A classroom buzzes with creativity as students craft short stories, write poems, and bring characters to life on the page. English class could be far more engaging if creative writing took center stage.
Sacred Heart Prep’s English curriculum is robust in teaching students how to write analytical and argumentative essays, but creating strong essay writers comes at the cost of teaching creative writing. While freshmen and sophomores explore poetry, sophomores write short stories and songs, juniors write personal reviews, and seniors may take a creative writing course, that is the extent of creative writing.
Argumentative and analytical essay writing is an important skill that all SHP students should have mastered by graduation, which is why students practice it so much. English Department Head Margarita Dellamano says, “there’s something valuable in the repetition,” which is why they assign a lot of argumentative and literary analysis. Essay writing can be applied across multiple fields. However, SHP may overemphasize it at the cost of creating multifaceted writers.
Including more creative writing helps to cultivate well-rounded writers who know how to approach a writing piece from many ways. Writing creatively is not just useful for poems and short stories, it can strengthen argumentative writing. English Teacher Tara Bucoy says, creative writing helps to improve student writers through the “journey of what it is to engage with the craft.” It encourages students to think in new ways and strengthen their writing process.
English Teacher and creative writer Christina Fries says that creative writing has “power in cultivating the imagination.” This imagination helps students to explore themselves and the world, even inspiring change. “You have to cultivate the imagination if you want to see a better world.” As Marcus To ‘25 says, creative writing allows writers to “step outside the formula” and gain “insight into yourself or the world.”
Being a strong creative writer is a helpful tool when applying to college. A major part of college applications is personal essays, which require applicants to reveal who they are through writing. Ms. Bucoy says, “What makes you stand out is the story that you tell about yourself.” Colleges want to find out who their applicants are. Many applicants have strong GPAs and extracurriculars, so personal essays play a fundamental role in college acceptance. More story-writing practice could make this process smoother.
Creative writing is an art form, a way of expression that allows us to delve deeper into meaning and share our thoughts and emotions. Ms. Fries says, it allows you to “just be with yourself and romp around in your imagination” as well as “explore your voice,” enabling students to tap into their personal experiences and imagination. It lets students express feelings in a way that essay writing can’t — it allows students to dig deeper into themselves. Thalia Cheung ‘25 says, “It is informative as much as it is beneficial for us to really understand ourselves.” High school students are still figuring out who they are, who they want to be, and creative writing allows them to explore their “inner world,” without the distractions of busy schedules, Ms. Fries says.
Creative writers pour their heart into their work, which can’t be done in the same way when writing an essay about literary devices in a book. Ms. Bucoy says, “creative writing is responsible for our humanity and our empathy.” By weaving personal experiences, emotions, and perspectives into their writing, students grow as thinkers, and develop a stronger sense of self.
Ms. Dellamano said, “We want to teach our students that every student has a voice and has something to say, and if you can use that voice to make a difference in this world.” Expanding creative writing within SHP’s English curriculum would bring this idea to life. By giving students more opportunities to experiment with storytelling, poetry, and self-expression, the school would teach students not just technical writing skills, but the confidence and creativity to use their voices meaningfully. Balancing essay writing with creative writing would create SHP graduates who are both strong thinkers and authentic storytellers. When students are given the chance to write creatively, they don’t just learn how to put words on a page; they learn how to put their voice into the world.