Task Development: Creative Writing

Abstract

Despite claims that creative writing does not meet the rigor required in academic English classes, writing fiction, narrative, and memoir encompasses key literacy skills that, when developed, enable students to meaningfully express themselves. Emergent bilingual students deserve access to these skills, and teachers can support their development of effective writing ability, their emotional well‐being, and their English language acquisition by teaching creative writing in English/Language Arts classrooms. This entry provides examples of creative writing instruction as a linguistically empowering study for emergent bilingual and ESL/EFL students. Creative writing does not generally take priority in the instruction of ESL/EFL students, and it is often considered antithetical to the study of academic English. However, creative writing supports language acquisition and the study of literature by inviting students to connect deeply with content and literary structure. Examples of student work from an 11th grade US classroom of EB students illustrate the power creative writing instruction holds for language‐minoritized students.