Pencils in Hand: Students discover the power of words

By Elysse Alvarado

Dallas City of Learning is a citywide initiative dedicated to ensuring that all students have access to high-quality summer learning programs. In addition to providing fun learning opportunities, DCOL commits to connect students to their community in deep and engaging ways.  

Students at West Dallas SOARS flexed their writing skills this summer with  The Writer’s Garret, a literary arts center that connects young readers to literature and writing.  Their mission is to “foster the education and development of readers, writers, and audiences, by putting them in touch with quality literature, each other, and the communities in which they live and write.”

Throughout the SOARS summer learning camp, students learned about writing styles and how to develop their own voice. From poetry to short stories, learners express their creativity everyday through storytelling.

West Dallas SOARS is housed at the West Dallas Community Center which provides daily programs to seniors and is the perfect place for budding authors to interview individuals from around their neighborhood. The Writer’s Garret challenged their young writers to interview a senior citizen about their life and ask for advice for someone their age.

One young writer admits she was a little intimidated by her interviewee. “ I was nervous at first, but then we began talking and she had so many great stories.” Stories about young love, favorite foods to cook and how much Dallas has changed.  Interviewees were ecstatic to share their memories and also to connect with students. “I think young people and us seniors need each other. Kids and older people can’t help themselves. We both depend on each other so I enjoyed talking with them about life.” Plenty of stories and laughs were exchanged as well as some recipe suggestions. Advice for students ranged from “think positively” to “be a leader and not a follower,” but one of the most common pieces of advice was to simply “be kind.” 

Experiential learning is a core part of Dallas City of Learning’s curriculum. At West Dallas SOARS students have endless opportunities to grow. While working with senior citizens to showcase their life stories students were able to bloom as writers while learning about their own community in a special and memorable way.