Links to Great Resources
Book Report templates for many genres of literature - http://abcteach.com/directory/basics/writing/book_reports/
Essay Writing Checklist - http://www.senecac.on.ca/student/success/success-strategies/essay-checklist.html
Essay Writing Outline - http://www.senecac.on.ca/student/success/success-strategies/essay-outline.html
Writing Resources
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YDUn1c4uxUE – Peter Elbow video on Writing. Peter Elbow speaks about the writing process and the struggles he had in learning to write effectively. Author of the book, Writing Without Teachers, Peter has a wealth of knowledge to share about the writing process.
The Writer’s Workshop: Imitating Your Way to Better Writing – Gregory L. Roper – http://www.amazon.ca/Writers-Workshop-Imitating-Better-Writing/dp/1933859334/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1280004757&sr=1-1- This challenging writing curriculum engages the student in imitatio, or the art of imitating the masters: Cicero, Thomas Aquinas, Charles Dickens, Sojourner Truth, James Joyce, Ernest Hemingway and others. A very Charlotte Mason-friendly approach using portions of great literature, ancient through modern. A wonderful resource for high school students to improve writing skills.
Writer’s Inc. - Nelson Publishing -http://www.amazon.ca/Writers-Inc-Student-Handbook-Learning/dp/0669529958/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1280004804&sr=1-1 – A writing handbook covering many writing topics with samples and explanations.
Bird By Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life – Anne Lamott –http://www.amazon.ca/Bird-Some-Instructions-Writing-Life/dp/0385480016/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1280004841&sr=1-1 – entertaining, witty advice on various aspects of creative writing: Character, Plot, Dialogue, Setting, Finding Your Voice, and much more. Anne Lamott’s interesting, personal anecdotes give the reader the sense that she is sidling up, offering writing advice to a friend over a coffee.
www.bravewriter.com – Julie Bogart’s site offers many online classes and two wonderful, non-consumable print resources that can be used from elementary school through the high school years. Excellent writing resource.
Writer’s Jungle – Julie Bogart – http://www.bravewriter.com – A homeschooling mom’s writing resource, wonderfully written, packed full of information, creative ideas and sound advice. Julie Bogart has created an unparalleled, indispensable work for homeschoolers who find teaching writing a daunting task. Julie makes the process pleasant and her creative, unique approach to teaching writing helps even the most reluctant writer to be successful.
Help for High School – Julie Bogart – http://www.bravewriter.com - Written directly to the high school student, this non-consumable volume is another resource by Julie Bogart full of creative writing ideas and activities, helping students to understand the writing process and to be willing participants. The book is written in two parts: Part 1: Preparation for Essay Writing and Part 2: Essay Writing.
Lots more to come!
Creative Writing Ideas
Freewrite
Freewrites are specific, timed writing opportunities. I have used Freewriting with a number of students – my own children as well as others. Some of the students were avid writers; others were quite reluctant. I have found this to help any student come up with interesting ideas and all of them have enjoyed the process.
Here’s how it works:
Step 1: Generating Ideas
Have the students brainstorm ideas to write about. If this is your first time doing a Freewrite or if your children are reluctant writers, it might be a good idea to have them choose a topic that they love and know lots about. Set the timer for 5 minutes (or less depending on the age of the writers. You may have to play with the timing. The important thing is that it is timed). The students must write down their ideas for topics for the full time allotted. Even if they write something like, “I have no idea what else to write. I hate writing,” it’s ok as long as they keep their pen moving. The idea is to get used to the flow of writing as they think. In writing circles, this is called ‘Stream of Consciousness.’ It is important to do this so that they do not try to edit their work during this stage. This is the stage in which they are trying to generate ideas. If they have truly exhausted all of their ideas before the 5 minute mark and you feel they have enough of a list to begin with, then stop the timer. Use your discretion. You know your children better than anyone else.
Step 2: Descriptive Words and Phrases
Students will choose one topic from their list of ideas. Again, set the timer for 5 minutes. Students will now list any words or phrases that come to mind when they consider their topic. They must keep writing for the full 5 minutes and just as in the first step, they can write anything that comes to mind even if it’s just to say that they can’t think of anything else.
Step 3: Creating a Paragraph
Set the timer for 5 minutes and allow students to write their listed ideas from Step 2 into sentences and paragraphs. We are not going for perfection at this stage. Editing can come later. We are looking for the lists of ideas to be formed into some kind of cohesive paragraph. As they put their paragraph together, referencing their previous list, they may even come up with other ideas. Often, more things come to mind during the writing process. Again, it’s important for the writing to be fluid and flow through the allotted 5 minutes.
Step 4: Proofreading
Have students read over their page from bottom to top (yes, backward!) looking for spelling errors. Anything that looks strange or they’re unsure about, they should underline and then look up in a dictionary. Also, students can look for punctuation. Reading their paragraph out loud will help them to make sense of where punctuation would naturally fall. Another idea is to have a sibling or friend look it over for punctuation and spelling mistakes.
Step 5: Editing
Students can then begin to look at the order of ideas and ask themselves some questions. Does what I have written make sense? Should I move any sentences around? Does each idea flow from one to the other? Have I missed any important ideas? Are my ideas expressed clearly and concisely?
Often, we leave out the final two steps. It depends on what our goal is for that day. It might be good to have your children go through the final two polishing steps only every so often, particularly if they are reluctant writers. Those steps are much more gruelling and the important first step in writing well is learning to enjoy the process.
