On Oct. 20, NDSU celebrated National Day of Writing across campus with events spanning from 7:30 a.m. to midnight. The nation-wide event is hosted by the National Council of Teachers of English to promote “the remarkable variety of writing we engage in.”
Students were invited to explore various writing styles, including poetry, grant writing, literature reviews and even social media posts. These events gave students in a variety of colleges to learn relevant writing skills and discover writing resources.
Poetry by Omission
By taking a page from a book, and deliberately blocking out sentences or entire passages, students were able to create unique, creative poetry in the second floor of the union.
With the privilege of anonymity, the NDSU community tacked poetry to a wall. It slowly filled with short poetry for passersby to read, and perhaps create themselves.
Online Writing
From 2 p.m. to 3 p.m., the Quentin Burdick Building taught students how to get started on Prezi, an online format for presentations. For people new to the platform, instructors at the QBB gave an overview of the basics. Intermediate and advanced users were able to improve upon their already existing skills.
The expansiveness and influence of social media gave international students a way to share the power of words. The Intensive English Language Program encouraged students to post to Facebook, in various languages, to represent the
For research and science students, the Technology Learning and Media Center gave a workshop on tips for creating a successful and appealing poster, using Microsoft’s PowerPoint. The perfect poster can help students make their ideas pop, and spread their hard work across campus.
Why I Write
The NDSU Writing Programs and Sigma Tau Delta Honor Society asked students to answer questions about writing as they got coffee in the Minard Coffee Shop. Questions included, “What do you write?” “Why do you think writing is important?” and “Who is your favorite author?”
Soon, blank pieces of paper were filled with thoughts from NDSU students about writing and literature in their daily lives.
Other events of the day included Learn to Write and Write to Learn, Fun with Word Games, Grant Tea for Grantees, Write-In, Writing a Literature Review and Writing Jumpstart.
With a variety of events throughout the day, spanning from interest for upperclassmen, English students, science students or the every day NDSU student, the NDSU National Day of Writing celebrated many NDSU departments and all types of the written word.