A topic I have seen a few times over the years came up tonight on a face book group I am a part of. I wanted to share it and my reply here as I think it is important and clearly have a passion for what I believe.
Christine Wrote:
I tried to explain NaNoWriMo to my kids’ homeschool monitor, and she basically said it was a waste of time because, “quantity doesn’t make quality.” We’ll, duh. She really ticked me off…
My Reply:
Christine, that is not someone I would honestly want as a homeschool mentor. Half the reason why my husband and I homeschool, beyond how often we move with the military, is to let our children follow their passions, make sure that the arts have a large place in their lives, and let them think and explore outside the box. While NaNo is not about quality grammar or any of the things the lady might prize, it is all about creativity, following ones dreams and interest, setting and meeting goals, motivating ones self and others, and so much more. NaNo helps to create character I think in both children an adults. I think that Mentor would end up with her head spinning did she know that my 13 year old is doing nothing BUT NaNo with her homeschool time for November because it covers so much learning from just the basic research she needs for it. It will be a month well worth her time and thankfully we have a homeschool umbrella leader who agrees!
Yes, let it be known that my 13 year old homeschooler is spending the month of November on a NaNoWriMo project, and not all the other subjects that most students will be bored to tears with. She is researching and of course following her other interests as well. I am not worried at all. We really like block learning as is so this fits well.
No, quantity doesn’t make quality. But in most cases, you can’t write a great book by focusing on writing a perfect first draft. Nano, to me, is about embracing that and writing a wildly creative and recklessly imperfect first draft, which you can go back and revise later! 😉