For Aaron Leatherbarrow, a fifth-grade English teacher at Wayman Academy of the Arts, writing is more than a classroom skill. It is a way for students to find their voices, share their stories, and better understand themselves and the world around them.
As a Cindy Edelman Excellence in Teaching Fellow, Leatherbarrow had the opportunity to pursue a professional learning experience of his own choosing: a generative writing retreat in Italy. The Cindy Edelman Excellence in Teaching Fellowship provides funding for K-12 Duval County public school teachers to pursue innovative professional development beyond traditional models, helping educators bring new ideas, global perspectives, and renewed passion back to their classrooms.
For Leatherbarrow, the retreat was a chance to reconnect with his own voice as a writer so he could better guide his students through the creative process with authenticity and empathy.
What surprised him most was how quickly writing became sacred again.
Sitting in a circle with writers from around the world, Leatherbarrow remembered what it feels like to share work aloud, not for a grade or a rubric, but simply to be heard. That experience reinforced something essential to his teaching: students need space to write truthfully, not just correctly.
Each morning at the villa, Leatherbarrow participated in roundtable sessions where writers read and responded to one another’s work. The conversations were honest, emotional, and deeply human. They modeled the kind of writing community he wants to build in his own classroom, where students feel safe enough to generate ideas, revise their thinking, and share their voices with others.
The experience also reminded him that teachers need time to refill creatively. After adjusting to the jet lag, heat, and pace of travel, Leatherbarrow realized how necessary it was to slow down and receive. Teachers spend so much time pouring into students. This Fellowship gave him the chance to replenish the creativity he brings back to them.
At Wayman Academy of the Arts, Leatherbarrow plans to implement daily, low-stakes writing rituals that help students generate, revise, and share in community. He also plans to lead a staff workshop on “teaching from the inside out,” encouraging fellow educators to reconnect with their own creative practices.
The highlight came during final readings under the stars, when each writer shared a piece in reverent silence. Leatherbarrow wrote about his classroom, his students, and his life. He returned home with a renewed belief in why stories matter and a deeper commitment to helping students tell their own.