Old School Writing Workshop

Deirdre Sullivan joins OSWW

OSWW is growing its program and coaching team this year. Kate and I are thrilled to have Deirdre Sullivan join us for coaching and workshop instruction. Her extensive experience, unique talents with teaching kids with different learning styles and needs, and enthusiasm for all things grammar makes this a perfect fit for all.  Deirdre is already coaching students this summer and will be co-teaching Fall 2011  OSWW Fundamentals (more details on that soon).  Here is more on Deirdre:

Deirdre Sullivan, a former English and Spanish teacher, also supervised the Write Place, a peer mentoring program at Fenwick High School in Oak Park. She graduated cum laude from Boston College where she majored in English and minored in International Relations with a concentration in Spanish. During college, Deirdre worked as a copy editor on the Sub Turri yearbook. She believes it is pertinent for students to fine-tune basic English grammar skills in order to advance to composition level writing.  Deirdre has a personal interest in assisting students with special needs, but has been a passionate educator for varied levels of learners; over the past twenty years she has been a classroom instructor for students ages 7 to 70. 

OSWW: background and philosophy

 

Anita and Molly launched the Old School Writing Workshop (OSWW) in 2009 in response to the need, described by parents we know, for better writing instruction for our children. Most seem to agree that while we are blessed to live in communities that offer our children an excellent education, our grade school kids lack competence in the core writing skills crucial to their success in high school, college, and the "real" world. The need for better instruction is compounded by the effects of communication technology: our children live in a world where the ever-more-casual written and spoken word dominates their lives. Still, parents know that strong communication skills --those that include proper grammar, strong vocabulary, well-supported opinions, and audience awareness-- can set students apart.

With all of that in mind, we set out to offer the community a writing course focused on the "old school" skills that parents once took for granted as part of any complete education. The result of our efforts is the Old School Writing Workshop. Eighteen middle-school students have completed the OSWW Fundamentals course. As of Fall 2010, Kate Dulla has co-lead all OSWW programs, including the Fundamentals session, with Molly.

What can you expect your middle-school child to gain from participating in the OSWW Fundamentals course? One message we try to convey clearly to parents and students is this: strong writing skills do not develop overnight. The process is more organic and messy than it is linear; it involves periods of struggle and success, and skills must be refined continually. For students to improve, they have to put forth consistent, focused effort over years. The OSWW is a jump start for writers committed to improving. Commitment means work: those kids who put in the effort to carefully do their homework (about 30-45 minutes per week) gain the most. After the workshop ends, students are better prepared to tackle their writing assignments with confidence; parents, should they choose to be involved (something we strongly suggest), should have a solid understanding of how they can help their student progress. What we promise is that kids leave the class with a better understanding of parts-of-speech, proper grammar and punctuation, sentence structure, and good paragraph construction; each student also will be familiar with effective self-editing/revision skills. It is then up to them, with the support of their parents, to exercise those writing muscles with discipline. To help kids and parents with that, we offer programs for high-school students including OSWW Spot Tutoring and the OSWW Writing Coach Program.

About Us

Kate Dulla and Molly Hughes lead the OSWW programs.

Molly joined Anita Moriarty at College Bound Consulting in 2009 to start a second career as an independent college consultant. That fall, they expanded their services by launching the Old School Writing Workshop. Molly and Kate Dulla, who joined OSWW in the summer of 2010, added services for high-schoolers; Spot Tutoring and the Writing Coach Program, along with the successful middle-school workshops, complete the OSWW offerings.  

Molly attended Hinsdale Central High School, where she spent many afternoons in the El Diablo yearbook room as a copy editor, or elsewhere in the English Department hallways writing and rehearsing for Mock Trial competitions. She went on to earn a B.A. in Spanish Literature with an English minor from Boston College, and then earned an  M.B.A. from the University of Virginia. At both Boston College and the University of Virginia, Molly wrote and edited for the student newspaper. She is writing short stories, loosely based on her childhood in Hinsdale, in her spare time.

Kate Dulla joined OSWW in 2010 as a writing coach, tutor, and workshop instructor. A Hinsdale native and Western Springs resident, Kate brings clients her wisdom from over ten years of teaching high-school English.  In addition to instructing in the English departments of Riverside Brookfield High School, where she was the yearbook advisor, and Hinsdale Central High School, Kate has tutored one-on-one for years. She shares the OSWW philosophy that students need to develop strong fundamental writing skills, but that building those skills need not be a tedious, boring experience.

How to Contact OSWW

Contact Molly at the following: 

Email: molly@oldschoolwritingworkshop.com

Phone: 630-272-7885