4th -6th Writing Class, April 3

Lesson:
We read some of the students' definition essays about friendship. The class seemed to have a grasp of the assignment, and most successfully incorporated the sentence variety we have been practicing.

We spent the remainder of the class period teaching the concept and format for a simple block-style compare/contrast paragraph. Later we will learn to expand these to a five-paragraph essay.

To compare is to find how things are alike.
To contrast is to find how things are different.

For a simple contrast paper, students are to choose two things which seem similar, then explore the features that distinguish them as different. Examples might include:
cats and dogs (both small mammals commonly kept as household pets)
McDonald's and Wendy's (both fast food burger joints)
Target and WalMart (both large discount chain stores)
football and soccer (both team sports moving a ball down field to score)
FDR and Churchill (both allied leaders during WWII)
Lord of the Rings and Chronicles of Narnia (both beloved classic fantasy with Christian underpinnings)
and many, many more.

Whenever the subjects being compared or contrasted are mentioned together, they must remain in their original order. So, if cats are mentioned before dogs in the beginning, cats will always be mentioned first in any sentence where dogs are also mentioned. Therefore, choose the starting order strategically.

Begin by providing background and acknowledging similarities in at least the topic sentence; continue in a few following sentences if that helps explain things or add interest.
For example, one might say "Cats and dogs are perennially the most common and popular household pets. Fully half of all American families own at least one of these pets; 31% of households have cats, 39% have dogs, and some have both. While cats and dogs have many similarities, they are different in some important ways."

The next sentence should delineate whatever categories of differences the author chooses to highlight. (In a longer essay, this sentence would be at the end if the first paragraph, and would become the thesis statement.) For example, one might write, "Among other features, cats and dogs differ in ease of training, usefulness, and sociability."

The next section, the main body of the paragraph, will then contrast cats and dogs on those three points in that order. In our example, that would be:
(1) ease of training
(2) usefulness
(3) sociability
Usually, it works best to place whatever one considers to be the strongest point at the end.

Writers employ two different patterns for writing compare/contrast essays. One pattern involves a point-by-point, line-by-line examination, while the other considers all the points about one subject before switching to discuss all the points of other subject.

The line-by-line approach can be clear and effective, but it can also read like a ping-pong match of back-and-forth statements, if not done well.

Line-by-line example:

(1) Cats do not generally exhibit cooperation or obedience, but dogs can be trained to perform any number of elaborate, entertaining, and even valuable tasks. (2) Although some cats might deign to catch mice from time to time, many dogs serve valuable, even life-saving functions, such as: guarding homes and businesses; herding animals on farms and ranches; serving as eyes, ears, and able bodies for physically-challenged individuals; aiding law enforcement with search-and-rescue operations; and more. (3) Looking at the wild cousins of cats and dogs, one sees the biggest difference of all: cats are territorial while dogs are pack animals. Generally, cats are often aloof and independent, while dogs want to belong to a group. Thus, cats are carry themselves as rulers of their domain, while dogs are known as man's best friend.

Block style is the other major way of writing compare/contrast papers, and the one we will use for this assignment. Though we will still consider the same points about the same subjects in the same order, block style 'batches' these together in a few sentences devoted to each, so it has less of the ping-pong effect.

Block-style example:

(1)Even among cat fanciers, these regal felines are notorious for their lack of cooperation and obedience. Though cats may be beautiful and graceful, they simply do not do what they are told when they are told. (2)Certainly, these lovely creatures may occasionally catch mice if and when it suits them, but they seldom take pains to serve or please their human housemates otherwise. (3) Considering the natural behavior of big cats in the wild, this makes sense. Cats are territorial and independent. Placed in a household with humans, they coexist peacefully, even pleasantly, without yielding their innate sovereignty. On the other hand, (1)dogs have been trained quite easily for centuries to perform any number of elaborate, entertaining and even valuable tasks. (2) Working only for the occasional treat or pat on the head, perhaps even just for the sheer joy of doing what they were bred to do, dogs serve important, even life-saving, functions every day. Eagerly, canine companions guard homes and businesses, herd animals on farms and ranches, aid law enforcement with search-and-rescue operations, serve as eyes, ears, and able bodies for physically-challenged individuals,and more. (3) Because they are pack animals, dogs want to belong, to please, to know their place. Under the right leadership, dogs can do amazing things and display undying devotion and loyalty. Dogs are man's best friend.


Note that we use a clear transition expression (e.g., On the other hand,) to indicate when we switch from the first subject to the second.

Finally, we will wrap up the paragraph gracefully with at least a final concluding sentence, or clincher, that reflects the topic sentence in slightly different words, while bringing everything together again.
For example, if remaining impartial, we might say, "Cats and dogs are both popular pets whose differences make them beloved by different people."
If expressing a preference, we might rework the 'dog' block to end with "Though cats and dogs are both popular pets, only dogs are man's best friend."

So, putting it all together:

Cats and dogs are perennially the most common and popular household pets. Fully half of all American families own at least one of these pets; 31% of households have cats, 39% have dogs, and some have both. While cats and dogs have many similarities, they are different in some important ways. Even among cat fanciers, these regal felines are notorious for their lack of cooperation and obedience. Though cats may be beautiful and graceful, they simply do not do what they are told when they are told. Certainly, these lovely creatures may occasionally catch mice if and when it suits them, but they seldom take pains to serve or please their human housemates otherwise. Considering the natural behavior of big cats in the wild, this makes sense. Cats are territorial and independent. Placed in a household with humans, they coexist peacefully, even pleasantly, without yielding their innate sovereignty. On the other hand, dogs have been trained quite easily for centuries to perform any number of elaborate, entertaining and even valuable tasks. Working only for the occasional treat or pat on the head, perhaps even just for the sheer joy of doing what they were bred to do, dogs serve important, even life-saving, functions every day. Eagerly, canine companions guard homes and businesses, herd animals on farms and ranches, aid law enforcement with search-and-rescue operations, serve as eyes, ears, and able bodies for physically-challenged individuals,and more. Because they are pack animals, dogs want to belong, to please, to know their place. Under the right leadership, dogs can do amazing things and display undying devotion and loyalty. Though cats and dogs are both popular pets, only dogs are man's best friend.

Assignments:
Each student will write a block-style contrast paragraph on any suitable subjects of choice. Students may choose cats and dogs, as long as the thoughts and words are their own.

Students may treat the subjects in an impartial way, or may clearly state a preference.

Everything else we have learned applies. Besides vivid word choice and strong active verbs, this means students will need to work in ALL of the sentence variety we have been practicing.

This assignment is due April 17. Class will NOT meet this week, April 10.

With the extra week, any student who wishes to do so may submit an original poem or short story for extra credit.

4th - 6th Writing, March 27

Lesson:
We are continuing our study of expository writing with a type of essay similar to what older students write as a definition essay. Ours will be more flexible and simple, but the idea is to define an intangible quality or idea. This can include dictionary definitions, scriptures, discussions,quotations, examples from life, history, fiction, etc. This can also include discussion of what the defined idea is NOT.

Our assigned topic for the week is FRIENDSHIP. We spent most of the class brainstorming a list of ideas connected with friendship. What is friendship? What is the value of friendship? What makes people become friends? What qualities are desired in a friend?

Assignment:
Students are to write a good long paragraph about friendship. I do not want students to turn this into a description of a particular friend. This is meant to discuss friendship in a general way, developed with examples where appropriate.

After students compose their rough draft of this paragraph, I would like them to revise it for sentence variety, including at least one each of the six primary ways we have learned to start sentences.

Later, we will learn to expand a basic paragraph like this into a longer essay.

4th - 6th Writing, March 20

Lesson:
We continued to review and drill on sentence variety. I spent some time clearing up some confusion students have been having about how to use words that appear on both the preposition list and the clausal starter list.
For example:
Because of the weather, the game was canceled.
Here, because is a prepositional phrase starter, with the noun weather as object of the preposition.
Because it was raining, the game was canceled.
Here, because is a clausal starter. Clauses have a subject and a verb; in this case, it is the subject, and was raining is the verb.

I had the students write another quick Brainwarmer. From those, I asked various students to read an example of each kind of opener we have been learning.

Here is a review of sentence openers, borrowed from the Institute in Excellence guidelines from Andrew Pudewa.
1. Subject
2. Prepositional phrase
3. "-ly" (Adverb)
4. "-ing" (Participle)
5. Clause (Dependent clause)
6. VSS (Very short sentence)
7. "-ed" (Past participle --- optional, for more advanced students)

Examples:
1. Subject: A hare always boasted about how fast he could run.
2. Preposition phrase: In his opinion, he was the speediest animal around.
3. "ly"/Adverb: Surprisingly, the slow tortoise challenged the arrogant hare to a race.
4. "ing"/Participle: Running as fast as he could, the hare was soon far ahead of the plodding tortoise.
5. Clause: Since he was sure he would win, the confident hare lay down for a nap and slept while the tortoise passed him by and crossed the finish line.
6. VSS: The tortoise had won!
7. "ed" /Past Participle: Pleased, he declared, "Slow and steady wins the race."

Assignment:
I have made available four simple paragraphs for the students to use as a base for improving sentence variety. The students may also use any of their recent Brainwarmers as a basis for revision.

The homework assignment is to revise any two paragraphs, using in each paragraph all the sentence openers we have learned without using the same one twice in a row.

I would like the students to write the number of the opener they are using in the left margin of their papers.

4th - 6th Writing, March 6

Lesson:
We spent most of the class period reading aloud and evaluating country reports. It was evident that the students worked diligently on these.

We spent the last part of the class period reminding students about various ways to begin sentences for more variety.

Borrowed from the Institute in Excellence guidelines from Andrew Pudewa, those basic sentence openers include:
1. Subject
2. Prepositional phrase
3. "-ly" (Adverb)
4. "-ing" (Participle)
5. Clause (Dependent clause)
6. VSS (Very short sentence)
7. "-ed" (Past participle --- optional, for more advanced students)

Examples:
1. Subject: A hare always boasted about how fast he could run.
2. Preposition phrase: In his opinion, he was the speediest animal around.
3. "ly"/Adverb: Surprisingly, the slow tortoise challenged the arrogant hare to a race.
4. "ing"/Participle: Running as fast as he could, the hare was soon far ahead of the plodding tortoise.
5. Clause: Since he was sure he would win, the confident hare lay down for a nap and slept while the tortoise passed him by and crossed the finish line.
6. VSS: The tortoise had won!
7. "ed" /Past Participle: Pleased, he declared, "Slow and steady wins the race."

Assignment: I provided each student with two starter stories and some accompanying handouts. The students are to rewrite the two sample paragraphs for more variety. Each rewritten paragraph should contain all six of the sentence openers listed here. However, the openers do not need to be in the numbered order given here. Any sentence can begin with any opener that will work for it, and the sentences can be reworked as needed, as long as the ideas stay the same.

Students are not to do any topic research; the rewritten paragraphs should include the same information, with nothing significant added or omitted.

4th - 6th Writing, February 13

Lesson:
This lesson was divided into two parts. We spent most of the lesson going over our next project, which is a country report. After that, we devoted the last part of our class time to introducing an exercise from Andrew Pudewa's Institute for Excellence in Writing. We will continue both of these sessions over the next class period.

Country Report:

Obviously, to write a comprehensive report about any country would require much more time, effort, and page length than we are devoting to this assignment. Therefore, students will need to be selective in choosing information that is most important in helping fellow classmates learn what is essential and distinctive about their chosen countries. Though not all items on the following list would apply in equal depth to all countries, some important information to consider might include:

- Name of country (and any previous names)
- Location (continent, region [north/south/east/west], near neighbors, etc.)
- Landforms (coastal, peninsular, mountainous, desert, plains, etc.)
- Climate (temperate, tropical, arid, etc.)
- Natural Resources (oil, gold, minerals, timber, fishing, etc.)
- Population/Demographics (number, ethnic mix, old/young/ rural/urban, etc.)
- Language(s)
- History (settling/founding, invasion/war, dramatic turning points)
- Government (form [democracy, monarchy, dictatorship, etc.], capital)
- Religions(s) (Which beliefs? actively practiced? freedom of religion? etc.)
- Culture (way of life --- food, clothing, social structure, customs, etc.)
- Economy (income sources, financial condition)
- Special Features (places to visit, distinctive attributes, interesting facts)

Students should include a map on a separate sheet. This may be printed from an up-to-date internet source. The map source must be cited.


Assignment:

Students are to choose any current country; this is not a report on ancient countries or cultures. I suggested that the students may want to report on countries where their ancestors lived, or where the students have visited, or perhaps where they may know friends or missionaries; however, that is not a requirment.

As with the recent animal reports, students are to do light research into their chosen topics, taking simple notes, and crediting their sources. From those notes, student will write one to three long paragraphs about their chosen topic. These paragraphs are to:

~ begin with an interesting "hook"
~ include well-chosen details
~ flow smoothly in logical order
~ use effective transitions and a variety of sentence openers
~ demonstrate lively word choice
~ conclude gracefully

Students are to add a Works Cited page following their report. It will follow the guidelines in last week's post, moving more toward correct and complete MLA format. The best tool I know for easily formatting resources is http://citationmachine.net/.
To use that, click on the link here to access the site; then click on the words MLA in the top left column of the page that opens; then click on the words in the left column describing the type of resource you are using (book, magazine, online article, etc.). Enter the prompted data, then click the word Submit; the website will format the citation correctly.

Students will have two weeks to complete this assignment.

4th - 6th Writing, February 6

Lesson:
We spent part of this class period going over the list of sub-topics to include in this report, detailed in last week's blog entry.

We spent most of the time discussing the problems of plagiarism, including unintentional plagiarism, and the need to properly cite our sources, so that we are not using the ideas and information of others without giving them credit.

Thd students will eventually learn complete Modern Language Association (MLA) style parenthetical citation, but for now, we are beginning to learn how to compile a Works Cited page. Since the students are consulting a wide variety of resources, including non-standardized internet sites, they will encounter many variables, almost too many to teach in advance. For this assignment, I will be satisfied with almost any attempt to cite sources. As we work though the next few assignments, the students will improve correctness with practice and application.

A Works Cited page is simply a list of resources consulted and used in the report. Many of us probably learned to call this a bibliography. This will be a separate page from the report itself, with the student's last name and page number in the upper right margin. (If the student's paper is two pages long, the Works Cited will be page three, e.g., Winn 3. If more than one student has the same last name, also include the first initial after the last name.)

~ Center the words Works Cited on the top line (without underline or quotation marks).
~ Alphabetize the list of works cited by the first letter of each entry.
~ Begin each entry with the author's name, last name first. (Smith, John C.)
~ Then give the title of the work. Underline titles of books and magazines; put quotation marks around titles of articles.
~ Then follow with source information such as publisher, place of publication, and date of publication. (Consult handouts for exact guidelines.)
~ Indent all but the first lines of each entry.
~ Double-space the list.

Were my printer working as it should, I would have distributed handouts detailing standard MLA formatting. This will be corrected this week. In the meantime, here are some sites that explain the information:

From Duke University, this page contains links that thoroughly detail almost every possible variation.

This page simply and briefly covers the most common types of sources.

This page is somewhere in between the previous two.

This page is the most simple guide.

Here is a nifty website that actually formats proper citations for you. It provides a variety of styles; choose MLA.


Though this seems complicated (and it can be!), we will be taking it step by step, learning by doing. I am not asking the students to learn the full MLA documentation --- just the basics. I will be happy with author's name and work title, and website address where applicable, for now.


Assignment:
Each student is to complete a final draft of an animal report, including a separate Works Cited page. The body of each report is to be at least a good long paragraph, up to three paragraphs, and should fill at least three-fourths of a page to one and a half pages, double spaced. The Works Cited will be listed alphabetically on a separate page.

4th - 6th, January 16

Lesson:
We began with our five-minute brainwarmer writing exercise, then read aloud a few of those.

After that, I reviewed what we are looking for in our writing, especially a variety of sentence openers. With that list in mind, we read aloud and discussed the students' compositions.

Though most of the class wrote about the same topic, Davy Crockett, it was interesting to see how differently the students approached the topic.


One point that became evident as we evaluated the essays was the need to limit the scope of the topic to the size of the paper. This is an important lesson for any writer to learn: narrow the topic.

Many of the students dealt with that by highlighting one major aspect of the topic rather than attempting to cram a whole lifetime into a few sentences.

Assignment:
Students are to write another report on a different historical figure of their choosing.

They are to structure their papers to deal with their main points in a balanced way. The best way to accomplish that would be to limit their details to those they feel are most important to highlight their subject.

Students also have the option to write a longer composition than usual, though that is optional.

4th - 6th Writing, January 9

Our first class back from our Christmas break was exuberant and delightful. I was happily surprised that quite a few students had done the optional extra credit writing.

Lesson:
We began again with our brief Brainwarmer exercise, which the students seem to enjoy. Many of the students read their stories aloud to the class afterwards.

For the main part of the lesson, I showed the class an easy formula for answering simple essay questions such as those which may be found in textbook chapter reviews or quizzes.
Subject: Turn the question around to make it a statement beginning with what or who is the subject.
Sort: What sort (category, classification) of person/place/thing is the subject?
Specifics: What specifically is important about this subject in this context?

For example, suppose the question asks Who was Louisa May Alcott?
Subject: Louisa May Alcott was
Sort: a nineteenth-century American author
Specifics: who wrote Little Women and other novels.

In another example, if the question asks What is photosynthesis?
Subject: Photosynthesis is
Sort: a biochemical process
Specifics: whereby plants use produce food energy from sunlight.

This basic pattern provides easy answers which are appropriate for simple questions that can be answered in one sentence. In addition, these answers can serve handily as topic sentences when paragraph-length responses are needed.(With a slight expansion of specifics, these answers become thesis statements for longer essay answers.)

Students will face many essay questions from now through college, so this practice should help them tremendously.

Assignment:
Write a strong paragraph in response to the essay question, "Who is [historical person of choice]?"

Use the pattern above (Subject, sort, specifics) to form a topic sentence.

Write the rest of the paragraph as usual, with solid information arranged in sensible order, with a variety of sentence openers, and lively, vivid word choices. Be sure to finish with a concluding sentence. Add an interesting title.

Since so many students were happy to discuss Davy Crockett when we used him as one of our class examples, I suggested him as our homework topic. In that case, students would write a paragraph answering the question, "Who is Davy Crockett?"

Other students asked to write a paragraph answer to "Who is Louisa May Alcott?" or "Who is Laura Ingalls Wilder?" That is fine. In fact, students may choose any historical figure for this assignment.

NOTE: This is not meant to be a big research project. I do not want the students to start from scratch reading and writing about someone with whom they are unfamiliar. I prefer they write about someone they have already studied, ideally someone who interests them.

Students this age tend to begin these assignments in minute detail like they might have read in a book-length biography. Partway through the process, when they have written three-fourths of a page just about their subject's birth and early childhood, they suddenly realize they are rewriting a book, so they hastily sum up their person's adulthood, accomplishments in a few scant sentences. The result is comically imbalanced. Therefore, I cautioned the students against starting their paragraphs with overly detailed information. Instead, they will need to choose the pertinent details that tell the essential story of their subject in a balanced way.

4th - 6th Writing, December 12

Lesson:
Since it was the last class before Christmas vacation, I chose not to teach significant new material. Instead, we practiced a quick technique called Brainwarmers. Brainwarmer activities are meant to be a fast and fun way to write creatively and quickly. We will be doing more of this from now on, so I will explain it more later.

Assignment:
I did not give any assignment for this class.

Students may, at their option, write for extra credit. They may rewrite any previous assignment for a higher grade, or they may write anything they please, including poetry, fiction, longer essays, etc. However, that is completely at their discretion, not required.

4th - 6th Writing, December 5

Lesson:
We began with a brief review of the things we are looking for in our paragraphs, especially action verbs and a variety of sentence openers. We discussed the difference between revision (re-seeing) and mere editing. I encouraged the students to read over their first drafts several times during the revision process, checking each time for specific things like verbs and openers. I also recommended that the students read their papers aloud at least once during the revision, because their ears will sometimes notice things their eyes might miss. Once they are satisfied that they have done their best revision, then the students should edit for grammar, spelling, and punctuation before typing or writing their final copy.

We spent most of the class time reading aloud and critiquing the students' "how-to" process papers. Some of the students had even brought examples, which were a hit with their classmates --- especially the food items!

We decided to make a booklet of all the students how-to paragraphs as our class Christmas project. I asked the students to email me their work so I can compile it for the class.

Assignment:
In honor of the season, students are to write an expository paragraph with a Christmas theme. They may choose their own Christmas topics, but their paragraphs need to be informative, not personally narrative.

Examples might include:
the meaning of Christmas
the history of Christmas
the traditions of Christmas
Christmas celebrations around the world
Christmas carols (e.g., how Silent Night was written, etc.)
Christmas stories or movies
the best part of Christmas
Christmas at the White House
the origin of Christmas stockings
the origin of Christmas trees
giving to others at Christmas time
etc.

or, another process paper, explaining how to:
make an ornament
choose or wrap a gift
prepare a Christmas treat
etc.


(Reminder: Please email me a copy of your child's how-to paragraph from last week. Thanks!)