, January 9 - February 13, 2026

1:30-3:30 pm (homeschool)

 Knowing how to speak effectively in front of an audience is an important life skill. Doing it confidently and with poise can be difficult. In this class, we will work to develop skills in creating engaging content for speeches, as well as skills in impactful speech delivery. Students will write and deliver several short speeches of different types, as well as one longer speech or presentation. Feeling nervous? No worries! You’ll be part of a supportive and encouraging group of peers, all taking their first steps into the world of public speaking together.

This workshop meets for twelve 120-minute classes.

  Class times:  

Thursdays, February 19 - May 14, 2026

5:30-7:30 pm

Fridays, February 20 - May 15, 2026

1:30-3:30 pm (homeschool)

No class April 2-3 (Spring Break)