Teacher Talk: The Nuts and Bolts of Teaching the College Personal Statement

✏️Looking for the October Compositional Writing workshops with Kristian Kuhn? Click here.

Join us as we explore the nuts and bolts of teaching the college personal statement. During our session, we will learn about the common pitfalls and snags that often trip students up with regards to their writing.  A common misconception is that students should follow formulas and prescriptions – this is actually to the detriment of the student and a big deterrent to seeking admission into their respective schools.  Instead, we will see how a very versatile heuristic (the narrative thread) can yield organic, authentic, dynamic writing.

As a college personal statement expert, as well as a lead teacher for the National Writing Project and Princeton Tutoring, Kristian is going to embrace his inner-Bob Ross and “paint” with teachers through the college personal statement process.  A little-known fact about Bob Ross is that he only ever used one heuristic: the wet-on-wet-technique.  And as far as college application writing goes, students can do the same once they learn how to manipulate the heuristic of the narrative thread.

What you will get:

✔️A real-time virtual workshop facilitated by NWP and Princeton Tutoring teacher-leader, Kristian Kuhn

✔️A community of teachers who are interested in learning more about the college application process

✔️Access to Kristian’s models and exemplars (student samples that earned entrance into the top-tier schools in the nation)

✔️Support for teaching the college personal statement

Time Commitment (1 X 90-Minute Session ):

• Real-time virtual workshop on Tuesday, October 15 from 6:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Central Time.

Facilitator: Kristian Kuhn

Kristian began his writing instructor career at Brown University where he earned an M.A.T. in English and Education.

Working with both undergraduate and graduate students, he became known for his expertise in building student writers from the ground up – first mastering the fundamentals of composition, then aiding students to establish clear lines of reasoning across the expository modes with voice, rhythm, and flow.

During his time at Brown, Kristian also worked in the undergraduate admissions office reading and critiquing college application essays. In this role, he found himself saying “yay” and “nay” to prospective candidates based on the quality of their writing. This experience lent to Kristian’s ability to help college applicants write compelling and memorable application essays that are sure to impress college admissions boards.

Upon graduating from Brown, Kristian launched his career as a secondary ELA teacher in Upstate New York – a place he has called home for the last twenty years.

Early in his career, the professional community dubbed Kristian the “Bob Ross of Composition.”

He quickly realized that there is a seismic difference between “assigning” written work and explicitly “teaching” it.

To teach writing, Kristian “paints” with his students through modeling and close reading exemplars. Over the course of his career, he has developed a set of heuristics that demystify the writing process in ways that are easily accessible and readily comprehensible.

In addition to having completed his graduate work at Brown University, Kristian earned a third graduate degree in Literacy Education from St. John Fisher College. During his studies, he developed a vast repertoire of strategies to help struggling and emerging readers and writers actualize their full potential.

Throughout his twenty years of classroom experience, Kristian has helped countless LD (learning different/learning disabled) students flourish and take off as readers, writers, thinkers, and college applicants.

Kristian also trains teachers in his writing techniques and modalities. At present, he is a lead instructor for The National Writing Project where he facilitates teacher training programs. And in fall of 2023, Kristian was a lead presenter at the National Council of Teachers of English conference in Anaheim, California.  Further, Kristian is at present a lead-teacher for Princeton Tutoring.

Kristian is also an accomplished writer who has authored six collections of poetry and two textbooks – Teaching Teachers How to Teach Writing and What If We Taught Composition Like Bob Ross Teaches Painting? You can also find him hosting a popular YouTube channel (What If We Taught Composition Like Bob Ross Teaches Painting?) and a highly popular Facebook group, Teachers Making Better Writers