Meow Society? Hey, I'm Not a Cat!

October 29, 2012

You may be asking yourself about Meow Society. Is it for cats only? Do you learn strange new purring sounds? Do you learn how to get along with kittens? Well, it’s none of those things! Meow Society is a fun, growing group of kids who are sharing their writing here at the Red Bridge Branch.

We meet the 2nd Monday of each month at 7:00 p.m., and the group is made up of kids aged 7-12 or so. We journal outside of the branch in our free time, and then share our writing aloud in the group. We can write in our journals like it’s a diary about our day, or write poetry, or a short story, or whatever strikes our fancy! We usually start the group with a silly "mad lib" activity, and then have a hands-on writing activity. Some of our writing activities have included writing "nutsy news stories" and creating Halloween and fall-themed acrostic poems that we illustrated. Our projects are even displayed at our branch. If you’re still wondering where our group name came from, it stands for:

Memories
Expressed in
Our
Writing

There is also a children’s book, Cat Diaries: Secret Writings of the MEOW Society written by Betsy Byars, from which we draw our writing group name. Betsy Byars is a talented and award–winning writer from Charlotte, North Carolina who has been writing for children since 1962. She has authored many books and won many awards, including the Newbery Medal in 1971 for Summer of the Swans, a National Book Award in 1981 for The Night Swimmers (available through WorldCat), and an Edgar Award in 1992 for Wanted…Mud Blossom. I invite you to check out these and other great books by Betsy Byars, and to join us on the 2nd Monday of the month at 7:00 p.m. to share your own writing talents!

Dawn E.
Red Bridge Branch