by Sharon Watson | Feb 1, 2014 | High School Prompts, High School Tutorial, Sharon's Blog, tutorial, Writing Prompts
HIGH SCHOOL PROMPTS
Aren’t descriptions those portions of books that you skip? Aren’t they boring? Don’t they stop the forward movement of the plot?
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Sometimes they do. But when you are the writer, you don’t have to stop the movement even if you are describing something.
Make something move.
An effective writer makes a description move. Wind blows the curtains. The sea surges on the shore in frothy waves. The train plows through fields of ripe winter wheat. You get the idea.
Read the following description of an abandoned cabin from Edward Abbey’s Desert Solitaire and figure out what is moving: (more…)
by Sharon Watson | Jan 22, 2014 | High School Prompts, High School Tutorial, Sharon's Blog, teaching aids, tutorial
SHARON’S BLOG
Proofreading is painful for students. They feel they’re through with the writing process when they write their first draft and then want nothing more to do with that essay. Students tell me that writing the first draft and proofreading it is like writing their paper twice.
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However, the skill of proofreading their own papers is essential to the writing process.
Why proofread?
- First, by catching their mistakes or finessing the points or flow of the essay, students learn to write more effectively.
- Second, they show respect for their teachers by handing in a well-thought-out paper with few mistakes.
- And third, students begin to understand through the editing process that there is an audience at the other end of their essays. They aren’t writing simply to keep themselves busy; they are writing to communicate, educate, explain, persuade, or entertain.
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What methods can we teach our students so they can proofread their work by themselves?
(more…)
by Sharon Watson | Dec 2, 2013 | High School Prompts, High School Tutorial, Sharon's Blog, tutorial, Writing Prompts
HIGH SCHOOL PROMPTS
Gathering around the campfire as a family or with your friends in the summer at camp or during the crisp fall days can be fun. Whether you’re singing or roasting marshmallows for s’mores, it’s a unique experience.
Gathering around the TV to watch a movie or show with your family or friends can feel very different from circling the campfire. The blue glow from the TV may not warm you up, but its content may be more entertaining. (more…)
by Sharon Watson | Nov 2, 2013 | Middle School Prompts, Middle School Tutorial, Sharon's Blog, tutorial, Writing Prompts
MIDDLE SCHOOL PROMPTS
You know that boring description in the last book you read for school?
No, wait. You didn’t read it. You skipped the description because it was so dull.
It’s time to fix that. Here’s a paragraph from H. G. Wells’ The War of the Worlds. Notice the specific and powerful verbs he uses to keep this description of refugees moving along: (more…)
by Sharon Watson | Sep 15, 2013 | Middle School Prompts, Middle School Tutorial, Sharon's Blog, tutorial, Writing Prompts
MIDDLE SCHOOL PROMPTS
. . . I didn’t want to add to my teacher’s already heavy workload.
. . . I put it in my pocket and my mom washed it.
. . . I visited my aunt who has this ancient fan, and my hair caught in it. I had to perform an emergency haircut with her fingernail clippers.
This prompt isn’t about homework, but it is about why things happened. But wait, there’s more!
