WRITING ASSIGNMENTS Snow Day Write a short story about what you would do if you had a day off from school because of snow. Possible intro: No you don’t have to use these!!! However, you may!! 1. When I woke up today I saw such a beautiful sight! 2. I felt like I had slept in longer on Monday morning, and I gasped when I looked at the time. “Mom it’s already 8:40!” I yelled as I jumped out of bed. 3. “Oh no kids hold on tight!” our bus driver yelled. 4. “Mom, do you think they’re going to have school today?” I asked, as I saw our dog standing on top of our car. Your story needs to have: • beginning – Grabs attention; introduces setting and characters • middle – Develops a PROBLEM and moves the story toward a solution • end – Brings the story to a close and provides a solution for the problem Explanation Plan Topic = making snow sculptures ★ Snow -­‐heavy snowfall -­‐little snow ★ Imagination -­‐traditional snow person -­‐creative sculptures Ÿ animals Ÿcastles ★ Props -­‐clothing -­‐stones, eyes -­‐color C=snow sculptures are wonderful Snow Sculptures A favorite winter activity for many people is building a snow sculpture. First, you need snow. It is best to build after a heavy snowfall, but a small sculpture can be built after even a little snow. Second, you need imagination. Many people build a traditional snow person with two snowballs for the body and one for the head. But other people build figures that could have stepped from a fantasy story, animals that look ready to leap, and castles or forts of snow. After the sculpture is built, it’s fun to add props. Clothing may be added and stones for eyes. Some people add color by mixing food coloring with water and putting it in spray bottles. Snow sculptures do not last long. but they are wonderful to make and enjoy during the winter season. Brainstorm of topics to explain: bottom fishing techniques, cheerleading stunts, catching bullheads in tide pools, tricks in water, making a circuit, how to multiply, divide, and estimate. explain how to make a paper airplane, an origami box describe an event that you attended explain how to take of your pet or how to find your missing pet Folktale or Fable Write a story in which a character learns a lesson. Student Proofreading Check 1. I’ve read my rough draft three times out loud. 2. I’ve corrected every sentence using C.U.P.S. 3. I’ve made at least three changes that I can show you. 4. I’ve changed at least two of the words to make it better. Score your own paper. Write the first letter of each of these categories: F O I C. Each category is worth 3 points. Here’s what you need... Focus /3 – The writer tells a story that teaches the reader a lesson. Organization /3 – The plot events are told in order, the story seems complete, and *in the end (conclusion) we read about what lesson has been learned. Ideas and support /3 – The story events have supporting details (a reader can easily make a mind movie while reading). The story makes sense. The writer uses variety in word choice (writer isn’t repeating the same overused words). Conventions /3 When using dialogue quotations are used correctly and paragraphs are used to tell when another character is talking. There are few errors in C.U.P.S. Student Model: Folktale Ted Cobb made shoes. He was on his way to the king’s court to sell shoes. Suddenly, he came across a woman sitting next to the path. She was trying to get one of her shoes off. “What is the matter, miss?” Ted said. “There is a rock in my shoe, and it hurts.” Ted saw that her shoe had a hole in it. He gave her a new pair. “Thank you,” the woman said. “I’ll never forget what you did.” Ted walked on. He found a man with both feet suck in mud. Ted undid the man’s boots and pulled him away. Now the man was barefoot, so Ted gave him a pair of shoes. “I’ll never forget what you did,” the man said. Later, Ted came to a boy and a girl. They had no shoes. “What happened to your shoes?” Ted asked. “Our shoes are too small,” the boy said. Ted pulled out of his bag two pairs that fit perfectly. “We will never forget how you helped us,” they said. Ted had a river to cross before he got to the king’s court. He found a log across the river. His bag was still heavy and hard to balance. As he walked across the log, the wind blew. To stop himself from falling, he tossed the bag of shoes into the air. The bag got stuck in a tree. Soon, the man, the woman, the boy, and the girl came down the path. They saw Ted staring up into the tree. “What happened to your bag of shoes?” asked the woman. Ted told them what happened. The man and woman helped the boy and the girl climb the tree. The boy held the girl’s hand as she untangled the bag. It dropped right at Ted’s feet. “Thank you,” he said. “I’ll never forget how you helped me.” Lessons to learn from a story 1. Use your time wisely so you have more time for fun. 2. Don’t brag. 3. If you help other people in need, they may help you when you’re in need. 4. It pays to be honest. 5. Don’t tell lies. 6. Don’t expect people to help you if you don’t help them. 7. Treat others the way you want to be treated 8. Ask your parents for permission. 9. Stand for what’s right, even if you’re standing alone. 10. Don’t stop believing in yourself, or in what you know is true. 11. Don’t steal. 12. Be respectful 13. Be responsible with your belongings (backpack, homework, etc.). 14. Slow and steady wins the race. Dialogue Write dialogue in which characters are speaking to each other. Student Model: Dialogue More than anything, Amelia Earhart wished she could fly. One day, she got the chance to go up in an airplane with a pilot named Frank Hawks. “Oh, Frank,” said Amelia, once they were a couple hundred feet off the ground. “This is the best day of my life!” “You’re brave, that’s for sure!” said Frank. “I’m not afraid of anything,” said Amelia. “Take me higher!” “The sky’s the limit,” said Frank, and he made the plane climb higher through the clouds. “I bet I can touch the stars!” said Amelia. “It’s so beautiful!” This was the ride that changed Amelia’s life. At that moment, she knew she would one day make her wish to become a pilot come true. Words instead of SAID: accused
advised
acknowledged
affirmed
added
agreed
addressed
announced
admitted
answered
apologized
assured
bawled
bet
boomed
bugged
chatted
chirped
chuckled
coaxed
conceded
confirmed
corrected
crowed
demanded
disclosed
echoed
explained
gawked
greeted
grumbled
hinted
hummed
inquired
jeered
lectured
mentioned
mumbled
nodded
approved
avowed
beamed
bickered
bragged
burst out
chattered
chittered
claimed
commanded
concluded
congratulated
coughed
cursed
demurred
divulged
encouraged
exploded
gently
grimaced
guessed
hissed
hypothesized
insisted
jested
lied
mimicked
murmured
noted
argued
babbled
began
bleated
breathed
cackled
cheered
choked
clarified
commented
concurred
continued
countered
dared
denied
doubted
ended
finished
gibed
groaned
gulped
hollered
imitated
interjected
jibed
lisped
moaned
mused
notified
asked
badgered
begged
blurted
broke in
called
chided
chortled
clucked
complained
confessed
convinced
cried
decided
described
drawled
exasperated
fretted
giggled
growled
gurgled
howled
implied
interrupted
joked
maintained
mocked
muttered
objected
asserted
barked
bellowed
boasted
bubbled
cautioned
chimed in
chorused
coached
complimented
confided
cooed
croaked
declared
disagreed
dribbled
exclaimed
gasped
gloated
grunted
gushed
huffed
informed
intoned
laughed
marveled
motioned
nagged
observed
offered
opined
ordered
panted
perplexed
pestered
piped
pleaded
pled
pointed out
pondered
praised
prayed
proclaimed
promised
proposed
protested
provoked
purred
put in
puzzled
quavered
queried
questioned
quietly
quipped
quizzed
quoted
raged
ranted
reasoned
reassured
recalled
reckoned
recounted
reiterated
related
remarked
remembered
reminded
repeated
replied
reported
requested
resounded
responded
retaliated
retorted
revealed
roared
sang
sassed
screamed
scoffed
scolded
shot
shouted
shrieked
shrilled
sighed
simpered
slurred
smiled
smirked
snapped
snarled
sneered
snickered
sniffed
sniffled
snorted
sneezed
spat
speculated
spluttered
spoke
sobbed
sputtered
squeaked
squealed
stammered
started
stated
stormed
stressed
stuttered
suggested
surmised
taunted
teased
tempted
tested
testified
thanked
theorized
threatened
told
trilled
urged
uttered
volunteered
vowed
wailed
warned
went on
wept
wheezed
whimpered
whined
whispered
wondered
worried
yawned
yakked
yelled
Play Scene Write a play scene. List a cast of at least three characters and introduce the setting. Write three or more lines in your play. Student Model: Play Scene Cast of Characters Taylor Monique Logan Chirpy, a parrot Setting: Afternoon at the local park. It is summertime, and Taylor, Monique, and Logan are playing on a slide. As they play, a yellow bird flies towards them and lands on top of the slide. TAYLOR: Look, you guys! Look where the bird landed. MONIQUE (chuckling): Wow. I’ve never seen such a yellow bird in all of my life. It looks like sunshine on a summer day. LOGAN: I bet it’s someone’s pet. (Looking around the playground with worry.) But I don’t know whose. We should probably see if we can catch it. Character Sketch Describe a family member in writing including how they look, sound, and act. Make a table to help you, like this... Looks Sounds Acts black hair laughs, giggles smiley black eyes fast talk tells jokes taller than Nina kind, new students, loners as tall as me Use the information from your table to write your paper... Mia Mia is my best friend. She has straight black hair and sparkling black eyes. She is taller than my friend Nina, but not as tall as me. She laughs and giggles a lot. Mia is always smiling and talks very fast. Sometimes she talks so fast that I can’t understand what she is saying! When I tell her to talk more slowly, she makes a funny face. She loves to tell jokes. The cheesier a joke is, the better Mia likes it. Mia always asks new students or students who are sitting alone in the lunchroom to sit with her. She also loves to sing and has a beautiful voice. Mia is very talented She is a good friend who likes to make other people happy. She is kind and thoughtful. I hope we can be best friends forever. Topic Sentences Cause and Effect Paragraph My grade on this week’s spelling test was my best ever! Because I studied my spelling words every day, I got an A on my test. On Monday and Tuesday, I wrote each of the words ten times. On Wednesday, I made a word search with the words. On Thrusday, I asked my mom to give me a practice test. This showed me that if I study my spelling words every day, then I will do well on Friday’s test. Key words to use for cause: because, since, reason, consequently Topic Sentences – for most paragraphs state the effect in your topic sentence. The next sentence should begin with a word for ‘cause’. Samples: 1. There are several reasons why I will become an elementary school teacher. 2. Foxes are animals very desired by people. 3. Nate Fousel won the 195 pound state title for the second year in a row! Explaining Paragraph Write a paragraph that explains the purpose of one of the jobs in the classroom. Words for the paragraph: manager, organized, helpful, initiative, features, listening 1. Complex Sentence Before you can have a smooth, organized classroom you have to know how to do the job of _____________________. 2. Question + Statement how can a student make a huge difference? A student can be the _____________________. 3. Power Number Statement There are several ways being the ____________________ helps our classroom. 4. Action Verb Statements The ______________________ makes our classroom better. Paragraph that Compares Prompt: Compare two sports. Tell 1 way they are alike, and 1 way they’re different. -­‐-­‐2 Stars 1. Complex sentence If you have ever played ____________ and _____________ you know that these sports have differences, but they also have similarities. 2. Question: Have you ever played _________ and _________? These sports have differences and similarities. 3. Power number – There/these are a number of ways _________ and _________ are similar and different. 4. Action Verb People enjoy playing _________ and _________ which has their differences and similarities. Prompt Compare two fruits. Tell three ways they are the same. -­‐-­‐3 stars 1. Complex sentence – As you look at a/an ___________ and a/an _______________ you will find that they have similarities. 2. Question: Have you ever taken a close look at a/an ______________ and a/an _______________? They have some things in common. 3. Power Number: There are several things that a/an ______________ and a/an _______________ have in common. 4. Action Verb: Looking at the fruits a/an ______________ and a/an _______________ you will discover what they have in common. Compare yourself at age five to now. Tell three ways you’re different. -­‐-­‐3 stars 1. Complex sentence – If I compare myself at five years old to now, I can see a lot of differences! 2. Question: Have I changed much since I was five years old? Let me tell you the many ways! 3. Power Number: There are several things that have changed about me since I was five. 4. Action Verb: I enjoy thinking about how much I have changed since I was five years old! Compare the similarities between reindeer and elephants. 3 Star Ideas! 1. Complex sentence – Although they may look like completely different animals, elephants and reindeer have similarities. 2. Question: Could reindeer and elephants have anything in common? Let me tell you ways they compare! 3. Power Number: There are several things that reindeer and elephants have in common. 4. Action Verb: Read on to discover what reindeer and elephants have in common. COMPARING PROMPTS 1. Compare two sports. Tell 1 way they are alike, and 1 way they’re different. -­‐-­‐2 Stars 2. Compare two fruits. Tell three ways they are the same. -­‐-­‐3 stars 3. Compare yourself at age five to now. Tell three ways you’re different. -­‐-­‐3 stars 4. Compare the similarities between reindeer and elephants. -­‐-­‐2 Stars