WORD CHOICE• Key Elements?

Examine Primary Rubric to identify key qualities of the trait

1

Key Qualities of the Word Choice Trait for Primary

• When students:– play with letters to make words– attempt to write words they hear– try new ways of saying things– express an interest in the roles/functions of words– develop a curiosity about language– try sensory words– use the perfect word in the perfect place– use language with precision

2

Word Choice

3

Valiant Tries at Metaphors and Similes

• Her face was a perfect oval, like a circle that had its two sides gently compressed by a Thigh Master.

• She had a deep, throaty, genuine laugh, like that sound a dog makes just before it throws up.

• From the attic came an unearthly howl. The whole scene had an eerie, surreal quality, like when you're on vacation in another city and Jeopardy comes on at 7:00 p.m. instead of 7:30.

• Her hair glistened in the rain like a nose hair after a sneeze.

• John and Mary had never met. They were like two hummingbirds who had also never met.

4

• He fell for her like his heart was a mob informant and she was the East River.

• The young fighter had a hungry look, the kind you get from not eating for a while.

• The ballerina rose gracefully en Pointe and extended one slender leg behind her, like a dog at a fire hydrant.

• He was deeply in love. When she spoke, he thought he heard bells, as if she were a garbage truck backing up.

• The plan was simple, like my brother-in-law Phil. But unlike Phil, this plan just might work.

5

Score, then comment

• Examine sample papers…

6

Sample WC Comments…

• That’s exactly how that word sounds.

• My favorite word in your writing is “lumpidy.” What’s yours?

• Where did you come up with that word? It’s an excellent choice.

• Thank you for using different words to describe the rain. It makes your writing interesting to read.

7

Teaching the Trait of Word Choice

• How to have your students:–Fall in love with words

–Choose precise words–Select words with color, variety and

sparkle.

8

Teaching Word Choice: any activity that allows students to practice:

• Building vocabulary through reading anything and everything

• Brainstorming: how else can you say it?

• Putting “tired” words to rest

• Playing with language, dialects, formal and informal word usage

• Building power in verbs

• Practicing precision—more for less 9

A Word Choice Warm up

• Prep: pick a writing passage with diction you like; copy on board/overhead, leaving out key descriptive verbs/nouns/modifiers

• Exercise: ask students to fill in the blanks, as in a Cloze activity, compare and discuss. Show the original, discuss.

• Follow up: Talk about how word choice impacts the ‘movies in your mind’ in writing

10

What words are missing from the following passage from Annie Dillard’s essay “In the Jungle” in her book Teaching a Stone to Talk: Expeditions and Encounters?

11

The lake was wonderful. Herons, egrets and ibises _____the sawgrass shores, kingfishers and cuckoos _____ from sunlight to shade, great turkeylike birds ____ in dead branches, and hawks ____ overhead. There was all the time in the world.

I saw the shoreline water ___ and the sawgrass ___above a thrashing paichi, an enormous black fish in these parts…Piranha fish live in the lakes, and electric eels. I ____ my fingers in the water, figuring it would be worth it…

12

The lake was wonderful. Herons, egrets and ibises plodded the sawgrass shores, kingfishers and cuckoos clattered from sunlight to shade, great turkeylike birds fussed in dead branches, and hawks lolled overhead. There was all the time in the world. I saw the shoreline water roil and the sawgrass heave above a thrashing paichi, an enormous black fish in these parts…Piranha fish live in the lakes, and electric eels. I dangled my fingers in the water, figuring it would be worth it…

13

Story Impressions Activity

• despised

• avoided

• sneak

• predator

• ravenous

14

Crickwing despised his nickname,

and he avoided hearing it by staying far away from the other creatures. He

would sneak out to find his food with the night was darkest, knowing that the forest was crawling with

predators even worse than

ravenous toads. Janell Cannon, Crickwing (2000)

15

Word Choice Focus Lesson with a Picture book

Picture Book Connection:

Bullfrog Pops

By Rick Walton

The Wolf Who Cried Boy by Bob Hartman

16

Read, Reflect, Apply

• Examine pp. 187-203 in Culham

• Discuss in small group

• Fill out “Strategies to Try” sheet

17

SENTENCE FLUENCY

• Key elements?

Examine Primary Rubric to identify key qualities of the trait

18

Key Qualities of the Sentence Fluency Trait--Primary students are:

• working with several words in a row• being more concerned about sentence quality

than sentence correctness• experimenting with different sentence beginnings• crafting sentences of varying lengths• weaving questions and statements into text• using transitional words• writing passages that can be read aloud with

ease

19

Sentence Fluency

20

A Thought on Sentence Fluency:

“While conflict, fear, heartache, and humor may be desirable, they are not, by themselves, sufficient to hold the attention of readers. It’s fine writing that keeps the audience rapt: it’s exquisitely constructed sentences; it’s carefully honed cadences; it’s the marvelous satisfaction of perfect prose.”

~Mem Fox

21

Score, then comment

• Examine papers…

22

Sample SF Comments…

• I love how this part sounds. Let’s read it together.

• It’s good that you started your sentences differently.

• Every sentence has a subject and verb. Great!

• Your letters flow across the page. That’s a great start toward sentences.

23

“Wilbur never forgot Charlotte. Although he loved her children and grandchildren dearly, none of the new spiders ever quite took her place in his heart. She was in a class by herself. It’s not often that someone comes along who is a true friend and a good writer. Charlotte was both.”

--E.B. White, Charlotte’s Web

24

Teaching the trait of Sentence Fluency to Primary Students

Helping students to:

• begin sentences in different ways

• create sentences using different lengths

• reading sentences aloud to check how they sound

25

Teaching S.F.

“Note sentences children write. They never use the simplistic sentence structure of basal readers. There are no “See Dick. See Dick run!” constructions. The children consistently use long flowing sentences to communicate their thoughts and feelings.”

--Bea Johnson

26

27

Teaching S.F.: Any activity that allows students to practice:

• developing an ear by reading aloud—literature, journalism, poetry, whatever

• practicing free-writing to make writing flow

• using choral reading to hear phrasing

• writing poetry

• playing with sentences

28

Create a Sentence Game

29

A S.F. Warm Up

• Prep: Display a selection (from your collection) of short (3-4 word) sentences…e.g., We came home. We ate cookies. We played games. Etc.

• Exercise: Write on the board: “After school, we rode our bikes home and shared a plate of homemade chocolate chip cookies. Then we decided to play a quick game of checkers followed by our favorite, Monopoly.”

• Follow Up: Ask students which sounds better and why

30

Sentence Fluency Focus Lesson with Picture

books• Chart sentence lengths and beginnings

• Picture Book Connection:

Bat Loves the Night

By Nicola Davies

Joyful Noise: Poems

for Two Voices by

Paul Fleischman

31

Read, Reflect, Apply

• Examine pp. 223-239 in Culham

• Discuss in small group

• Fill out “Strategies to Try” sheet

32

33