The intended "mentor text" to be used when teaching this on-line lesson is the picture book Grandpa's Teeth by Rod Clement. Before writing, students should listen to and discuss the writing style of this book's author.
Washoe County teachers, click here to search for this book at the county library.
Teacher Instructions & Lesson Resources :
Step one (sharing the published model):Rod Clement’s picture book, Grandpa’s Teeth, is a witty mystery full of interesting details. The book centers around a distraught Grandpa whose teeth are stolen...and no one would ever guess who actually did it. Teachers should read this book aloud and point out the fantastic idea development the author displays through his use of excellent details.
Share this funny story about a family mystery. While reading it aloud, stress how Clement has taken a simple plot about a stolen item and used intriguing details to create a wacky mystery. The story can then inspire students to write their own goofy mystery, using creative idea development details to describe characters and objects in their story. By using interesting details, the writer can take readers on a roller coaster adventure of “Who did it?” Students should be challenged to broaden their "writing minds" by showing details and not just telling...just as Rod Clement did with Grandpa's Teeth.
Step two (introducing models of writing): In small groups, have your students read and respond to any or all of the student models that come with this lesson. The groups will certainly talk about the idea development, since that's the focus of this lesson, but you might prompt your students to talk about each model's organization as well.
We're looking for student samples for other grade levels for this prompt! Help us get some, and we'll send you free books for your classroom! Contact us at publish@writingfix.com for details.
Step three (thinking and pre-writing):The interactive button choices on the Student Instructions Page can certainly inspire your students to begin generating ideas for this assignment, but you can certainly create a class brainstorm that accomplishes the same without being on the computer.
Once students have a victim, a stolen item, and a suspect, the are ready to begin brainstorming words and details for their five-part stories.
In part one, their victim will discover he/she has been robbed.
In part two, the victim will discover a clue that leads them to think of a guilty suspect.
In part three, the victim will discover the clue has led them to the wrong suspect.
In part four, they will find a second clue that leads them to a different suspect.
Part five will have them leave to pursue the second clue, but will also leave a hint (like a dog smiling with teeth) that they are once again pursuing the wrong person.
Once they have planned their stories, have them write it on the two-page drafting sheet below. It has an idea development checklist embedded on its second page, which will help them self-evaluate their skills of that trait.
Step four (revising with specific trait language): Two tools for revision are provided below. You can use one or both, depending on how much time you have to spend on this assignment.
To promote response and revision to rough draft writing, attach WritingFix's Revision and Response Post-Its to your students' drafts. Make sure the students rank their use of the trait-specific skills on the Post-Its, which means they'll only have one "1" and one "5." Have them commit to ideas for revision based on their Post-It rankings. For more ideas on WritingFix's Revision & Response Post-Its, click here.
Step five (editing for conventions): After students apply their revision ideas to their drafts and re-write neatly, require them to find an editor. If you've established a "Community of Editors" among your students, have each student exchange his/her paper with multiple peers. With yellow high-lighters in hand, each peer reads for and highlights suspected errors for just one item from the Editing Post-it. The "Community of Editors" idea is just one of dozens and dozens of inspiring ideas that is talked about in detail in the Northern Nevada Writing Project's Going Deep with 6 Trait Language Workbook for Teachers.
Step six (publishing for the portfolio): When they are finished revising and have second drafts, invite your students to come back to this piece once more during an upcoming writer's workshop block. Their stories might become a longer story, a more detailed piece, or the beginning of a series of pieces about the story they started here. Students will probably enjoy creating an illustration for this story as they get ready to publish it for their portfolios.
Interested in publishing student work on-line? We invite student writers to post final drafts of their original at WritingFix's Community of Student Writers. This is a safe-to-use blog for students and teachers. No writing is posted until it is approved by the moderator. Contact us at publish@writingfix.com if you have questions about getting your students published.
Learn more about Rod Clement books
by clicking here!
