by Sharon Watson | Sep 13, 2015 | High School Prompts, High School Tutorial, Sharon's Blog, tutorial, Writing Prompts
SHARON’S BLOG
Students will follow along as I guide them through my experience with making stained-glass butterflies. As they read, they’ll be learning how to write a how-to and then insert transitions into the essay to move their readers easily through the process.
Suitable for students in 5th – 12th grade.
My stained-glass how-to essay
Last week I attended a class on how to make stained-glass butterflies. You know, the kind you hang up on a window with little suction cups.
My stained-glass butterfly and my mom’s. Hers turned out better than mine!
The teacher was very clear on how to do each step. We practiced cutting glass first, listening for the “hiss” that showed we were scoring the glass correctly with our cutters. After we had cut a line and a circle (both of which I messed up), he moved us to the next step.
I chose what I thought would be a simple butterfly design and found out how wrong I was. (more…)
by Sharon Watson | Jul 19, 2015 | High School Prompts, High School Tutorial, Sharon's Blog, teaching aids, tutorial, Writing Prompts
HIGH SCHOOL PROMPTS
Do you want to influence your readers? Do you want to grab their hearts?
Use the power of story.
There are two kinds of stories: the true ones and the fictional ones. People have been using both kinds forever, and so can you.
(more…)
by Sharon Watson | Jul 19, 2015 | Sharon's Blog, teaching aids, tutorial, Writing Prompts
SHARON’S BLOG
I am sickened and saddened by the news that Planned Parenthood is dealing in baby parts. I imagine you are troubled as well.
Whether they are truly selling them or, as they say, making them available, there is no defense for these actions.
This exposé is an organic teaching moment for us and our teens. How can we help our teens understand what is godly and debunk the “humanitarian” argument? (more…)
by Sharon Watson | Jun 20, 2015 | High School Prompts, High School Tutorial, Middle School Prompts, Middle School Tutorial, Sharon's Blog, tutorial, Writing Prompts
SHARON’S BLOG
True story: I was eating dinner in a restaurant recently when I heard a woman in the booth behind me state, “This is an abomination!”
My ears perked up. My curiosity was piqued. I rarely hear the word “abomination” any more and wondered what could be so horrific as to need that word. I imagined she and her dining partner were reading a magazine article on human trafficking or perhaps watching a YouTube video about persecution in Indonesia.
I strained my ears to learn what she was referring to. (more…)
by Sharon Watson | Jun 7, 2015 | Literature, Middle School Prompts, Middle School Tutorial, Sharon's Blog, teaching aids, tutorial, Writing Prompts
MIDDLE SCHOOL PROMPTS
One of the first rules story writers learn is this: Show, don’t tell.
What does that mean? Check out the following examples to see what I mean.
Show It
When you write a story, try not to tell your readers what your character is feeling, like this:
Jeremy was angry.
Instead, show your character in action, like this: (more…)
by Sharon Watson | Jun 7, 2015 | High School Prompts, High School Tutorial, Literature, Sharon's Blog, teaching aids, tutorial, Writing Prompts
HIGH SCHOOL PROMPTS
In a recent tutorial, you practiced plunging your character into hot water with two powerful methods many writers use. You can find that prompt here.
This week you’ll examine three more methods of getting your main character deep into a story. As Stanley Elkin reveals, “I would never write about someone who is not at the end of his rope.” (more…)
