The Manitoba Writing Project (MBWP)
The Manitoba Writing Project (MBWP) is an associated international site of the National Writing Project, the first and only site in Canada. The MBWP offers a 2-week Summer Writing Institute (SWI) every other summer for educators to become writers and teachers of writing. We launched our first SWI in 2014, with a focus on writing for/as social justice and human rights. In the summer of 2023, we offered the Summer Writing Institute as a new, 6 credit-hour, permanent course offering, Becoming Writers: Place, Power & Pedagogy in Teaching Writing, with 35 participants. The title reflects our focus on exploring our relationships to place through writing, our critical literacy stance, and our ongoing exploration of writing pedagogies relevant and meaningful to the communities where we teach and write.
MBWP Highlights
Over the years, we have:
MBWP Highlights
Over the years, we have:
- conducted a 2-year research study on writing and the teaching of writing in Manitoba
- facilitated a practitioner inquiry group called "Writing G/Rounds" with teacher leaders from the SWI to explore our teaching of writing
- organized a 2-year series of free public events called "Passions, Pedagogies, and Publics," each featuring a panel of international and local guest speakers to create interdisciplinary and inter-institutional dialogue around writing in the humanities
- organized and hosted the "Writing for Social Justice & Human Rights Forum" for 50 educators with support from the Centre for Human Rights Research
- offered renewal retreats for SWI participants to come together in various places with special guests for a day of writing, walking, and renewal
- co-presented with SWI teacher leaders at the Adolescent Literacy Summit, the Manitoba Association of Teachers of English conference, the Manitoba Education Research Network conference, the MTS/MASS conference, and others
- visited schools to offer workshops and write with students
- in the context of the Manitoba K-12 Education Review, organized and hosted a "Write to the Review" workshop, featuring speakers, resources, and time to write letters and submissions to the Commission
- held a writing workshop and renewal retreat at the Canadian Museum for Human Rights
- launched "Writing Innovation Projects" supporting innovative writing projects proposed by teams of educators in K-12 schools
- invited submissions for the "This Matters Most" writing challenge, recognizing participating students and schools
- with teacher candidates, offered an online book and writing club called the "Read/Write/Share Club" for students in Gr 7-9
- established and held meetings with the MBWP Advisory Board
- co-hosted the "Becoming Writers/Unbounded Stories" workshop as an outreach event for writers interested in storying writing, sharing, and dialogue focused on place, pedagogy, and connection
- piloted our first "Write Out, Manitoba!" initiative with a month of writing invitations and resources for educators to take their students outside to write