Yes, You Can Do NaNoWriMo in Spanish Class!
November is National Novel Writing Month, otherwise known as NaNoWriMo. It’s a month-long sprint to write a book, and while it was created with adults in mind, their Young Writers Program is meant for kids. It’s the perfect opportunity to get Spanish learners (at any age) in on the creative fun. Using NaNoWriMo in Spanish class will help students set writing goals, be in charge of their own learning, work at their own pace, and improve their written Spanish.
Using NaNoWriMo in Spanish class is a completely doable task whether it’s for bilingual students or kids learning Spanish as a second language. I’ll get into exactly why below.
What’s NaNoWriMo?
NaNoWriMo stands for National Novel Writing Month. Every November writers around the globe set off to write 50,000 words (which is more or less a complete novel) by the end of the month. I’ve done it a few times and love the challenge!
What does that have to do with kids?
NaNoWriMo created the Young Writers Program, which serves kids under 18, as well as K-12 educators. Kids and teachers can create an account and participate in NaNoWriMo too.
Do they have to write 50,000 words?
Not at all! Kids can choose their own word count goal. It can be as little or as much as they feel comfortable with. Some students may only be able to write a sentence a day – and that’s perfectly fine!
Can I use NaNoWriMo in Spanish class?
Absolutely. Educators can register their entire class with the ability to monitor student progress throughout the month.
The NaNoWriMo’s Young Writers Program provides lesson plans, writing prompts, a progress chart, and a letter to parents that teachers are free to use. While these resources are currently available in English, the program is hoping to create Spanish resources in the near future. The parent letter is the only resource available in both English and Spanish at this time.
Additionally, teachers can use the Young Writers Program platform for smaller writing challenges year-round.
Can you complete NaNoWriMo in Spanish?
Of course you can! While the platform and resources are in English, participants around the world write in the language of their choice.
I’m in! How can I adapt NaNoWriMo for Spanish class?
- Make it student-centered. Students choose their own word count goal.
- Try to shy away from being grammatically correct. There is a time and a place for that, but NaNoWriMo is about letting the creative juices flow. Loosen the reins on language usage, verb conjugations, and vocabulary. If kids make up a word here or there, just go with it. Allow your students to write without fear of making mistakes.
- Help out when you need to. Use writing prompts, sentence stems, or vocabulary maps to give kids ideas when they don’t know what to write.
- Then, try some word sprints. Set a timer and have kids write -and only write- until time is up.
- Keep students accountable for meeting their goal.
What exactly should they be writing?
Whatever they want! Students can work on one writing project throughout the month or a different writing exercise every day. Some helpful ideas are…
- Recreate a fairy tale
- Write a legend or folktale
- Describe and create a story from a daily picture prompt
- Write a daily diary entry
- Write an autobiography
NaNoWriMo is meant to be a fun way to get anyone and everyone to write, and NaNoWriMo in Spanish class is no different. Let kids be creative and make mistakes, but most of all, give them more chances to write something -anything- in Spanish.
