by Sharon Watson | May 24, 2015 | Sharon's Blog, teaching aids
SHARON’S BLOG
It’s summer. A sweet breeze of relief flows through the family tree and tickles the leaves. You hear a child giggle.
But you’ve worked hard on this year’s writing classes, and you want to make sure that your children’s writing skills don’t completely deteriorate during summer vacation. What can you do?
Summer is fun, and your children’s summertime writing activities can be fun for them and for you as well. Otherwise, it’s not really summer!
The most important feature of writing in summer is (more…)
by Sharon Watson | May 3, 2015 | Middle School Prompts, Sharon's Blog, Writing Prompts
MIDDLE SCHOOL PROMPTS
Let’s talk about trees.
Something interesting just happened to you. Right now. This moment.
When you read “trees,” an image of a tree or trees popped into your head. What was it?
When you write to describe something, you want to be specific. You DON’T want to write like this: (more…)
by Sharon Watson | May 3, 2015 | High School Prompts, Sharon's Blog, Writing Prompts
HIGH SCHOOL PROMPTS
So you’re driving your taxi, and someone hails you from the sidewalk. In comes a man you eventually recognize, and you get so excited that you shout a phrase from one of his movies to him.
He laughs and joins in the fun. You drop him off, but that is not the end of the story.
Later, he sends you tickets to his latest Broadway show, and you go and even get to meet with him after the show in his dressing room!
You can read the whole, fun story about the taxi driver “Mr. Ferrari” and the famous actor (more…)
by Sharon Watson | May 2, 2015 | High School Prompts, High School Tutorial, Sharon's Blog, teaching aids, tutorial
SHARON’S BLOG
Here’s a free grammar lesson for your teens from The Power in Your Hands: Writing Nonfiction in High School, 2nd Edition. It’s on gender-neutral language in writing—and it has the answers at the end! Keep reading to see this valuable lesson. Enjoy!
Incidentally, the subject of gender-neutral language is not related to the transgender movement or any biological issues.
(more…)
by Sharon Watson | Apr 26, 2015 | Middle School Prompts, Sharon's Blog, Writing Prompts
MIDDLE SCHOOL PROMPTS.
In the mid-1800s, Samuel Morse helped create a code that was used in his new system of communication: telegraphs.
You may be familiar with the Morse code for “SOS”:
· · · ― ― ― · · ·
(or “dot dot dot, dash dash dash, dot dot dot”).
The three dots stand for “S” and the three dashes stand for “O.”
In Frank Gilbreth and Ernestine Gilbreth Carey’s memoir Cheaper by the Dozen, (more…)
