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Grades level iconsGrades 4–8
Session time icon45 minutes
Genre information iconFantasy/SciFi, Narrative, Persuasive, Poetry
Video resource type iconVideos

Inspiration in the Everyday with Charlotte Yeung

by 826 National
Midwest Youth Poet Laureate Ambassador, Charlotte Yeung, shares one of her favorite brainstorming strategies for creating a new piece.
About the Author

Charlotte Yeung is a best-selling author, arts activist, the 2022 Indianapolis Poet Youth Poet Laureate, and the Midwest Poet Laureate Ambassador. She is deeply involved with international communities and has traveled around the world to speak with delegates about nuclear disarmament. Her first multilingual poem will be included in the 2024 Lunar Codex and will be sent to the Moon, and her children’s book, Isabelle and the Magic Birdwas an Amazon #1 Release. Charlotte studies Political Science and International Relations at Purdue University.

What Your Students Will Learn

You will learn how to use the world around you to inspire your next piece of writing.

Common Core Standards
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.4.10 Common Core Standards Icon
Write routinely over extended time frames (time for research, reflection, and revision) and shorter time frames (a single sitting or a day or two) for a range of discipline-specific tasks, purposes, and audiences.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.5.10 Common Core Standards Icon
Write routinely over extended time frames (time for research, reflection, and revision) and shorter time frames (a single sitting or a day or two) for a range of discipline-specific tasks, purposes, and audiences.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.6.10 Common Core Standards Icon
Write routinely over extended time frames (time for research, reflection, and revision) and shorter time frames (a single sitting or a day or two) for a range of discipline-specific tasks, purposes, and audiences.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.7.10 Common Core Standards Icon
Write routinely over extended time frames (time for research, reflection, and revision) and shorter time frames (a single sitting or a day or two) for a range of discipline-specific tasks, purposes, and audiences.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.8.10 Common Core Standards Icon
Write routinely over extended time frames (time for research, reflection, and revision) and shorter time frames (a single sitting or a day or two) for a range of discipline-specific tasks, purposes, and audiences.
What You Will Do

STEP 1 Watch the video. After you finish the video, answer these questions in your writing journal: “How does Charlotte Yeung find inspiration for her writing?  Have you ever tried something similar?  Which of these ideas would you like to try?” STEP 2 Make a plan to find inspiration in the world around you and collect at least 5 things that you could write about. Write your plan on page 1 of the Inspiration in the Everyday— Handout and record the topics you come up with.  If you aren’t sure where to start, try out one of these ideas. Take...

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