Alice R. Smee
Teacher: Alice Smee
Class: Read 180
Grade: 6, 7, 8
Objective(s):
The learner will:
Be introduced to persuasive writing.
Read and compare examples of professional persuasive writing to their own persuasive writing.
Use visual stimuli to connect writing to images.
Broaden their descriptive and persuasive vocabulary.
Be introduced to descriptive writing and elaboration of their own writing.
Be able to write descriptive and elaborate sentences.
Be able to find persuasive ideas in media
Be able to describe how images can be persuasive
Be able to write a descriptive, visual, and elaborative persuasive piece.
Be able to find and correct sentence fragments, run-on sentences and punctuation errors.
Lesson 1
Materials: Notebooks, pens and pencils. Grammar tip sheet on run-on sentence, run-on sentence worksheet, examples of persuasive pieces (the teacher will provide).
Procedures:
(include Initiation, New Material if applicable, GP, IP, and closure)
Initiation: When the students come into the class there will be a sentence on the overhead that reads "The images in your head are important how you transfer those images to words is important also." The class will discuss how we can fix the run-on sentence in order to make it a proper sentence. After we discuss the different ways I will give the students a packet about run-on sentences. Note: The packet will be for students to keep and use in class during the times when we are working on run on sentences.
New Material: The teacher will ask the students "What does it mean to persuade someone? Write your own definition." After a discussion of the answers, the teacher will then ask, "What is persuasive writing?" Again the class will discuss the answers and the students will write down the answers in their notebooks, so that they can always go back to refer to them. Finally the teacher will ask, "What are the main parts of a good persuasive argument?"
Guided Practice: The teacher will give an example of two persuasive writings: one writing will be a student example, and the other will be a more descriptive and creative writing, a review of a movie or music. We will read both together and discuss them.
Individual Practice: The students will be given a Venn diagram graphic organizer; the left side of the diagram will say, "Characteristics of Writing One;" the middle will say, "Similarities of Both Writings;" and the right will say, "Characteristics of Writing Two." The students will have to complete the sheet about the two different writings.
Closure: After reviewing the sheet they will also be given a sheet with the following questions:
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1. What did you notice was different about the two writings?
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2. Which writing was more descriptive?
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3. Which writing did you prefer and why?
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4. Draw a picture that represents one thing that stood out to you in one essay
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of the writings.
After giving them time to answer the questions, the students will discuss them with a partner. Time with their partners will be followed by a brief whole class discussion about the differences between the two essays, and how the objective of our persuasive unit is to write an essay that follows the standards, but is also creative and descriptive like the second essay.
Lesson 2
Materials: Notebooks, pens and pencils. Sentence fragments tip sheet, sentence fragment worksheet, popular children's television show.
Procedures:
(include Initiation, New Material if applicable, GP, IP, and closure)
Initiation: The students will enter the class and fix a sentence fragment that will be on the overhead. After the class reviews the answers for the ways to fix the sentence fragments, the teacher will pass out the tip sheet for the sentence fragments.
New Material: The class will discuss ways that they are persuaded daily. In school, at home, on the internet, on the television, etc. The class will discuss what they see and how they are being persuaded and if it works. The teacher will then explain to the class how visuals can help them when they are writing and coming up with their own ideas for writing.
Guided Practice: The teacher will then show the class a popular, age appropriate, television show. The class will watch the show together for no longer than 20 minutes.
Individual Practice: The students will be required to complete two tasks after they watch the show. The first task is to describe the most important scene in the show. The students will need to write who and what they saw in the scene. They will be asked to describe everything they saw. The second task is for the students to write why they like this show, and how what they saw supports their view.
Closure: For the remainder of the class, the students will break into partners or small groups and discuss their two tasks. The students will create a list of at least two things that they noticed. They will also have to choose which classmate's reason for liking the show and details to support. Each partnership or group will have five minutes to create this list, and then we will go around and discuss as a class.
At home activity: The teacher will give the students an image of a current event and ask the students to write down what they see. They will be asked to write every detail in the image that they can actually see. The students will have to make a decision about the picture; they can decide anything. Then they will have to support their decision with what they saw in the picture. They cannot use anything that they have not already written down on the sheet. In partners the students will discuss their decisions and support.
Lesson 3
Materials: Notebook, pens and pencils. Punctuation tip sheet, "Say this not that" worksheet (the teacher will provide).
Procedures:
(include Initiation, New Material if applicable, GP, IP, and closure)
Initiation: The students will enter the class and correct a sentence with incorrect punctuation that will be on the overhead. After the class reviews the answers for the ways to fix the sentence, the teacher will pass out the tip sheet for punctuation.
New Material: The teacher will explain to the students that since they have been describing pictures and television shows, and since they will encounter more description and elaboration, they will figure out words that can be descriptive and convincing. The class will complete an exercise called "Say ___ not ____"
Guided Practice: The teacher will explain to the class that they will be given common words that they use daily like: talk, go (going), agree, walk, etc... They will be asked to come up with more descriptive phrases or synonyms of those words.
Individual Practice: The students will be broken into small groups of no more than four and will have small competitions. Each group will be given a sheet, and a word. They will all be given five minutes to come up with alternate words and phrases. The activity will be done in two rounds, round one for descriptive words and round two for persuasive words.
Closure: The class will create a master list of descriptive words they can use when they are writing.
At home activity: The teacher will ask the students to take notice while they are watching television or on the internet of all the commercials or ads that they see. While watching they need to make a list of all the words, images and ideas that were used to try and convince or persuade them into doing or buying what the ad is for.
Lesson 4
Materials: Notebook, pens and pencils. Run-on worksheet, assignment directions, Sentence Expanders homework (the teacher will provide).
Procedures:
(include Initiation, New Material if applicable, GP, IP, and closure)
Initiation: When students enter the classroom a picture will be on the overhead with the caption "This man is running from really bad run-on sentences help him fix it what should he do." The students will have time to fix the issue themselves first and we will briefly discuss it as a class. Note: Students can refer to their run-on tip sheet if they need to.
New Material: The teacher will explain to the students that this lesson will focus on elaboration in writing. First the class will discuss what it means to "show and not tell" when writing. The teacher will give the students examples, and then will ask each of the students in the class to come up with his or her own example. The class will then be asked to complete a short writing activity that asks them to be descriptive and creative.
Guided Practice: The class will review the directions of the assignment together (see individual practice). After the directions are reviewed the teacher will read the students an example of the assignment:
If I could bring objects into the class I would bring two things. One is reddish brown and white. It has two dark brown eyes that look at me with unconditional love. It also has a black nose that is so smashed I worry if it can breathe; because of the nose you often hear it coming before you see it and that sends people running! When I am feeling down or sick it cuddles up next to me and gives wet kisses until laugh and feel much better. The teacher will stop there and see if any of the students could guess what he or she is describing and why it was special.
Individual Practice: The students will complete the following assignment:
Think about an object that is special to you and that you would want to bring to school for show and tell. In the space below you must write a short story or a poem that does two things. The short story or poem has to describe the object you would bring, without saying what the object is, and also show why the object is special. Make sure you use descriptive words when describing the objects. You will be sharing this story or poem with a partner and will answer questions abour your partner's story or poem.
Closure: After the students are finished, they will have to exchange assignments with
a partner. They will each be given a sheet with the following questions:
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1a. Was your partner's story or poem descriptive enough? Were you able to
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figure out the object he or she was describing? What was it?
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1b. What are some descriptive words that your partner used to describe his or
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her special object? If your partner did not use any descriptive words, list some
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that he or she could have used.
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2a. Are you convinced that your partner's object is special? Why or why not? If
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you are not convinced, what could your partner have said to convince you?
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2b. What descriptive words that your partner used were also words that helped
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to persuade you? List them.
For homework will give the students a worksheet called "sentence expanders." The students will have to take telling sentences like "John's shoes were old" and turn them into showing sentences like "John's shoes had so many rips, creases and dirt on them that I thought he borrowed them from my great grandmother."
Lesson 5
Materials: Notebook, pens and pencils. Sentence fragment tip sheet, completed sentence expanders assignment, assignment directions (the teacher will provide).
Procedures:
(include Initiation, New Material if applicable, GP, IP, and closure)
Initiation: When students enter the classroom there will be a picture on the overhead of an arrow pointing downhill. I will ask the students "how is this picture a sentence fragment?" We will discuss what the picture is missing and what we can add to make it a complete sentence. The students will have a chance to draw a complete picture, and then we will make the sentences together on the overhead.
New Material: The teacher will ask the students to take out their sentence expanders' homework and explain that we are going to use them to work on visualization as well as descriptive writing. The teacher will then ask the class to come up with a definition of visualization. The class will then discuss how visualization is defined, how visualization is used in reading, and how it can be used in writing.
Guided Practice:
The class will review the sentence expanders' homework and go over a few different sentences that the students turned from telling into the showing sentences.
Individual Practice: The teacher will ask them to choose the sentence from their homework that they think is the most elaborate or descriptive, and to write it on a piece of paper. The students will then be broken into partners. One partner will read their sentence, and the other will have to say what they are visualizing, and then they switch. This exercise gives the students a chance to practice visualization with their peers and understand how descriptive words can help to create images in their heads.
Closure: The class will discuss some of the visualizations they had when working with their partners.
Lessons 6-9
The next lessons continue to expand the idea of visualization, elaboration and persuasive writing. The grammar mini-lessons will also continue to incorporate visuals with the grammar. For example, in the next punctuation mini-lesson the students will watch one line from a television show. I will ask the students to close their eyes and visualize where the punctuation belongs. I will also put the sentence on the board, and ask the students to come up and put the punctuation where it belongs.
In lesson six, students will have to use a picture to describe a healthy lifestyle. They will use one that I give them to describe and support their opinion and they will also have to research one on the internet to support their ideas.
In lesson seven the class will discuss creating arguments and counter arguments for their use of text and internet use in schools, actually sending their argument to the teacher on one of these visual media. We will also work on finding supporting evidence to defend their arguments.
In lesson eight we will discuss writing from the readers' point of view versus the writers' point of view and, using all the tools that they have worked on, how to write descriptively enough for it to be written to the readers' point of view.
The final lesson will ask the students to write a persuasive piece. It does not have to be a formal essay, but it does have to include what we have learned: it must be descriptive, visual, make a defending statement and support itself. Students will have time in class to complete the assignment and will also work together in partners and small groups to edit, and revise.
Appendix on Standards
Standards and Objectives
National Standard(s) (NCTE): #4. Students adjust their use of spoken, written, and visual language (e.g., conventions, style, vocabulary) to communicate effectively with a variety of audiences and for different purposes. 5. Students employ a wide range of strategies as they write and use different writing process elements appropriately to communicate with different audiences for a variety of purposes. 6. Students apply knowledge of language structure, language conventions (e.g., spelling and punctuation), media techniques, figurative language, and genre to create, critique, and discuss print and non-print texts.
State Framework(s)
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1 Reading and Responding - Students read, comprehend and respond in individual, literal, critical, and evaluative ways to literary, informational, and persuasive texts in multimedia formats.
3 Communicating with others - Students produce written, oral, and visual texts to express, develop and substantiate ideas and experiences.
4 Applying English Language Conventions - Students will apply the conventions of Standard English in oral and written communications.
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proofread and edit for grammar, spelling, punctuation, and capitalization
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speak and write using conventional patterns of syntax and dictation
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use variation of language appropriate to audience, language and task.
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The unit will be aligned with state and national standards, as well as the CMT standards. The state says that all students when communicating with others should be able to "use descriptive, narrative, expository, persuasive and poetic modes,"
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but in seventh grade students should "use oral language with clarity, voice and fluency to communicate a message; and listen to or read a variety of genres to use as models for writing in different modes; as well as write to delight in the imagination."
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These standards will be met in the unit, by allowing the students to read persuasive writing that does not follow their formula; by working on expanding the students' descriptive vocabulary; by having the students collaborate on their work; and by introducing them to strategies that get them to write in a colorful and vivid way.