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Teacher and Homeschool Writing Blog

Writing Activity: A Holiday Tradition or Memory

November 29th, 2011 by Judith Darling

I wanted to share with you one my favorite holiday writing assignments.  It is one that can take a couple of weeks to complete, and best of all, can be used as a gift for someone special.

THE STEPS FOR A CHRISTMAS/HOLIDAY TRADITION OR MEMORY

  1. Brainstorm some favorite family holiday traditions or memories.

    Examples:  Christmas morning ritual, decorating the tree, making cookies, something that happened at Christmas dinner, favorite grandparent moment, a special gift, how the family celebrates Christmas Eve, etc.

  2. Pick a favorite one and discuss how to lay the story out with an interesting introduction that will hook the reader, a good descriptive body of the story that lets the reader feel, see, and relate to the story, and a conclusion that wraps up the story and gives a good ending.
  3. Write rough draft of story.
  4. Peer or self edit the story using a critical eye in looking for good sentence structure, interesting story and correct mechanics including punctuation, grammar, parts of speech, and spelling.
  5. Write the second draft (I suggest this with older students, it may be too much for younger writers).
  6. Peer or self edit the second draft.
  7. Write the final paper.
  8. Illustrate the story with a picture or pictures of the tradition or memory.
  9. Mount or bind the story and illustrations so it can displayed or given as a treasured gift.
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MLA and APA guideline web sites

November 28th, 2011 by Judith Darling

Many parents have asked me where they can get guidelines for MLA and APA formatting. Here are two websites that have easy to follow guide lines for both.

1. http://owl.english.purdue.edu/

2. http://www.aresearchguide.com/styleguides.html

There are also books on Amazon and at Barnes and Noble that are easy to follow and would be helpful in understanding formatting. Having a book on formatting with you at all times makes for an easy reference.

I suggest you begin teaching a specified format around 6th grade. I used MLA, but I think that either MLA or ABA is fine, because once a student learns one type of formatting it is easy to switch to another if it is required.

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A Great Home School Conference Season!

August 8th, 2011 by Judith Darling

We just finished the THSC in The Woodlands, and had a great time. My friend Barbara and I were so busy we barely had time to chat, which was a very good thing! It was fun to visit with repeat customers, as well as meet so many new ones. We have received a lot of orders from the conference, and want to thank everyone for their interest in our self-directed program. Please call or email if you have a questions. We have had a wonderful time at all of the conference we attended this summer.

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The Book On How To Really Teach Writing

March 5th, 2011 by Judith Darling

Yeah! Yeah! Our new book, that has taken a year to write and published, is now on the website and doing well. I am certain that it will help teachers and parents do a better job of teaching writing. That is the goal, and everyone that has seen the book agrees that it really does make teaching writing so much easier.

I am also getting comments like, “Wow! Poetry Too!” Yes, there is a poetry section as well as a reading comprehension lesson that can be applied throughout the year at any skill level, as long as the student can read.

Remember we are not charging shipping on any of our products at this time.

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New Years Writing Activity – Fun With Resolutions

January 28th, 2011 by Judith Darling

Fun with Writing – Writing Activity

This writing assignment should bring a smile to your face and to all who read it.

The tradition of coming up with a New Years resolution each year that will help you be a better person, lose weight, make better grades, be nice to your brother or sister, etc., is usually given up or forgotten within a few days. So how about coming up with a resolution that would be fun, silly, easy to do, and quite possibly, just might be good for you. Or not!

Some examples could be to eat all of your vegetable as long as your parents eat the same ones, or clean your room once a week if you are guaranteed a reward of chocolate each time you accomplish the task. Now doesn’t that seem like a better way to make a resolution?

Pre-writing:

Brainstorm some resolutions. Examples: complete chores, do homework, get up when the alarm goes off, be nice to your siblings, or help mother cook.
Brainstorm ways you could accomplish these resolutions and enjoy doing them. This is where the fun comes in. Examples: You will complete all your chores on time, IF you can have puppy petting time every day. You will do you homework, IF your mom or dad plays a game with you once a week. You will get up when the alarm goes off, IF you don’t have to wash your ears. You will be nicer to your siblings, IF they are nice to you. You will help your mother cook, IF she teaches you how to make chocolate chip cookies.

Rough Draft:
Choose your 2011 resolution and begin writing your rough draft. Be sure to include a good introduction that states what your resolution is and why you chose it. The body of the story should explain how you are going to accomplish sticking to your resolution. Be sure to elaborate on what the resolution means to you and how it can impact your life and the lives of the people around you. In the conclusion you should tell how you think everyone is going to react to your resolution, and whether or not you think you could actually do it.

Edit The Rough Draft:
Have a friend, classmate, or parent help you edit your story.

Write The Final Paper:
Make sure the final paper is your best writing by working to punctuate correctly, check and correct your spelling, capitalize, and elaborate to make it interesting.

Publish:
Share your story with your class, parents, and other family and friends

Finally:
See how long you can really carry out your resolution. Good Luck!

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What Great Feedback!

November 9th, 2010 by Judith Darling

I recently received an email from the parent of a 9 year old boy telling me how much her son enjoys doing the Daily Dazzle A.

I have to tell you that it is heartwarming to get positive feedback about our products. I hear it all the time from parents and teachers as I travel around the country, but it is especially nice when someone takes the time to write me.

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Spring Writing Activity: My Favorite Pair of Shoes

March 26th, 2010 by Judith Darling

I know teachers and parents are breathing a sigh of relief now that spring is here, so I thought it would be a great time to suggest a writing assignment that incorporates art and writing.

My Favorite Pair of Shoes

Have each student pick their favorite pair shoes and draw a picture of one of the shoes. The best view would be from the side, but some students are such good artists that whatever view they pick is fine. I have had students make the picture three dimensional by actually using fabric and leather to make an exact replica of the shoe, but that is the exception rather than the rule, and can be suggested but not expected.

After the picture is drawn, ask the student/students to pick one time or incident that involved the shoes and write a story or a poem about the shoes. Some examples ideas might be: The day my shoes saved me from a bully, or I felt like Cinderella the minute I put the shoe on, or even though these shoes are scruffy, they are still my favorite pair of shoes ever.

Once they have chosen an incident, they may begin brainstorming ideas for the story. When they know what they are going to write, they can break their story into paragraphs. I have included a brainstorming rubric and a paragraphing rubric to help make the whole assignment easier.

It is fun to hang the pictures and essays up for everyone to enjoy when they are completed.

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New Book: How to Teach Writing

March 22nd, 2010 by Judith Darling

The new book I have been working on is almost finished. It is taking a bit longer because I decided to add a poetry section. It is a genre that children love once they get into it, and is a nice addition. The book discusses the real reasons children hate writing, and why teachers do not like to teach writing. It addresses ways to make teaching writing much easier for parents and teachers, and it provides ideas to make writing fun and challenging for children. We are hoping to get it to the printers soon and have it available by fall.

A fellow teacher and dear friend came for a visit, and read the book in its entirety. She remarked that the book is so needed because it really addresses the problem of teaching writing for everyone involved. She agreed that the poetry unit would be a great addition, and helped me gather materials and write it. It is certainly nice to have a fellow master teacher give feedback and lend a hand.

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New book, new schedule, and a new writing activity

February 12th, 2010 by Judith Darling

I am sorry that there haven’t been any new posts on the blog, but I am writing a new book on how to teach writing and I am about three fourths of the way through. I hope to have it ready by fall, so suffice it to say, it is consuming me. I am also setting up my 2010 schedule of home school conferences and workshops. It looks like I am going to have a pretty busy season from April through the first of September. If you are interested in where I will be this year, including a great cruise the end of July that you could go on, check out my schedule on the home page.

I have had wonderful feedback from the parents and teachers that I met and talked to in 2009. They are making good use of our products because they are student directed and find their students and children like being independent learners and writers.

A good writing assignment for students as we head into spring is to ask your students or children to go back over some of the papers that they have written throughout the year or even from previous years, and pick one to totally rewrite. It doesn’t matter which one they pick, let them decide. The objective is that they write. Encourage them to improve on every aspect of the paper including adding new and interesting details to the content and correcting any format and convention errors. Almost always it is surprising how much better the new paper will be.

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Holiday Writing Idea

November 16th, 2009 by Judith Darling

I am happy to say I survived H1N1 and lived to tell about it. It wasn’t so bad, but the residual cough is driving me crazy! Our daughter and grandsons also had it and it is much more virulent in children. Our five year old grandson ended up with pneumonia and had to take antibiotics and steroids, so if your children are prone to respiratory problems, such as asthma, they should be watched carefully. Our grandson does have asthma.

During my confinement from the flu and while taking care of the boys I was unable to work on my book, so I am steadily falling behind, so I guess I will have to set aside some serious writing time during the holidays to get back on track. Will I do it? That remains to be seen. Anyway, talking about the holidays brings me to why I am writing this post and that is a wonderful, long term writing assignment.

AN ILLUSTRATED FAMILY TRADITION HOLIDAY BOOK

1. Ask your child or children to brainstorm ideas about holiday family traditions that they enjoy.
2. Have them pick their favorite one.
3. Ask them to write the family tradition in story form including the introduction, body, and conclusion.
4. Edit the story and correct, then break the story down into sections so that each section will be a page in the book.
5. Write each section on a separate piece of white paper. Most students choose to write each story section at the bottom of the page so they have room for their illustrations.
6. Once the story is sectioned out onto separate pieces of white paper the student can begin to illustrate their story.
7. When the story is completely written and illustrated make a cover sheet stating the title of the story and be sure to put: Written and Illustrated by. Then illustrate the cover.
8. Bind the pages together by stapling, putting in a binder, or folder or in whatever manner you and your child choose.
9. My students would give this book as a family present which parents and grandparents loved.

Good luck and enjoy the finished product.

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