Random Objects and the Writing Process

We are in week 2 of my classes that I teach at Spartanburg Methodist College, and each day, we've done some pre-writing towards their first piece of writing that they'll turn in for a grade.  That assignment is to tell me something essential about themselves, and we've done some standard approaches, like making a list.

I wanted to do something a bit more creative, so I adapted a successful idea I used as a retreat leader.  I bought in a box of all sorts of objects, from things found in nature like stones and feathers to stuff I had made to random things I picked up.  I laid them all out on a table, and I had students pick one:

First I had them describe the object.  Then we did freewriting for five minutes.  The goal was to keep writing and to follow their thoughts wherever they led, even if they seemed to have nothing to do with the object.  I told them that I would not be reading this writing, although I would be walking around the room to make sure that everyone was writing.  They could write by hand or write on laptops/tablets.

After the writing, I had them read silently, underlining anything that was interesting or surprising or had potential.  Then we put all the objects on the table, and everyone chose a different object.

We did the freewriting again.  And then, because it didn't take as much time as I expected, I had them write about what object they would have chosen if they could have had any object from their own experience.  I granted them magical powers, so even if the object was at their grandmother's house, they could write about that.

And then at the end, I had them write for a daily writing grade, an analysis of this experience.  Most of them said they enjoyed it.  Were they being truthful?  I suspect they were.  It's unusual, and even if it doesn't lead to writing they will use later, it was a fun experiment and better than some of the instruction can be boring.

I feel like it went well.  We talked about how this process could be useful if they felt stuck, or how it could be useful to get to memories that weren't right at the surface.  When I used it at a retreat, we talked about the memories generated and then we talked about how the objects and the memories might get us to a place where we were more receptive to God.  I didn't include the God angle in my Composition classes, because I don't want to be too preachy--last week I had them make a list of things that were wonderful about themselves, and then I had them imagine what God would say about them, if God was making the list.  Even though I am at a Methodist school, I don't want to introduce God talk too often and risk being off putting, particularly since my approach to spirituality might clash with how they have been raised.  Better to introduce spiritual elements gently and gradually.

Students were engaged and writing, and that, for me, is the definition of a successful experiment.