A Turkey and Talking Toys . . . A Girl’s First Writing

January 24, 2013 by  
Filed under Mini-Lessons, Writing Practice

I splurged on composition books for each student in my reading classes this semester; to begin, I am asking students to bring in (or snap pictures of) an early piece of writing they created when they were young.  While the students will have their own web sites to post blogs, I believe good old-fashioned writing in an old-school composition book brings out authentic expression that can’t be replaced.  To initiate that authenticity, I will be sharing my own writings.  Here is a sampling of my first writing experiences**:

Two Early Pieces of My Writing - A Composition and A Book

Two Early Pieces of My Writing – A Composition and A Book

a.  “Thanksgiving” – I was seven years old when I wrote this in the first grade. The only point I remember about the assignment is that we were told to write something about Thanksgiving.  I associated Thanksgiving with my brother’s birthday as he was born around this feast, and I was recalling the special Thanksgiving when my mom was pregnant with my bro.  To this day, I joke with him that my story about Mom having a turkey indeed came true.  🙂  This is one of my first full-length “papers.”  Embarrassingly apparent is my lack  of spelling skills  – thank goodness I grew up relishing spelling bees and Speak & Spell  (true story!).

b.   “The Unusual Christmas Morning”  – I sharply remember this assignment because I enjoyed it immensely – 5th grade, age 11.   It involved drafting, editing, re-writing, and drawing an original Christmas story.  Once the composition and drawings were complete, my teacher sent the drafts off to be “published.”  I recall my anxiousness in waiting for the book to be returned all bound and neat.  This particular storyline is one I was always fascinated with – toys coming to life when humans are not around – and I re-created it again and again using different settings whenever I had the urge.  To this day, I am drawn to similar story lines.  “King of the Dollhouse” by Patricia Clapp, “Wednesday Witch” by Ruth Chew and “The Doll People” by Brian Selznick continue claim to a closet space at this very moment.  I jokingly declare that Pixar needs to send me royalties – Toy Story came after my ‘published’ piece.  My mother still brings this book out to display every Christmas.  Speaking of, I believe one of the reasons I’m driven with my English teaching endeavors is because reading and writing was always celebrated in my home – our fridge was consistently a landing for prized papers coupled with every room in our home accented with books thrown strategically around ( . . . . hmmm . . . sounds familiar!)

My message about writing is this: write every.single.day.  Writing is a release.  Writing is an expression.  Writing is an extension.  Writing is a connection.  I learned this from these very first pieces and I continue to discover more about myself and about the writing process each day.  It is a gift to take full advantage of.

When you cannot write, read.  When you cannot read, write. 

Pieces of Me

**This activity is an adaption from Expository Composition – Discovering Your Voice by Gary Anderson and Tony Romano (a comprehensive resource for writing I refer to again and again!)

 

Which Punctuation Marks You?!

October 24, 2010 by  
Filed under Mini-Lessons, Writing Practice

You know the line from Coldplay’s “Every Teardrop is a Waterfall?” – “I’d rather be a comma than a full stop.” Which punctuation mark below would you rather be?! . . . .

.                    !                    ?                    ,                    ;

:                    –                   (   )                *                    #

@                 /                    ?!                 &                   =

”                  {   }                ^                  < >                ‘

~               . . .

  • Why did you choose the one you did?  How does this represent and symbolize you?

This was one of the opening activities at an AP conference I attended.  I circled the exclamation point without hesitation because I tend to overuse this mark – both in written and oral expression! In my work emails, for instance, I find myself hitting the back button to delete some to not sound overzealous.  In person, I’m known to exclaim my excitement wholeheartedly and randomly.  I walk into class telling my students how wonderful they are; I clap at the gym; I jump around at home.  True story.  As another example, my colleague claimed the % because she feels her life is divided into percentages:  as teacher, mother, wife, club sponser, etc.  Another example, a friend claimed he’s a semi-colon because he’s misunderstood as the semi-colon seems to be.  🙂  Which one are you?

I Am a Mini Cooper

September 24, 2010 by  
Filed under Mini-Lessons, Writing Practice

WRITING ASSIGNMENT:  Letter of Introduction

a.k.a.

Using Metaphors to Identify Ourselves


I probably should have posted this at the very beginning of the school year but it’s been a whirlwind of a year already – and we’ve only reached the very first midterm.  Yippee yikes!  This is the first writing assignment I gave to my accelerated freshmen this year. At the opening of the second day of class, I reveal the assignment; they have the class period in the lab to complete the letter.  During Open House, I pass out the final drafts to parents.


Parents got such a kick out of this. I always try to send them home with something besides a syllabus.  I received numerous emails from parents this year, in particular, stating they usually never receive anything other than a syllabus from other teachers and appreciate the bit of insight to their child’s work. Because of the great response I get, I’d thought I’d pass it on to my English/Language Arts followers. Just because their children are teenagers does not mean parents don’t need or desire detailed information about students’ lives at school.   It really does not take that much more effort on our part to get that information to them; and, it feels so gratifying when we do.

Here’s the assignment.  This doesn’t necessarily have to be given at the beginning of the year:

Letter of Introduction

I also give my own letter as an example.  Here’s an excerpt from my letter:

I am thrilled to get to know and work with each one of you this year.  You don’t know too much about me yet but you soon will.  To give you an idea, I am a Mini Cooper because I look small but have a powerful engine underneath.  I am a wrapped present because you never know what is inside until you try to get to know me.  I am a lioness because I work quietly raising my young but will roar loudly to protect.  Finally, I am an unfinished novel because I have experienced many chapters in life, look forward to experiencing many more, and have yet to know the ending.

Having the students guess who wrote each letter provides additional bonus of fun.  Enjoy this assignment with your students!

Write while the heat is in you.  ~ Henry David Thoreau

Toast a Boast!

January 6, 2010 by  
Filed under Mini-Lessons, Writing Practice

 

Here’s a way to introduce English Literature in the classroom:

(adapted from an assignment by the great Jeffrey Leathem, a colleague in my department!!)

Anglo-Saxon Boasts

We’re going to do a little old-fashioned chest-thumping Anglo-Saxon style.

Your boast should include the following elements:

A. Self-identification (I am . . .)

B. Your immediate ancestry and something about your lineage

C. Boasts of at least three past achievements and/or hobbies

D. Boast of an achievement to come

E. Include at least three identifiable kennings (Identify in margin)

F. Include at least three identifiable alliterative phrases (monster-mashing, Grendel grater) (Identify in margin)

Should be 20-25 lines – approximate verse form (no need to rhyme)

***Extra Credit will be given to those souls who dress up like Anglo-Saxon Warriors and deliver the boast aloud in class

Anglo-Saxon Boast Example

Hail young thanes who gather about me –
For I am GG, dweller of the creek.
From the land of Lincoln, here in Chicago.
Daughter of the late RC, chief motivator of the crowds,
And N, seller of homes. Sister of D,
Online gamer consult & seller of homes.
From the high plains I come! I roar!
Reader of books, dancer of songs,
Scribe of stories, and essay-assigner.
Commander of the hardwood battlefield,
I approach my foes and float on them with the
Fine fin, wading through water,
Snapping waves, watching for whacks from my foes.
I speak of and boast of the victories of the
Blue and White Small Bear Warriors!
And how ‘bout those Blue and Silver Boys?!
I stretch with force forming a fine angle –
Blasting my limb-movers and walking-propellers with
Momentous endurance.  Defeating my enemies.
Flying on the human-kite at 1300 ft. above ground.
Pale-hosed, I prepare the fire feast – The great celebrations.
Under sweltering sun in the flame’s face.
I barbecue the grub –Party Host Champion I am hailed:
Planner of Surprises!   Host of many!
A challenge is decreed by my heir –
I am  healer of wounds, listener of qualms,
Helper of homework, preparing the way for
My heir to this mighty mead-hall.
I’ll make good on my boast and talk all the louder –
Poets will celebrate my actions with rousing cries,
Shaping my deeds into timeless songs.

 

What Bugs You?

September 14, 2009 by  
Filed under Mini-Lessons, Writing Practice

People love to complain, rant, and rave – my students are no exception.  I use this lesson early on in the year to get them warmed up to writing.  They rarely experience brain freezes for this one!

What Bugs Me . . .*

What bugs you??

  • Talking loudly on cell phones at inappropriate times and places
  • Shopping on the day after Thanksgiving and the day after Christmas
  • Subscription cards that fall out of magazines
  • Telemarketers
  • People who lose all manners to get a parking space
  • Filling my car with gas
  • Drivers who don’t observe the rules of the road and crash into your less than 2 month old car!!!!
  • People who say “ta” instead of “to.”
  • People who update their FB status 12 times a day.

. . . You get the picture!

YOUR TURN TO RANT AND RAVE –

  1. Brainstorm a list of at least ten things that bug you.
  2. Choose ONE to write about.
  3. Type a one-page description of why this particular issue/item/etc. bugs you.

There!  Doesn’t that feel good to get that off your chest?!?

adapted from Kelly Gallagher’s Teaching Adolescent Writers

Find the Fib

September 4, 2009 by  
Filed under Mini-Lessons, Writing Practice

People usually love to write about themselves.  Writing can be therapeutic, it can be a chance to express oneself more openly than one may in person, and it can provide a creative channel to explore.  Here’s an assignment my seniors run with time and again:

Find the Fib*  fingers_crossed

Below you will find five statements about me. Four of the statements are true, one is a fib. Can you guess which one is the fib?

1. My voice is the voice of two characters on a pinball game.

2. I worked as a runway model.

3. I was interviewed and appeared on a national television show to give my opinion about one of the past season’s American Idol contestants.

4. Teri Hatcher is my third cousin on my mother’s side.

5. I hang glided 1400 feet in the air, and later jumped off 100 ft cliff.

 

Now it’s your turn!

a. Type five statements about yourself. (think of your accomplishments, accidents, travels, mishaps, etc) Four statements must be true and one statement must be a fib.

2. Print a copy of your statements. Go to as many classmates as possible. You must go to at least ten people, but the more the better. Keep track of how many people can spot your fib and how many cannot. Tell me your results here: _____ # of people you fool _____ # of people who correctly guess your fib The person with the fewest correctly guessed fibs will be officially titled the “Best Fibber” of the Class of 2010!!!

3. Now . . . choose one of your true statements to elaborate on. Your assignment is to tell the story of this statement in writing! (minimum one well-developed paragraph)

*adapted from Kelly Gallagher’s Teaching Adolescent Writers

btw – the fib is #4!  🙂

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