Palo Alto
Thinking and Writing Academy
Summer 2027
dates coming soon!
In today’s AI world, colleges and employers want students who can defend their thinking in real-time. Our summer classes focus on learning to “think on paper” with cause and effect reasoning, evidence and diverse perspectives. Students will reason, write and speak with clarity and confidence, and they will have fun.
I hope you will join us!
The High School Essay Workshop: Who Should Attend?
Whether your student approaches reading and writing with reluctance or is unchallenged in English class, the High School Essay Workshop offers differentiated, personalized instruction for a range of learners. Rising 8th graders to more advanced AP students will be challenged to reach new levels of reading and writing and to defend their writing choices in real time. All participants will receive a deep library of texts, a range of teaching videos and handouts along with precise, targeted and ongoing feedback on their writing throughout the week. I’ve been doing this a loooong time (almost 20 years!).
2027 Summer Schedule Coming Soon!
AI and Falling Literacy Rates
AI is causing a cognitive debt in our young people (MIT). That is why students must know how to read, think, write and speak effectively in order to compete in today’s changing world. According to the National Assessment of Educational progress (NAEP), literacy scores for eighth graders (the iPhone generation) are declining across almost all demographics and AI users are outsourcing the productive struggle essential for learning.
Get Ahead This Summer
In the Essay Writing Workshop, students turn off AI and turn on their brains to the world of reading, writing and critical thinking. The Workshop is an intensive one-week program designed to help students master the components of reading comprehension and analytical essay writing.
Real Teaching, Not Tutoring
Now in its 18th year and taught by a veteran high school educator, the essay workshop is based on years of real classroom experience about how teenagers actually learn.
Register Below
Classes fill quickly! Please register below with your date and time preference and I will respond as soon as possible. Thank you.
Curriculum
Attendees will master how to think through and write:
analysis that moves beyond plot summary and includes a close reading of complex texts
synthesis of main ideas, showcasing the ability to trace patterns, a key skill in critical thinking
concise and targeted thesis statements that demonstrate cause and effect reasoning
opening arguments that cogently communicate a roadmap of evidence
the perfect paragraph with relevant points
logical, grammatically correct sentences
Your student will receive precise and ongoing feedback on their writing throughout the week. They will also read and analyze a range of engaging, challenging and diverse texts.
Repeat students will be given new texts each year!
About the Instructor
Lucy Filppu is a published, tenured Teacher of English, AP Seminar, AP Research and Creative Writing at Palo Alto High School. She has taught a range of complex texts and writing strategies to every grade level, in addition to launching two new English electives. She is trained in blended online content delivery and her writing has been published in Flash Fiction Forum, Bright Magazine and The New York Times. She earned a B.A. in Communications from UCLA; a M.A. in Creative Writing and Literature from NYU; and attended Columbia Teacher’s College and San Jose State University for her teaching credential.
Parent Testimonials
“Our son loved Ms. Filppu’s enthusiasm, and the way she teaches reading and writing. He was more than ready for 9th grade.”
“My student returned three times to write with Ms. Filppu. Her techniques are outstanding.”
“I have three solid college essay drafts going into Senior year. Thank you Ms. Filppu!”
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