Writing

Class 5, Tuesday 9/23

In class we discussed strong verbs and adverbs. A list of quality adverbs can be found on one side of the orange laminates sheet I gave to the students. We discussed how adverbs answer questions like "how", "when", and "how much", for the verbs they modify. We also covered the difference between weak and strong verbs. Strong verbs often are verbs with more descriptive power. Note the difference between "she ran away" and "she scurried away". 

Homework is to edit our spider paragraph (key word outline) from last class, using the checklist handed out in class, which I will attach below. These corrected drafts are due Friday. On the checklist you will see that the paragraph must include one strong verb and one adverb.

Happy writing!

Class 4, Friday 9/19

Homework to finish for Tuesday: 

• Spider paragraph (only the one we went over in class)

• Finish the rest of the grammar exercise from class

*See below for notes about the homework

In class, students turned in their final drafts of the poem, which I hope to have graded by next Tuesday. We discussed key word outlines today. We took a paragraph about spiders that was 7 sentences and distilled it down into 3 key words per sentence. The students listed the key words next to the sentence numbers in their notes. the students could pick any words for their 3 key words, but they needed to be words that would help them remember the main thrust of the sentence. For homework, students will need to write a paragraph about spiders using the information from the key words in their notes. This exercise helps us practice efficiency in note taking when doing research on a topic, as well as practice constructing their own original paragraph using only key pieces of information for reference. Please Note: the syllabus might say that they need to write two paragraphs about spiders, but since we only got through one in class, we will only be writing one for homework. We also began the first grammar exercise during class, which the students should finish for homework as well. The exercise is on punctuation and capitalization. 

Class 3, Tuesday Sep. 16th

In class, we spoke more about Iambic rhythm, focusing on how to correct lines in their poems that don't fit within the rhythm. We used examples of regular sentences, changing the wording or adding and subtracting syllables to make the sentence fit into Iambic rhythm. 

Remember for your final poem drafts that we want a pattern that goes: breve, stress, breve, stress, repeatedly. In other words, each line should begin with a breve and end with a stress, using at least 6 syllables per line.

We also went over all items on the checklist for the final draft of the poem, which is due Friday. Each student should staple their checklist to the final draft of their poem and staple the rough draft to the back, so I can compare when grading. Please email with any questions. 

Class 2, Friday Sep. 12th

In class, students turned in their paragraphs, then we discussed the next assignment: a poem in iambic rhythm. We spent the rest of class covering iambic rhythm and coming up with examples on which to practice the breves and stresses. As a reminder: 1 iamb = a breve and a stress. The breves ( v ) are the unstressed syllables of the line and the stresses ( / ) are the stressed syllables of a line. For example: America is split into 4 syllables     v    /      v    /      with stresses on the "-mer" and the "-ca". 

     A -mer  -i  -ca

The assignment is to write a poem between 10 and 12 lines which must have at least 3 iambs per line, [meaning at least 6 syllables per line, since an iamb is the collection of 2 syllables: a breve (v) and a stress (/)]. The poems can be about anything, but remember to follow the rhythm pattern of   v  /  v  /  v  /  and each line should begin with a breve, not a stress. The rough drafts are due Tuesday and we will have another class to discuss the poems before the students turn in their final drafts next Friday. 

Email with any questions. Have a great weekend!

Class 1, Tuesday Sep. 9th

In class we went over the general plan for the semester and discussed the syllabus, the laminated handouts, and the first assignment. We also had time to cover concrete vs. abstract nouns. Students received four handouts in class: the syllabus, our stylistic techniques sheet (yellow laminated), our prepositions/ adverbs sheet (orange laminated), and our vocabulary list (green laminated). The homework due Friday, as we discussed in class, is for the students to write three paragraphs: 1) about their  family and home, 2) about their interests, and 3) about their thoughts on writing. This assignment is intended both for me to get to know our students a little better, but also for me to get a sense of their writing style. Feel free to email me if you have any questions.