One of the most difficult things to do with middle school writers is to get them to see beyond themselves when creating examples in expository writing. They tend to gravitate toward the exact same people or experiences EVERY. SINGLE. TIME. regardless of the topic from the prompt. It's enough to make a teacher go insane, but how do we get the kids to look passed this developmental hiccup that interferes with good academic writing.
An answer is bombard them different examples from what they are reading, watching, and experiencing all the time. Point out with intention the examples waiting to be used around them. Also, create lessons where the kids can explore the world beyond the classroom.
Below, are some lessons and materials ready for the taking!
People Research--As mentioned earlier, kids tend to gravitate toward the same people for every essay topic regardless of the individual actually being applicable to the topic. Kids, especially middle schoolers, have a limited prior knowledge base of different historical, sports, and celebrity figures locked in their brains, so we have to create situations where they load their brains with all sorts of people. At the beginning of the year, I take three biographies from the website, Mr. Nussbaum's Biographies for Kids, and print them.
The articles vary in length from very short (1/2 to 3/4 of a page) to lengthy (1 1/2 pages or more) and walk them through the process of taking notes, creating a citation, and finding quotes to use in their writing. We also overtly categorize the period into the various Hot Topics for future use (see the document below). These initial lessons are highly scaffolded, 1) me leading the initial lesson 100% to me leading part of the lesson, 2) the students working to finish it as a table group, 3) me beginning the lesson with them and completing the lesson with a partner.
As we progress through the six weeks, the students get closer to completing the research assignment independently. By the end of the first six weeks, the kids can complete a research page for a single figure of their choosing from Nussbaum's website. Then, as their reading and note-taking skills improve, they can complete research for two individuals of their choosing. The key here is student choice! If the kids want to know more about someone, they are more likely to engage in reading the nonfiction materials and take quality notes for later use.
Also, to differentiate for the various intellectual levels, students with IEPs will not only stay on Mr. Nussbaum's website the entire year but will also be required to complete one research page during a single class period. Academic students who are on grade level or a bit above will also stay on Mr. Nussbaum's website but will be required to complete research for two people of their choice during a single class period. As for the GT or advanced students, we stay on Mr. Nussbaum's website for the first semester, completing research for two people of their choice, but at the commencement of the spring semester, they shift to Gale and use the biography database for research. We scaffold once again a the articles possess a high vocabulary, are much longer, and more detailed in composition, so they start with a single person to research for that class period. You could do a mix of the Gale database and Mr. Nussbaum's website so that the students still have two viable examples for each research day. This is completely dependent upon the kids and their levels of mastery.
Every once in a while, have the students update the Examples for Hot Topics sheet that helps them categorize the information they have been collecting.
Current Events/Opposing View Points Research--
I have always been a firm believe that students need to be aware of the things happening in the world around them but from a variety of sources to control the bias that is prevalent in the media at this time. Therefore, this assignment, in hopes of getting kids to see the news from a variety of perspectives, is all about using the Gale database Opposing Viewpoints, which gathers articles and video packages about a current event or topic from multiple perspectives.
the students are required to select a topic from the list generated on the database in general or from the list of topics that are related to the readings we are completing in class. The goal is to also have the students make text-to-world connections from the literary selection in class to their research.
Once again, it is about teaching smarted, not harder. The kids are being exposed to a variety of nonfiction texts as well as video clips all on the same topic, which is fostering multiple text-to-text connections throughout the entire assignment.
Every once in a while, have the students update the Examples for Hot Topics sheet that helps them categorize the information they have been collecting.
Video Bank--Kids are very visual learners and tend to remember information they have seen as well as show more interest in videos that can used and watch time and again. At my classroom website, www.janewaysorganizedchaos.weebly.com , I have created a video bank of sources that can be used to extend students' prior knowledge in order to get stronger examples in expository writing.
I use this lesson in a variety of ways: 1) to introduce the topic of an expository essay, 2) to review plot elements, main ideas, and themes, and 3) an engaging class period lesson before a break when the kids need to work, but you know they will be swinging from the rafters and unable to focus. The students use the Book/Movie Example sheet provided in the links below to document the information from the video. They must also complete a MLA citation for that just in case they choose to use a direct quote.
Every once in a while, have the students update the Examples for Hot Topics sheet that helps them categorize the information they have been collecting.
Book It!--
Many teachers are faced with the daunting challenge of teaching reading and English together in one class period that is usually 50 minutes (single block) to 90 minutes (double blocked) a day. In this situation, time is of the essence as is finding ways to teach smarter, not harder. The key is to find ways to make lessons and assignment do double duty for reading and English curriculum standards. Book It! allows you to use your in-class and outside fiction or non-fiction reading assignments as fodder for yet more examples for writing. Using the Book/Movie Example, students will complete the basics of plot, character, conflicts, theme and main ideas for their literary selection. This same sheet can also be used with movies as well as the Pixar shorts on the 7th grade video bank on the classroom website.
During the course of the semester, I also have the students go through a book selection activity like Speed Dating, Dirty Dice, or Chinese Christmas, to choose a biography, autobiography, or memoir from the library that i have created in my room. By completing a reading of this genre, I am able to get nonfiction reading in as well as expanding prior knowledge of different people by reading a variety of books that a middle school kid would otherwise gloss over in a library.
The main goal here is to get the kids reading as much and as often as possible while showing them how to flip those reading experiences into writing.
Every once in a while, have the students update the Examples for Hot Topics sheet that helps them categorize the information they have been collecting.
An answer is bombard them different examples from what they are reading, watching, and experiencing all the time. Point out with intention the examples waiting to be used around them. Also, create lessons where the kids can explore the world beyond the classroom.
Below, are some lessons and materials ready for the taking!
People Research--As mentioned earlier, kids tend to gravitate toward the same people for every essay topic regardless of the individual actually being applicable to the topic. Kids, especially middle schoolers, have a limited prior knowledge base of different historical, sports, and celebrity figures locked in their brains, so we have to create situations where they load their brains with all sorts of people. At the beginning of the year, I take three biographies from the website, Mr. Nussbaum's Biographies for Kids, and print them.
The articles vary in length from very short (1/2 to 3/4 of a page) to lengthy (1 1/2 pages or more) and walk them through the process of taking notes, creating a citation, and finding quotes to use in their writing. We also overtly categorize the period into the various Hot Topics for future use (see the document below). These initial lessons are highly scaffolded, 1) me leading the initial lesson 100% to me leading part of the lesson, 2) the students working to finish it as a table group, 3) me beginning the lesson with them and completing the lesson with a partner.
As we progress through the six weeks, the students get closer to completing the research assignment independently. By the end of the first six weeks, the kids can complete a research page for a single figure of their choosing from Nussbaum's website. Then, as their reading and note-taking skills improve, they can complete research for two individuals of their choosing. The key here is student choice! If the kids want to know more about someone, they are more likely to engage in reading the nonfiction materials and take quality notes for later use.
Also, to differentiate for the various intellectual levels, students with IEPs will not only stay on Mr. Nussbaum's website the entire year but will also be required to complete one research page during a single class period. Academic students who are on grade level or a bit above will also stay on Mr. Nussbaum's website but will be required to complete research for two people of their choice during a single class period. As for the GT or advanced students, we stay on Mr. Nussbaum's website for the first semester, completing research for two people of their choice, but at the commencement of the spring semester, they shift to Gale and use the biography database for research. We scaffold once again a the articles possess a high vocabulary, are much longer, and more detailed in composition, so they start with a single person to research for that class period. You could do a mix of the Gale database and Mr. Nussbaum's website so that the students still have two viable examples for each research day. This is completely dependent upon the kids and their levels of mastery.
Every once in a while, have the students update the Examples for Hot Topics sheet that helps them categorize the information they have been collecting.
Current Events/Opposing View Points Research--
I have always been a firm believe that students need to be aware of the things happening in the world around them but from a variety of sources to control the bias that is prevalent in the media at this time. Therefore, this assignment, in hopes of getting kids to see the news from a variety of perspectives, is all about using the Gale database Opposing Viewpoints, which gathers articles and video packages about a current event or topic from multiple perspectives.
the students are required to select a topic from the list generated on the database in general or from the list of topics that are related to the readings we are completing in class. The goal is to also have the students make text-to-world connections from the literary selection in class to their research.
Once again, it is about teaching smarted, not harder. The kids are being exposed to a variety of nonfiction texts as well as video clips all on the same topic, which is fostering multiple text-to-text connections throughout the entire assignment.
Every once in a while, have the students update the Examples for Hot Topics sheet that helps them categorize the information they have been collecting.
Video Bank--Kids are very visual learners and tend to remember information they have seen as well as show more interest in videos that can used and watch time and again. At my classroom website, www.janewaysorganizedchaos.weebly.com , I have created a video bank of sources that can be used to extend students' prior knowledge in order to get stronger examples in expository writing.
I use this lesson in a variety of ways: 1) to introduce the topic of an expository essay, 2) to review plot elements, main ideas, and themes, and 3) an engaging class period lesson before a break when the kids need to work, but you know they will be swinging from the rafters and unable to focus. The students use the Book/Movie Example sheet provided in the links below to document the information from the video. They must also complete a MLA citation for that just in case they choose to use a direct quote.
Every once in a while, have the students update the Examples for Hot Topics sheet that helps them categorize the information they have been collecting.
Book It!--
Many teachers are faced with the daunting challenge of teaching reading and English together in one class period that is usually 50 minutes (single block) to 90 minutes (double blocked) a day. In this situation, time is of the essence as is finding ways to teach smarter, not harder. The key is to find ways to make lessons and assignment do double duty for reading and English curriculum standards. Book It! allows you to use your in-class and outside fiction or non-fiction reading assignments as fodder for yet more examples for writing. Using the Book/Movie Example, students will complete the basics of plot, character, conflicts, theme and main ideas for their literary selection. This same sheet can also be used with movies as well as the Pixar shorts on the 7th grade video bank on the classroom website.
During the course of the semester, I also have the students go through a book selection activity like Speed Dating, Dirty Dice, or Chinese Christmas, to choose a biography, autobiography, or memoir from the library that i have created in my room. By completing a reading of this genre, I am able to get nonfiction reading in as well as expanding prior knowledge of different people by reading a variety of books that a middle school kid would otherwise gloss over in a library.
The main goal here is to get the kids reading as much and as often as possible while showing them how to flip those reading experiences into writing.
Every once in a while, have the students update the Examples for Hot Topics sheet that helps them categorize the information they have been collecting.
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