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The Official Student News Site of Parkway West High

Pathfinder

The Official Student News Site of Parkway West High

Pathfinder

The Official Student News Site of Parkway West High

Pathfinder

Culinary teacher Katie Hashley receives two haikus around her door. Student writers chose to highlight the wafting scents and spice concoctions created in the kitchen. “I love that the students chose to write haikus about our class because especially if it’s a former student, it lets me know that they really enjoyed taking the class,” Hashley said. “[The haikus] were completely true. When we bake cookies, the whole school does, in fact, know. In my mind, it’s free advertising for students to take the class. It also made me really happy because when we make cookies, it’s always a really fun day for students.”

Hoards of Haikus

Addie Gleason, Managing Editor-in-Chief March 15, 2023

White papers appear spontaneously outside classrooms and school locations, each detailing an essential part of school culture. Formatted in the familiar three-line structure of a classic haiku, student...

A collage of various haikus written by Creative Writing 2 students.

QUIZ: Which places in the school correspond with these haikus?

Ulaa Kuziez, News and Sports Editor April 8, 2020

Were you wondering what all of those random poems plastered around school were? They are haikus: a traditionally Japanese poem consisting of three short lines that do not rhyme. Creative Writing 2 students...

Searching for the piece of art that she will respond to, Creative Writing student and senior Allainah Crawford looks at works from the AP Design and Photography class. “This project is ‘free range’ compared to some of the other ones,” English teacher Dan Barnes said. “With express the music, we have word count, [but] with this one, I just want my students to be inspired by art.”

Art responding to art: Creative Writing 2 and the art department’s curriculum collaboration

Zoe DeYoung, Staff Writer February 4, 2020

Ekphrasis—better described as art responding to art—is a practice that English teacher Dan Barnes knows well.  When Honors English 3 was offered as a class, Barnes taught ekphrastic response, having...

Working on his novella before the approaching publishing date, senior Hayden Riehl hopes to grow both his understanding of the world around him and the world’s understanding of him. “I find writing for storytelling to be incredibly therapeutic, just from some of the stories that people have written in class that I've [seen],” Riehl said. “It was them literally working through a trauma that they've had in the past or something that they're trying to get their own heads wrapped around. Stories can do that. They can help you navigate a sea of your own thoughts.”

From students to published authors: Creative Writing 2 will host E-book release launch party at the Wolf Cafe

Brinda Ambal, Conceptual Editor-in-Chief April 30, 2019

In a frenzy to finish before their deadline, the Creative Writing 2 class logs hours that will result in a published E-book on the Amazon Kindle Store. Amazon’s self-publishing program, Kindle Direct...

Freshman Makenna Dunn works on her novel in the computer lab. Students were required to work on their novels at home each night to make steady progress. "It is pretty intimidating to be [writing a novel] in a month, but I feel like as I’ve gone on with it I’ve actually had a lot of fun writing on my own time," Dunn said.

Honors English students strive to complete a novel in the month of November

Sabrina Bohn, Carly Anderson, and Sydney Kinzy November 17, 2017

Students in Kim Hanan-West’s Honors English I class are getting hands-on writing experience by participating in National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo), with the goal of completing a 50,000 word novel...

At the beginning of most meetings, students are given a prompt to write or draw about. "It allows me to show people the creativity I have in my mind," freshman Aimee Laws said.

Reflections inspires creativity within students

Sydney Kinzy, PHOTO EDITOR February 19, 2015
Reflections, West's literary magazine, offers inspiration for writers and artists so they can express themselves.
POW: Dr. Angela Frye, Creative Writing

POW: Dr. Angela Frye, Creative Writing

Allie Collins, Convergent Media Writer January 22, 2015
"Why do you have such an interest in movies?"