This Lesson's Title:

Counting Up/Down Stories

slowing down for details

This lesson was created by NNWP Teacher Consultant Corbett Harrison. Visit Corbett's website for writing teachers by clicking here.

The ideal "mentor text" that can be used when teaching this on-line lesson is the chapter book Wringer by Jerry Spinelli. Before writing, students should listen to and discuss the writing style of this book's author, especially from chapter 5 of the book.

Click here to view this book at Amazon.com.

If you are a Washoe County teacher, click here to search for this book at the county library.

Three-Sentence Overview of this Lesson:

The writer will brainstorm situations where individuals or people in a group count up or count down out loud together.  Using the ending of chapter 5 of Wringer as a model, the writer will then plan a story where someone (or a group of someones) counts out loud.  In between the counted numbers, the writer will slow down the action and describe in detail what else is going on in the scene.  Teachers: click here to read the entire lesson plan.

6-Trait Overview for this Lesson:

The focus trait in this writing assignment is idea development; slowing down the action to capture the details that go on in between split seconds is the whole point of this on-line assignment.  The support trait in this assignment is organization; the counted numbers will provide a safe structure for the writer to place his/her in between.