Beginning the Project

Janet and I originally planned to deliver a ten-week writing course to participants at a drop-in centre for youth who live on or close to the streets. It soon became apparent that the clients at the centre were not interested in joining a scheduled meeting. There were, however, four adults interested in joining our writing course. Three women found out about the course through the Camrose Read and Write literacy program, where Janet was coordinator. Two of the women were students at the program and one woman was referred by her mental health worker. Our fourth participant was a woman I had met through my work with the Write to Learn Project. The six of us proved to be a dynamic group.

It quickly became uncomfortable to use drop-in centre space, as we were bringing no benefit to the sponsoring agency. The space felt borrowed. We soon transferred our classes over to the Camrose Read and Write Program. Immediately, the group felt at home. One participant mentioned how much she liked the switch to the Camrose Read and Write Program. She commented, "The table and music at the classroom is more comfortable than at the [centre]. Also, Janet can bring her dogs." The new space not only gave us more ownership, it allowed us to bring in different activities like planting seeds and having a makeover day.

During our first session, we lay down the foundation of our course. We talked as a group about fears about writing, and how we wanted the course to be organized. The women were consulted about everything from what snack they wanted to what topics they would like to write about. Janet and I explained that in addition to teaching the course, we were both doing research and planned to write papers about our findings. We each described our research focus and how the women could help us find answers to our questions. We asked the group for questions and concerns. Everyone seemed pretty excited and agreed to participate.

How I Did My Research

In order to collect data from the classes, Janet and I met after each class and wrote about the day's activities. We each described responses to exercises and activities and the way group members interacted. After we had finished, we would share our writing with each other and discuss the day and take more notes. These sessions gave us time to really discuss what was happening in class and what action we might take next time. The themes that we pulled out of our discussion became the ideas behind the following week's lesson plan. This provided fluidity and constancy for the course. The notes also provided data for my research.