Most of my students are new to creative writing. They are eager to learn, but they are also self-conscious and unsure. Many of them do not have strong literacy skills in general, and so any type of writing is challenging. As so many students are already out of their comfort zone simply by sitting in the classroom or creative writing club meeting, doing something unexpected pulls everyone out of a familiar zone and allows for the establishment of a new normal.
One way that I do this is to tell students that we will begin class with a brief movie. They usually expect either a short documentary, along the lines of what they are used to teachers showing, or a clip from a film. Instead, I turn off the classroom lights, turn up the volume, and use the projector to show a dance routine (about three minutes is a good length). It’s most effective with contemporary or hip-hop routines performed to instrumental only music, so that students aren’t influenced by the lyrics. The best results are usually from videos with two dancers, an emotional element, and no clearly linear story line. So You Think You Can Dance is an especially good resource for videos of dance routines, although you can find them from other shows and dance groups.
The first time through the video, I just ask them to watch. I expect to be able to see and hear their surprise when we are suddenly watching a dance routine. Every time I try this, at least one student starts laughing, at least one squirms uncomfortably in their seat, and at least one is covertly dancing in their seat by the end of the routine.
When the video ends, we briefly discuss their responses and initial impressions. Then we watch it again. After the video finishes for the second time, I give them a set amount of time (usually ten to fifteen minutes) to write. I ask them not to just describe or summarize the dance routine, which most of them don’t have the dance vocabulary to effectively do. Instead, they are supposed to consider an element of the movement, characterization, or emotion that resonated with them and start writing the beginning of a story. They are allowed to write whatever they want as long as they keep writing for the whole time.
As students were already uncomfortable or hesitant in the classroom, doing something unexpected helps to neutralize the situation. As it’s not something serious, it helps to set most students at ease. I use this as an early opportunity to emphasize that there is not a single right answer in creative writing, as well as to give students the freedom to explore their ideas.
This initial piece of writing, as inspired by the dance routine, can continue to be developed through other brainstorming and revising exercises. Eventually, students will have an entirely new piece of writing that has no obvious connection to the original video.
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Keri Withington is an assistant professor of English at Pellissippi State Community College in Knoxville, Tennessee. Her academic articles have previously appeared in journals such as the Journal of Student Success and Retention, and her poetry has been published by many journals, recently including Fox Adoption Magazine and Lime Hawk.