Your First Day

How will I find my writers and the classroom?
Sign in at the front office, and a Deep staff member will meet you there. We’ll take you to your workshop to meet your ed fellow. The ed fellow is Deep’s main point of contact at your school. Ed fellows ensure you have a classroom where you’ll conduct your workshop, they’ve built your roster, and they are the first person to find if you run in to any problems. They won’t necessarily be supervising your workshop, but you’ll know where they are located in case anything goes awry.

Who, exactly, is an ed fellow?
Ed fellows (short for “educator fellows”) are teachers—one at each school—who are involved because they believe that what you’re doing at Deep is really important. They are the stewards and champions of Deep’s Young Author Project at their school.

Is the school expecting me?
Yes. The front office and your ed fellow will be expecting you every week. It’s likely they’ll recognize you by your blue Deep t-shirt!

What should I wear?
Wear your Deep t-shirt to every workshop. This marks you as a safe adult in the school. Also, please use the school dress policy for teachers as a guideline. No short-shorts, mini skirts, ripped up Deep t-shirts, etc.

What should we be doing on Week 1?
Each week, you’ll guide your authors towards publication with a specific goal. You can find all weekly workshops here. Use the Week 1 link to guide your planning, and follow Deep’s workshop structure (target exercise, reading discussion, writing, sharing.)

What readings should I use?
That’s up to you. In the weekly workshop guides, you’ll find some staff favorites, but those aren’t mandatory. We have lots more options in our reading archives. Our biggest suggestion? Bring in variety. Bring your favorite author and a piece written by a Deep author; try a few different genres. Bring something that will inspire your writers to write and get them excited about being published. Ask them what they like to read, listen to what’s happening in their lives, then bring readings in response.

What if I blow it?!
No worries! We’ve all done it—and it will only make you better. Also, you probably didn’t bomb as badly as you think you did. We’re a team; your partner is there for support, and so is the staff. This might be a great opportunity to request a staff observation. Don’t hesitate to contact Deep staff if you need some reassurance, pointers, and support!

What if my kids are bouncing off the walls?!
Contact Deep staff for help. We’ve been doing this a long time and have lots of behavior management strategies.