How It All Began

from Amber Parks, Founder

Writing with Design began the same way most meaningful teaching breakthroughs begin: with a problem I could not ignore.

No matter the grade level, no matter the state, or even country, students had the same reaction when it was time to write: the moans, the groans, the avoidance. Writing was something students endured, not something they owned.

I was not willing to accept that as normal.

The problem I could not ignore

Writing was something students endured, not something they owned

A different lens on language

At the time, I was drawing from a background in deaf and hard of hearing special education, and it shaped how I saw the writing struggle.

When language is taught explicitly, through intentional speaking, listening, and structured routines, students gain access. I had seen, firsthand, the relationship between oral language and written language, and I had lived the complexity of helping profoundly deaf students develop written English alongside American Sign Language.

The dots connected quickly: if clear oral language protocols can build communication, those same protocols can be translated into writing instruction.

So I built a way to make writing accessible

I started designing explicit, repeatable routines that reduced uncertainty, strengthened sentences, and helped students hear what strong writing sounds like before they ever tried to draft it.

The shift was immediate. Students who used to resist began to participate. Students who doubted themselves began to take risks. The writing we posted in the hallway started turning heads, not just because it looked polished, but because it reflected real growth in literacy.

The shift was immediate

The jelly bean table moment

That is when Writing with Design began spreading beyond my classroom.

Colleagues in my building wanted to know how we were doing it. So we did what elementary teachers do: we sat around the jelly bean table, and I sketched out the steps, the strategies, and the thinking moves my students were practicing.

Those conversations became a shared approach. Then a neighboring school took notice. Then a neighboring district. Then a colleague’s friend in another state.

Before long, what started as a classroom solution became a scalable framework that schools were asking for.

The heart has never changed

Today, Writing with Design is used coast-to-coast, but the heart of it has never changed: writing can be taught in a way that is purposeful, structured, and empowering.

As it spread, I needed language that captured what teachers were seeing in real time. This was not a collection of writing prompts or a set of assignments. It was a way of teaching writing that made the process visible, step by step, and helped students build work they were proud to own.

Why the name matters

Writing with Design reflects a belief that writing is not just “put pencil to paper” or “open a blank document and go.”

Strong writing has craft. It has structure. It has an architecture that requires thinking, grappling, curating, and reworking. When students understand that writing is built, not guessed, they gain something far more important than a single assignment: they gain control.

Because writing is not a talent some people have and others do not. It is a set of skills that every learner can develop when instruction is clear, explicit, and supportive.

Why this work is bigger than writing assignments

Writing is one of the most powerful tools students have to process what they are learning, make connections in their thinking, and make sense of their world.

When we teach writing well, we do more than improve essays. We expand what students can understand, communicate, and imagine for themselves.

Those convictions became the foundation for everything we built next

See How It Works

To see what this looks like in daily instruction, explore our four-part routine on the How It Works page.

Writing belongs in every classroom because it strengthens learning in every subject. When content-area writing is practical and aligned to real instruction, students deepen understanding, not just complete assignments. Schoolwide writing improves when everyone shares responsibility.
Strong writing is built through choices—structure, craft, and revision—not rushed onto a blank page. Students benefit from explicit steps that make thinking visible and the process manageable. When writing becomes teachable, it becomes doable.
Writing helps students process learning, make connections, and communicate with power and precision. It is a tool for opportunity and agency in school and in life. Every student deserves access to strong writing instruction, not just the students who already “like writing.”
Teachers deserve support that holds up on a Monday morning. Practical training and classroom-ready tools reduce guesswork and increase consistency. When systems are realistic, teachers can sustain them, and students thrive.
Writing is not reserved for a talented few. With clear instruction and supportive practice, every learner can grow from one strong sentence to multi-paragraph writing. Confidence follows competence, and competence is teachable.
Students grow faster when feedback is clear, actionable, and connected to consistent expectations. Shared language and common criteria help students understand how to improve and help teachers target instruction. Growth becomes visible, measurable, and motivating.

This is what we are committed to, in every school we serve.

Meet the Team

Amber

Amber is an educator, curriculum designer, and the founder of Writing with Design. She has served as a classroom teacher, instructional coach, district-level curriculum designer, and literacy department director. She now partners with schools nationwide to strengthen writing instruction and literacy outcomes through practical professional learning and classroom-ready tools.

Amber’s work is grounded in established research on writing, language development, and the science of learning, with an emphasis on explicit routines that make complex skills easier to teach and easier to learn. She is known for translating research into clear, usable practice, helping educators build sustainable systems, and creating schoolwide language around quality writing and feedback.

Quick facts: Tea enthusiast, children’s book collector, native plant gardener, Pilates regular, historic home restoration planner, and avid list-maker

Founder & Director

Tabitha

Tabitha is a creativity-driven teacher, curriculum designer, and Curriculum & Engagement Specialist with Writing with Design. She has taught in Title I schools across multiple states and is dedicated to strengthening literacy and writing outcomes for middle school students, especially the ones who have learned to say, “I’m not a writer.” At WwD, Tabitha designs meaningful, fun curriculum that keeps students engaged and keeps the writing process clear, doable, and non-overwhelming for both kids and teachers.

Bio paragraph 2 (body text): Tabitha’s work is rooted in years of writing experience as a multi-genre novelist, research in the Science of Reading, deep study of children’s and young adult literature, and a constant curiosity about how students learn. She is known for bringing fresh energy to lessons, ROYGBIV-level organization (yes, it shows up in her planning), and a knack for helping teachers turn content standards into authentic academic tasks students actually want to do. When a lesson needs more spark, clearer steps, or stronger participation, Tabitha is the person you want on the build team.

Quick facts: LEGO builder, life long collector of books, dog mom, video game fanatic, pickle connoisseur, and novelist

Curriculum & Engagement Specialist

Vilma

Vilma is a veteran middle school ELA teacher. She has implemented Writing with Design in her classroom for more than seven years and has consistently seen strong growth in students’ writing confidence, clarity, and skill—results that have made her a long-time advocate of WWD. As a practicing classroom teacher, Vilma grounds her work in what is realistic, sustainable, and genuinely impactful for students.

In addition to classroom implementation, Vilma supports Writing with Design through lesson development, Spanish translation, and video creation, helping expand access to resources for Spanish-speaking educators and students. She is especially passionate about advocating for multilingual learners, and she has seen students thrive with Writing with Design’s explicit routines and language-forward approach. Her work focuses on ensuring that materials are clear, accessible, culturally responsive, and instructionally sound.

Quick facts: Lifelong coffee drinker, horror-genre novel fan, puzzle connoisseur, and always listening to a true crime podcast.

Bilingual Instructional Consultant

Courtney

Courtney brings a steady, behind-the-scenes strength to the day-to-day work that keeps projects moving: coordinating logistics, supporting communications, and helping turn ideas into next steps and deadlines. She has spent much of her life adjacent to classrooms and curriculum through a family deeply rooted in education.

At Writing with Design, Courtney supports operations across the team, keeps details organized, and helps ensure projects move from planning to completion with clarity and follow-through. She also lends her creative skills as an occasional graphics and video editor, polishing materials so they are ready to share with schools and teachers. Courtney currently lives on a farm in Central America with her family, where “office life” includes an assortment of animals in the background.

Quick facts: Early high school graduate (with honors) at age 12.5, Social Studies buff, iced sweet tea loyalist, Richard Preston reader, cave-and-Mayan-ruins explorer, and lifelong history-of-places learner.

Office Manager & Administrative Assistant

Kristi

Kristi is the Tech Support and Systems Builder behind Writing with Design, helping teachers and teams navigate their data, tools, and spreadsheets with confidence. She supports the behind-the-scenes work that keeps everything running smoothly—untangling formatting issues, tracking down missing data, and troubleshooting the “Why is this doing that?” moments that can derail a busy week.

On the team, Kristi is known as the person who can take a spreadsheet from “this is confusing” to “oh, that makes sense,” and she often fixes problems before anyone else even notices them (because once she sees something, she can’t not fix it). Her work brings clarity, reliability, and efficiency to the operational side of WwD, so the instructional work can shine. She has a rare mix of technical precision and teacher-friendly communication, which makes her the go-to when a team needs a solution that is both functional and easy to maintain.

Quick facts: Flamin’ Hot Cheetos fan, diaper-cake architect, and a builder of useful systems with a little extra flair.

Tech Support & Systems Builder

Book a call via Calendly, or send a message through the Contact Form.

Connect with us

How It All Began

The shift was immediate

Those convictions became the foundation for everything we built next

Writing belongs in every classroom because it strengthens learning in every subject. When content-area writing is practical and aligned to real instruction, students deepen understanding, not just complete assignments. Schoolwide writing improves when everyone shares responsibility.

Strong writing is built through choices—structure, craft, and revision—not rushed onto a blank page. Students benefit from explicit steps that make thinking visible and the process manageable. When writing becomes teachable, it becomes doable.

Writing helps students process learning, make connections, and communicate with power and precision. It is a tool for opportunity and agency in school and in life. Every student deserves access to strong writing instruction, not just the students who already “like writing.”

Teachers deserve support that holds up on a Monday morning. Practical training and classroom-ready tools reduce guesswork and increase consistency. When systems are realistic, teachers can sustain them, and students thrive.

Writing is not reserved for a talented few. With clear instruction and supportive practice, every learner can grow from one strong sentence to multi-paragraph writing. Confidence follows competence, and competence is teachable.