As other students waited for their rides home, one classroom at Sacramento's Arthur A. Benjamin Health Professions High School was just filling up.
With the stragglers in their seats, teacher Deborah Meltvedt stood in the center of the circle of desks and offered the day's writing prompt.
The creative writing club was asked to write on the theme "At the Table." In addition to reading a poem from Oakland poet Kim Addonizio, the students passed spice jars under their noses.
Each writing club session begins with inspiration: an idea, a thought, an image, even a smell that can launch the young minds into examining their life and memories.
Without a "shush," the students began pouring those thoughts onto paper.
Charlotte Rutigliano said she finds writing a relaxing way to "free what is on your mind."
"I usually write about the ups and downs of life," said Rutigliano, 17, whose writing talent was recently discovered by one of her teachers.
Local nonprofit 916 Ink supports the young writers at Health Professions High School in Upper Land Park and two other sites, Salvation Army/Capitol Heights Academy and Colonial Heights Library.
Program leaders are asking for help to turn aspiring writers into published authors. They have asked Book of Dreams readers to help pay to print two copies of the collective works for each of of the 70 participating students.
Students range from third- to 12th-graders. Contributions will also help fund workshop materials and a book- release party to celebrate their accomplishment.
Program Executive Director Katie McCleary said adults can help build young people's sense of self by not dismissing their words.
"We as a community, as adults, need to value their work," she said.
She said students won't necessarily all want to be writers, but they will learn to value the written word and learn to express themselves, traits that can have a powerful effect on other realms of life.
Needed: Funds to publish two books per student and workshop materials.
Total: $2,500.
Editor's Note: This article has been changed from the print version to correct the name of the class' teacher. Corrected on Dec. 12, 2011.
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