The
Biography Assignment
If you're wondering about what to do during
the first or second week with a new class, this assignment is perfect (well
almost) The whole class will start off in groups, then form pairs,
and finally each student will produce a project which involves listening,
writing and creative skills. I suggest that you create the groups
to stop friends from interviewing each other (which is almost impossible
in a small school).
Daily
Writing Program
This is a writing program that is perfect for producing large amounts of
graded work without a lot of heavy marking. At the same time, the writing
program allows you to get to know each student's strengths and weaknesses,
supplies an enormous amount of rough work for future polished writing and
is also an excellent class management tool. I first used it in a class
of 40 de-streamed Gr. 9 students in a portable (enough said about Ontario's
education system). I allowed the first fifteen minutes for writing which
quieted them all down and got them ready. My co-op student was able to
take all of the work away and quickly evaluate it for length and return
shortly with everything marked. I usually spent some time going over it
later to get the gist of each student's writing. It worked so well that
I used the program in Grade 10 and 11 with great results. Eventually, we
reduced the writing to three times a week but the students actually objected
when I tried to reduce the time even more. After several weeks I had evaluated
several hundred pieces of work and generated several polished writing assignments
worth ten marks each. All of the students improved over time.
Adaptation of Daily Writing Program
Lynne
Reese teaches English at James Island Charter High School in Charleston,
South Carolina, in the WE CARE Intervention Program started last year for
students at risk of expulsion. She has taken my original Daily
Writing Program above and added more topics and increased the number per week to
four. The lesson is in MS Word format, which you should be able to open
with Wordperfect if necessary. You can download or view the lesson by
clicking HERE
and Lynne can be reached at LYNN_REESE@charleston.k12.sc.us
Writing
Assignment Part Deux
If the first one was successful, here's another handout.
Additional
Writing Topics
If you use up the topics
above, or you want more to choose from, then take a look at these additional
topics. They were thought up by Karen Newirth, an English teacher, and
one of her Grade 10 students, Rick Richly, at Marian Baker School in San
José, Costa Rica. Karen now teaches at Edward R. Murrow High
School in Brooklyn, N.Y. and can be reached at knewirth@hotmail.com
Journal
Writing Topics
Brad Boeker, who teaches at Metamora Township
High School in Metamora, Illinois, describes the journal writing program
that he uses in his classes. He has also included an ample supply
of journal topics. Please address all comments and questions to Brad at
bboeker@mtco.com
Introductory
Autobiography Writing/Art Assignment -- Intermediate
This is a great exercise for the beginning
of the school year or semester. It involves art and writing in a nice blend
of the creative and applied. You can really get to know your students and
their abilities in a quick and fun way. Lynne Reese teaches
English at James Island Charter High School in Charleston, South Carolina, and
submitted the Adaptation of the Daily Writing Program has also modified this
lesson and is making it available in MS Word format which you can read or
download by clicking HERE.
First Week Writing
Need some writing for the first
week back? Jennifer Manuel of Lafayette High School in Lafayette,
Louisiana, has three topics that you can choose from. The students can
have some creative writing fun and you can use the assignments to diagnose
writing strengths and weaknesses. Jennifer can be reached at jenandwally@peoplepc.com
Middle School Memory Book
Patricia Kohut
teaches 8th Grade English at Houston Middle School in Big Lake, Alaska and she
adapted a Senior Memory Book lesson to suit her students. She is kindly
sharing it so other middle school teachers don't have to "re-invent the
wheel". Patricia can be reached at ibateach@pobox.mtaonline.net
MS Word format -- click HERE
Text format -- click HERE
A copy of a Senior Memory Book project
by Brenda Kukla of Collins Hill High School in Suwanee, Georgia, can be found at
her web site by clicking HERE.
Return to Top
Writing
Folder Checklist
If you look through a lot of my writing assignments,
you will see reference made to filling out the "checklist in your folder".
I will explain. Whenever a student writes something in the "daily
writing program" or for the folder, the writing is kept in a folder.
It is just a legal size file folder which is folded up about 5 cm. or 2
in. at the bottom which creates a pocket on either side to stop stuff sliding
out. The checklist is stapled inside and is a record of all of the
process writing that the student does including the dates of submission
and the marks. The folder NEVER leaves the class (in case a student
loses the whole folder) but work is taken out to go home or to the computer
lab, and work is put in. This is a "plain text" version of the folder
and I am sure that you can embellish it once you get it into a word processing
program.
Writing
Process Record
Lynn Ouelette (check out her Grade
8 Book Project) uses a form to have her students record their
writing progress. This is a very "usable" form. Take a look and judge for
yourself. Comments should go to Lynn at:douel@megalink.net
The
Paragraph -- Topic Development/Samples
I don't know where I got this set of paragraphs
from but they are perfect for illustrating the various ways of developing
a topic, right from the topic sentence through to the conclusion. Various
types of development are illustrated. A logical follow-up would be to assign
the writing of a paragraph based upon the models, BUT you may want to look
at the evaluation lesson below before rushing off to assign writing.
Paragraph
Evaluation -- Samples
A student often labours over a writing assignment
and then is shocked to receive a lousy mark. Why was the mark so low? Often,
it's anyone's guess. Many students would get better marks if they know
how the assignment was going to be evaluated. They might even do better
if they understood the marking process. I teach the paragraph development
above and then have the students mark the sample paragraphs -- the spelling
mistakes are deliberate. We then discuss our often radically different
evaluations. Try this and then assign a paragraph to write. I usually have
them compare two things by using alternation. Take a look at the writing
folder activities for more ideas for paragraph topics.
Claim-Support-Conclusion
Worksheet
Marcia Anick, an English Teacher at Woodland Middle
School in Duluth, Minnesota, says that "this is a worksheet that I
have found very helpful for teaching students the art of paragraph writing. It
really helps them make the connection that all supports must relate to the
claim/topic sentence." Marcia can be reached at Aaljajmlkk@aol.com
Peer
Editing Check Sheet
Lynne
Cattafi, who teaches at a private school in New York City, uses this peer
evaluation sheet for paragraph writing, though she says that it can be
adapted to longer pieces of expository writing. You can send comments
to Lynne at damcatts@earthlink.net
The
Group Opinion Paragraph
This is a lesson that you can use to teach
group dynamics and paragraph writing. The handout is from Lori Koplik of East
Greenwich, Rhode Island, and is pretty well self-descriptive. Lori can be
reached at lkoplik@koplik.necoxmail.com
The
Hamburger Paragraph
You've probably always wanted to eat in class
and teach writing at the same time. Steven Charlton is an Education
student at the University of North Florida, and he has a lesson where you
can teach students how to write a paragraph using a real hamburger.
In good pedagogical form, Steven has supplied everything you need including
rationale, objectives, instructions and follow-up assignments. You
have to supply the hamburger. Have fun and if you want to compliment Steven
he's at: scharl@southeast.net
Return to Top
Common
Errors Diagnostic Exercise
How much do your students know about
common errors? Tell them to keep the corrected sheet in the front of their
notebooks for reference; depending on the grade level, I tell them that
they will be penalized if they ever make one of these errors. Remember,
"there" is "here" with a "t" on it , "their" is possessive. Don't use "they're"
if "you're" not sure. If the guy at Harvey's can remember what I want on
my hamburger, a student can remember the difference between "there" and
"their".
The
Three Little Pigs Their/They're/There Exercise
This is a pretty funny and creative
exercise that Gina Corsun of Herbert Hoover Middle School in Edison, New
Jersey sent to me. It ties in nicely with the lesson above. I thought when
I read it that I might leave all of the their/there/they're words as blanks
and have them fill them in instead. Or you can have them re-write it or
merely indicate their corrections on the sheet. An overhead would be ideal
for taking up an exercise like this. In any case, read the story because
it will brighten your day as you glean educational sites for lessons. If
you have any questions, (such as who is Oscar Meyer), e-mail Gina at kengina@idt.net
The Three Little Pigs
Their/They're/There Exercise -- Fill in the blanks
Lynn Lau teaches
Grade 7 at Fairview High School in Fairview, Alberta, and she has modified the
Three Little Pigs Activity above so that it is a fill-in-the-blank activity, and
also has adjusted it a bit to suit northern Alberta. Lynn can be reached
at LauL@prsd.ab.ca. The
activity is available as an MS Word or a text document; click on the version
that you would like.
Parts of Speech and Elements of
Plot Jeopardy Game
Lynne Reese teaches
English at James Island Charter High School in Charleston, South Carolina, and
has submitted an entertaining Jeopardy game that has been constructed using MS
Powerpoint. This is interactive and a student can proceed at his or her
own pace and either compete with other students or not. You will need MS
Powerpoint to use the game, but you can download a free viewer from the
Microsoft site. Lynne can be reached at LYNN_REESE@charleston.k12.sc.us
Parts of Speech Poetry
Andrea Lodge
teaches at the
Truebright Science Academy
Charter School in Philadelphia. She describes this lesson as
potentially irritating for the teacher to set up, but one which the students
really like. Andrea can be reached at
misslodge1018@aol.com
The
Review of Anything (except a book or movie)
This is another assignment that combines creativity,
analysis and application in a format suitable for all grades. Start off
discussing a review and then give them examples from Consumer Reports --
pick something offbeat such as toasters or breakfast cereal. Go over how
anything can be reviewed, even your dad's car or your dad himself. All
you need to do is define what a perfect "one" would be and then compare
the thing to be reviewed under certain specific topics, such as appearance,
ease of handling and drawbacks. Then give them the sheet about what constitutes
a review (see below) and then this assignment. One girl in my Grade 10
class reviewed the word "anything" while another did jogging shoes.
How
to Write a Review
How to write the review assigned above.
Writing
Assignments, Folder Assignments, and more writing
Due to an overwhelming number of e-mail
inquiries, I have decided to put some writing assignments here for your
perusal. In Ontario, the writing folder is an essential part of every student's
evaluation. The folder involves a series of writing assignments
but process must be marked and each student must have the choice of which
writing piece, of several, to submit for marking. This accounts for the
huge variety of assignments. However, I always try to make the assignments
support the concepts that we are studying in class. Thus, they are creative
but must demonstrate application of concepts and thinking skills. Take
your pick of these; most will work at almost any level except where I have
noted. If you have ANY questions, e-mail me for help or advice.
Comparing unlike things, ideas, or viewpoints
A review of the five best or the five worst -- this assignment
has generated the most amazing range of responses, depending on the class.
I have had the five best T.V. dads as well as the five WORST things about
Christmas.
A topic OR a type of writing -- you choose. The concept is simple
enough except that teachers of junior grades may want to substitute a fictional
diary or something else for the stream of consciousness.
A Description of a person -- I know that this seems old, but
I tried to make it really demanding and different. The quote, as I acknowledge,
is by Steinbeck and it is truly a work of genius. Have a discussion of
the myriad of things that Steinbeck's short description reveals and then
let them go. I have had several brilliant pieces about a rock star waiting
to be interviewed or perform, a prostitute getting ready to go out (it
was very moving and aroused great sympathy for the woman and her condition)
and, of course, a contemplative Santa Claus just before the big flight.
An Autobiography -- A few years ago I used to have the students
re-write a television sit-com from the view point of one of the characters.
This evolved into this assignment, wherein the student writes an autobiography
of anything else. One girl wrote about her life as a carrot who was transported
from sunny fields to the fridge- she even wrote it on a large orange paper
carrot with green leaves sticking out of the top. Another student wrote
the autobiography of his little sister -- in crayon on about 25 pieces
of coloured construction paper. Let them go wild but don't forget the process
leading to a nice piece of polished work.
Open Assignments --
There are two handouts here. These assignments are good for directed students
and those kids that just eat up writing assignments. Do not give them to
students who have organizational problems or need constant prodding to
get going.
A
Quick Story Writing/Telling Exercise
This is a short writing exercise which has
been submitted by Sue Hallworth who teaches at Newmarket High
School (just north of Toronto). Sue has used it as a fifteen minute
writing exercise but it has all kinds of potential for follow-up activities,
such as students producing art work for their stories or developing story
portfolios.
Questions and comments can be directed to Sue at suehallworth@mail1.geocities.com
Turning
Art and Photographs Into Writing
Do you have some old photos or calendar pictures
lying around? Perhaps you know of some good antique stores with old photo
albums. These two lessons can help you turn them into writing projects.
These are writing activities with strong interactive and role-playing components.
The lessons were submitted by Leilani Kesner who teaches senior English
at Scottsboro High School in Scottsboro, Alabama. She is also on the Board
of Directors of Alabama A & M University's National Writing Project
and has served as a contributing writer for Holt, Rinehart, and Winston's
composition textbook series. But, she says, she is happiest in the classroom.
Contact her at:
LBKesner@aol.com
Tall Tales and
Urban Legends
Suanna Wingfield of Ouachita High School
in Arkansas has her students use antique photos which she has collected.
Using a work sheet and a series of smaller assignments the students create a
tall tale or urban legend. Click on the title for the text lesson. Suanna can be reached at wingfis@ouachita.dsc.k12.ar.us
Return to Top
Writing
Activities
There is a great deal of controversy about
the value of formal grammar instruction. Unfortunately, trying to
write without an understanding of what a sentence is and what accepted
usage is all about, is often like trying to paint without an understanding
of colour theory. These lessons are just a few that I have taught,
but they are at the core of my whole formal writing instruction.
The handouts emphasize the need to understand what is a complete sentence,
what are the major punctuation and structural errors, what is a smooth
sentence, and the necessity of clarity in your writing. All of the
handouts will require teacher instruction so don't just use one of them
for busy work. Each should be part of a unified approach to teaching
how to avoid errors and write more clearly.
Signal
Words Paragraph Exercise
Cindy Godby uses this
lesson to teach and illustrate the concept of "signal words" which
are "words that an author uses to signal a transition in the order of events
or details in a paragraph." Cindy Godby is an instructor of adult basic
education at Seminole Community College in Sanford, Florida and teaches
reading and writing to adults between the ages of 16 and 70. She
can be reached at godby@iag.net
Etymology
on the Internet
Etymology
is the study of where words come from. (Did you know that?) This
lesson uses the Internet to complete an etymology quiz, research word origins,
and make up a quiz. All of the websites are accessed from one web site.
The author of the lesson is Mrs. G and you can visit her website of lesson
plans and links; the site is called, appropriately, Mrs.
G's English Links.
Parts
of Speech
Learning parts of speech can become a highly
creative exercise if you use this lesson sent in by Sharon Stewart who
teaches in Whitianga, New Zealand. Sharon says that she also uses
it for mythology. You can reach her at rsalisbury@xtra.co.nz
Writing
for Different Audiences
This is a letter writing assignment which has
students telling a version of an incident to several different audiences.
Suanna Rens, who teaches in Donaldson, Arkansas, says that the lesson takes
about two 45 minute periods; it could probably be adapted for almost any
grade.
Suanna is at SuannaKay@aol.com
The
Million Dollar Assignment
What would you do if you had one million dollars?
What if you had to spend it in one day? What if you had to use the classifieds
to do it? This is the premise of a tremendous writing exercise
by Kim Thornley who teaches at Timberland High School in St. Stephen, SC.
Kim has supplied the lesson and numerous follow up activities. You can
reach her at rthornley@viperlink.net
Grandma's
Writing -- pen pal assignment
This is another great writing exercise from
Kim Thornley (see above) and involves students having real pen pals at
a local old age residence. This is an exercise with enormous potential
for almost any grade.
99 Ways, X-Files, Ghost Stories
and War
Trine Meyer Vogsland teaches English as a second
language in Norway and has supplied several novel and creative ideas to
encourage writing among all levels of students. She has over 12 ways to
use 99 Ways to Love Your Child as well as three ideas on another
page. Trine says that she would love to hear from teachers who use
the lessons and she can be reached at vogsland@online.no.
Trine
also has some excellent lessons using contemporary music on the Poetry
Page.
Gender
Issues Journal Writing
This is a series of challenging journal topics for senior students which
explores gender issues from a contemporary and historical perspective.
Noeline Laccetti is the Head of English at St. Martin's S.S. in Mississauga,
Ontario and comments or questions can be addressed to her at laccetti@idirect.com
Meditation
Walks for Writing
Kate
Seitz, with the great last name, of Southern Regional High School in
Manahawkin, New Jersey, invites you to look at and try this activity which
she "devised last year as a way to "trick" my students into writing." I liked it because it also requires the students
to work individually and reflect upon what they have done. Kate can be
reached at katseitz76@cs.com
The
Add-On Story
Jennifer Swanson teaches grades 10-12 at Corwith-Wesley-LuVerne
High School in Corwith, Iowa. She says that "the joy of this assignment
is watching the students giggle as they skim over the progress of the story".
If you could use some joy in your class, then perhaps you should try this
activity. Send compliments and comments to Jennifer at swanie@rconnect.com
Return to Top
The Joke and the Paragraph
Michael Jursic is a recent grad of the Ontario
Institute for Studies in Education (OISE) and he teaches at Ryerson Community School in Inner City Toronto.
Try this lesson to teach the parts of a paragraph
and the class will learn something and get a good chuckle at the same time.
Who said education can't be fun? Mike's at mjursic@yahoo.com
"It's
Your Theme Song"
Aimee Arreygue, an English
teacher at Fullerton High School in Fullerton, California, devised this lesson
as an end of year project for her class of 30-35 students, of all ability
levels. It's flexible enough that you could probably use it at any
time during the term. Aimee can be reached at astanfie@earthlink.net
Back to Top
What is Canadian?
Kate Woods lives in Fort Frances which is right on the
Ontario-Minnesota border and just north of the sign in northern Minnesota that
I'm standing beside on the Home page. This is a week-long assignment (and
rubric) that she carried out with her English Media class at the end of a unit
about "Representation in Media". She has supplied the lesson,
the rubric and two pictures which you can get by clicking on the links
below. Kate is reachable at katewoods@hotmail.com
Writing a Lifeline
John McKellar has a fine lesson
in the poetry section and this lesson incorporates poetry as a starting point
for groups of students writing and presenting a lifeline using various media and
writing styles. John has submitted a description of the lesson along with
a list of suitable poems and some of his own. John teaches at West Redcar
Comprehensive School, an 11-16 mixed comp., in Redcar, County Cleveland in the
North East of England and can be reached at john.mckellar1@ntlworld.com
Pardon Me, Your Modifier is Dangling
This lesson is also entitled A Creative Way to Teach
Dangling
and Misplaced Modifiers. It has been submitted by Melanie LaFleur who
teaches at
Stanley
High School in
Logansport,
LA
and she has not only included
the lesson and instructions, but a huge list of sentences which display the often
hilarious and confusing effects of misplaced and dangling modifiers.
Melanie can be reached at
melanie.schweiger@desotopsb.com-- the lesson is available in two formats:
The Memoir Unit
As the name suggests, this is a unit of ten lessons
which is as much literature study as writing assignments and a review and
practice of writing terms and structures. It has been submitted by Jeremy
Glazer who teaches in Miami, Florida. The unit is quite adaptable and can
be modified to suit your needs. Jeremy has included very complete
instructions. He can be reached at jeremyglazer@yahoo.com
Contemporary
Issues Vocabulary List
After 35 years of teaching English at Petaluma High School
in Petaluma, California, Mark Reischling decided to retire. However,
before he did, he submitted the list which was the vocabulary requirement in his
Contemporary Issues class. Mark got his students to develop their voice in
written and oral language "by making the topics so meaty they jumped on it/them."
Take and look and you can reach Mark with comments at reischx2@comcast.net
Parts of a Paragraph
Mylissa Poppe, who teaches at Bishop Reding Secondary
in Milton, Ontario, says that this lesson is "a great way to get students thinking about the parts of a paragraph and to give tactile learners an interesting way of putting things into perspective."
It can be used at any level and works well as a competition. She has included
the instructions and a sample paragraph to get you started. The lesson is
in two formats:
Student
Declaration of Independence
This
is a "persuasive document to persuade faculty and administration to listen
and take action in regards to your complaints" which has been submitted by
Cathy Poston, who teaches at Liberty Union High School in Baltimore,
Ohio. It is a fairly demanding writing exercise which Cathy uses in her
American Literature course. Cathy can be reached at postonc@postbox.esu.k12.oh.us
Marianne Garrigan has developed several great lessons and
the first five are based on errors that she saw in her students'
writing. Each lesson defines the topic and then tests the student's
knowledge with a very thorough exercise. Marianne teaches language arts
to a mix of high school and young adult students at the Haney Technical Center
in Panama City, Florida and if you have
questions or a compliment she can be reached at
kmgarrigan@comcast.net
Please Note: All of these lessons are
in MS Word Format.
.
The
SELF Pronouns -- Reflexive Pronouns
Parallel
Structure
Subject
Verb Agreement
Non-Standard
English Errors
Complex Sentences
Buzz
Words in the News
Beginning and Ending an Essay
Time Capsule -- Cumulative Group
Assignment (MS Word
format)
Suzanne Meyer
teaches at New Hanover High School in Wilmington, North Carolina and she has
submitted this lesson that she uses in her Grade Nine Intro to English Class.
The students create a time capsule as a cumulative group project after finishing
their reading assignment. The nature of the lesson makes it perfect for
students who may struggle with reading comprehension and text strategies.
You can reach Suzanne at
Suzanne Meyer <tsm919@atmc.net>
The Clause (or what's a sentence fragment?)
