Playlist: Writing
That Quote’s Not Quite Right: Albert Einstein
When I see a quote, I often think, “That’s not quite right!”
St. Patrick and Other Legends
How would real people feel about the legends that have been created about them?
Tournament of Not-So-Famous Inventors
Which inventor and invention will win the tournament?
Emoji Stories 🦁
Five emoji. One story. Where will your imagination take you?
Emoji Stories 🐌
Five emoji. One story. Where will your imagination take you?
Emoji Stories 🚚
Five emoji. One story. Where will your imagination take you?
Emoji Stories 🏟️
Five emoji. One story. Where will your imagination take you?
Emoji Stories 🕰️
Five emoji. One story. Where will your imagination take you?
Emoji Stories 🚗
Five emoji. One story. Where will your imagination take you?
Emoji Stories 🐻
Five emoji. One story. Where will your imagination take you?
Emoji Stories 🏰
Five emoji. One story. Where will your imagination take you?
Emoji Stories 🛥️
Five emoji. One story. Where will your imagination take you?
Pluto – Mixed Up Paragraph
Can you use the context clues to get these sentences about Pluto back into the correct order?
Great Sloths – Mixed Up Paragraph
Can you use the context clues to get these sentences about great sloths back into the correct order?
The Moon – Mixed Up Paragraph
Can you use the context clues to get these sentences about The Moon back into the correct order?
The Great Sphinx – Mixed Up Paragraph
Can you use the context clues to get these sentences about The Great Sphinx back into the correct order?
Rainclouds – Mixed Up Paragraph
Can you use the context clues to get these sentences about rain clouds back into the correct order?
Coral Reef – Mixed Up Paragraph
Can you use the context clues to get these sentences about the coral reef back into the correct order?
Bobbing for Apples
What is bobbing for apples like… for an apple?
Super Specific Similes – Strong Uncle
Let’s make this simile about a strong uncle even more specific.
Super Specific Similes: Quick Baby
Let’s make this simile about a quick baby even more specific.
Super Specific Similes: Stinky Seaweed
Start with a basic simile. Now make it more specific. Now even more. Watch how much better writing gets with each round.
Robot Writing: Volcano
Read three pieces of writing from three different robots about the same beautiful painting of a volcano. Who wrote it best?
Robot Writing: Acropolis
One painting of ruins. Three robots. Three pieces of writing. Who wrote it best?
Robot Writing: The Bridge
One painting of a bridge. Three robots. Who wrote it best?
Robot Writing: Orchestra
Read three pieces of writing from three different robots based on a beautiful painting and decide who wins!
Writing About Art: Impression, Sunrise
Look closely at Impression, Sunrise. What do you notice? Now turn those details into a poem you didn’t know you could write.
Automobiles – Mixed Up Paragraph
Can you use the context clues to get these sentences about automobiles back into the correct order?
Washington, DC – Mixed Up Paragraph
These sentences about Washington, DC got scrambled. Can you put them back in order using nothing but context clues?
Trains – Mixed Up Paragraph
Can you use the context clues to get these sentences about trains back into the correct order?
Parts of Speech Tournament
Which part of speech is most useful? Interesting? Strange?
Writing About Art: Chōshi in Shimosha
Get your students writing some pretty darn impressive poetry based on Japan’s most famous artist.
Writing About Art: Wanderer Above the Sea of Fog
Look closely at Wanderer Above the Sea of Fog. What do you notice? Now turn those details into a poem you didn’t know you could write.
Writing About Art: Twilight in the Wilderness
Look closely at Twilight in the Wilderness. What do you notice? Now turn those details into a poem you didn’t know you could write.
Writing About Art: The Scream
Your students will turn the iconic painting The Scream into a vivid, sensory poem.
Analyze Paragraphs: Baseball
Three paragraphs about baseball. They all cover the same topic — so what makes each one different? Now combine them into one super-paragraph.
Analyze Paragraphs: Cucumbers
Three paragraphs about cucumbers. They all cover the same topic — so what makes each one different? Now combine them into one super-paragraph.
Analyze Paragraphs: Empire State Building
Three paragraphs about the Empire State Building. They all cover the same topic — so what makes each one different? Now combine them into one super-paragraph.
Analyze Paragraphs: Tomatoes
Three paragraphs about tomatoes. They all cover the same topic — so what makes each one different? Now combine them into one super-paragraph.
Analyze Paragraphs: Wolverines
Three paragraphs about wolverines. They all cover the same topic — so what makes each one different? Now combine them into one super-paragraph.
Self Portraits: Text Art
What if a students’ self-portrait was made of words that describe the student!?
Writing Technique: Contrast With Synonyms
A specific technique to help students add some spice to their writing. We’ll be contrasting two ideas using synonyms.
Writing Technique: Opposite Adjectives
A specific technique to help students add some spice to their writing. We’ll be using antonyms to describe the same topic!
12 Phrases: The Zoo
Students use 12 random phrases to create a story that takes place at the zoo.
Ambiguous Sentences
Rather than just demand that students “write clearly,” we’ll explore the hazards of poorly written sentences… and maybe create one of our own!
Virtue or Vice?
Aristotle noted that positive traits and negative traits are often the same thing, but just in different amounts. The right amount is a virtue, but too much or too little and it’s a vice.
Punctuation Power
In a sentence, punctuation may seem meek when compared to those mighty words, but punctuation has incredible power over the meaning of a sentence. Students will try re-punctuating sentences to find new meanings – without changing a single word!
Writing Seuss Style Poetry
Sure, Dr. Seuss wrote for young students, but can older students analyze his writing and learn to mimic his style? THEN, they can produce Seuss-style poetry about any topic: Ancient China, the electromagnetic spectrum, Pride and Prejudice, and (yes) fraction division!
Paragraphs: Systems of Sentences
Blow up a paragraph into individual sentences. Now reassemble it. The clues hiding in each sentence will surprise you.
Do Narrators Have Too Much Power?
Imagine being a character in a story. Are you worried that your story’s narrator may inaccurately describe you? What if they reveal something you wanted to be kept secret? Do narrators have too much power!?
Simple or Compound Sentences – What’s In My Brain?
Can your students spot simple sentences vs compound sentences?
Upgrading Compare and Contrast Writing
Upgrade compare and contrast writing with just a couple of key words.
Showing A Character’s Trait
We tell students to ‘show, not tell’ — but that advice is useless until they experience the difference. This lesson makes it click.
“Its Big Day” – A Children’s Story About Its and It’s
Let’s spice up a typically dull lesson about the difference between “its” and “it’s” by asking students to write a children’s story about the adventures of a critter named It.
Ways to Start a Sentence – Part 3
Your students’ sentences all start the same way. Here are three techniques that fix that overnight.
Ways to Start a Sentence – Level 1
‘Add more variety!’ teachers say. But how? This lesson gives students actual techniques instead of vague advice.
Better Stories Part 5: Plot Structure
Ever read a student’s story that was just event after event after event and then a very sudden ending? They lack an understanding of a plot’s structure. With the help of Finding Nemo, I break down how to set up a well-structured plot.
Better Stories Part 2: Types of Conflict
If your students’ stories are packed with endless ninja fights or arguments between frenemies, it’s time to expose them to a wider range of conflicts.
Better Stories Part 3: Literary Themes
A typical student narrative includes plot and characters but lacks a larger idea to hold it all together. This is where a lesson on themes comes in…
Better Stories Part 1: The Big Idea
We open our unit on narrative writing with a big idea: “structure increases creativity.” I show how this is true by bringing in examples from across all disciplines.
Better Stories Part 4: Character Archetypes
Are students’ characters a bit flat? Archetypes give them a strong foundation on which to build their own characters as well as a tool to analyze existing stories.