Arlington Community Education

Please note: This class will take place at Arlington High School, and not Gibbs as previously published. Flannery O’Connor said that anyone who survived childhood had enough material to write for the rest of their life. While that may be true, it still takes some effort to turn those experiences into fiction. We’ll read published stories and complete in-class writing and brainstorming assignments to mine personal experience, current events, and history for new short stories or novels. You will have a chance to workshop one or two you’ve written and receive feedback from the instructor and classmates. This class is appropriate for new and experienced writers. Everyone has a story to tell—let’s find out what yours is!

Awaken your senses and get inspired by happiness researcher Gretchen Rubin’s book Life in Five Senses. She explores the science behind our five senses and how simple attention practices can make your life richer. We’ll read the book together and bring it to life through creative weekly sensory experiments. Along the way you’ll discover your neglected sense(s), create a vivid five-senses portrait of yourself or a loved one, and develop a toolbox of methods to make yourself happier by consciously engaging with what you see, hear, smell, taste, and touch.