Step three (thinking and pre-writing): The Interactive Button Game on the Student Instructions Page will get your students thinking about which proverbs might inspire their own writing
Says Sandy, "I like to have students journal about the proverbs as they occur in the story. There are many for each chapter; you can either be selective or you can post several. This gives students a choice about what life experiences they might have had that in some way mirror the lessons learned by Tree-ear. The proverbs from the button above come directly from A Single Shard. If you decide not to have students journal about proverbs you’ve chosen, I often post the proverb for a day’s reading section on the board for reflection before I begin reading. This seems to give purpose to the reading/listening. Children then listen to discover the sequence of events that lead to the proverb."
In the first five pages of A Single Shard, Linda Sue Park describes an experience from which Tree-ear, the main character, learns a value lesson about surviving in the world. The sequence of events plays a particularly important role in the outcome of the experience. The decision Tree-ear makes helps to bring not only food to his dinner table, but also feelings of well-being to the stranger he meets on the road, as well as to himself. He has heeded the words of wisdom his guardian, Crane-man, have taught him.
For this writing challenge, first you will ask your students complete a graphic organizer about an experience they've had that has shaped them as a person. The experiences they select must have taught them a life lesson—one that they know will stay with them for the rest of their lives. The incident need not be a grand event; in fact, it might only be a small event. Whatever the experience, they now think twice when faced with a similar situation. Second, your students will think about the one-line life lesson (proverb, theme statement) they learned from their experiences. They can click on the buttons above to see if any of the proverbs express the meaning of the lessons they have learned. If students do not find a proverb that fits their experience, ask them to create one of their own that they feel can apply not only to their lives but also to people in general. Third, they will use the proverb to help guide the writing of their experiences.
They need to be sure to consider the order of the events as they occurred. Remind students that they are to narrow the focus of the event to the most important parts. Stress to your students that they don’t need to tell every detail. Instead, try to have your students narrow to the three most important details—those detail that make the proverb ring true.
Using the attached graphic organizer, have students write the proverb, theme sentence, or life lesson they feel they have learned from a particular experience or event. As students complete their graphic organizer, you can either do one of your own as a model, or you can use chapter one of Single Shard to chart Tree-ears experience. Next students will list the three main events that they see as being the crux of the lesson. Finally students will tie back to the proverb, providing their own personal insights about the experience and the proverb.
Finally, have students use the graphic organizer to begin a first draft. The writing usually ends up being one to four paragraphs in length. I always tell my students that they need to eliminate unnecessary details if their writing goes longer that four or five paragraphs. I really like to work for one or two really revealing paragraphs. This way the meaning of the proverb shines.
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