| 2007-08 PROMPTS OF THE WEEK
8/20/07 What were your milestones this Summer? Did you learn a new skill?
Perfect an old one? Go to camp and learn something amazing about yourself?
8/27/07 What are your goals for this school year? (We ask ourselves this
every year, don't we?) What are your bigger picture goals for your life?
Where do you want to be next year at this time? In ten years?
9/4/07 Which member of your family would make a good character for a book?
Explain your choice or write a plot synopsis (look up synopsis in the
dictionary)of the book.
9/10/07 Patriot's Day (9/11) makes us reflect on heroes and heroism. Who
are
your heroes? What qualities make them heroic?
9/17/07 Speaking of heroes... create your own super-hero (the Rationalizer
is
my favorite). What special powers would this super-hero possess? How would
he
or she use those powers? What would his or her name be?
9/24/07 Well it's official... Summer's over. What are sensory details
(sights, sounds, smells, tastes) of Autumn? How is it different from the
other seasons? Which season is your favorite?
10/1/07 Write a list of five people you admire. Explain why you admire each
one of them. Select one and relate an anecdote that illustrates why they
are admirable.
10/8/07 If you could predict the future, what would you want to know? How
could you use your knowledge to help humanity?
10/15/07 If you could eliminate either crime or pollution, which would you
choose and why?
10/22/07 What do you like about your town? What would you like to change
about it? How could you do it?
10/29/07 Who is your favorite cartoon character? Why?
11/5/07 What do you think is the worst problem the world faces today? Why?
What should people be doing to solve this problem? Or, younger kids, what
is a problem you struggle with? What could you do to solve this problem?
11/12/07 We enjoy many freedoms in our country, thanks to our veterans.
Write a thank you note to a veteran, either someone you know or imagine.
11/19/07 We have so much to be thankful for! What are you thankful for?
Write about them!
11/26/07 What cheers you up when you are grumpy? Write about a time you
were grumpy. How did you handle it? What happened?
12/03/07 You probably enjoyed many delicious dishes at your Thanksgiving
celebration. Explain how to prepare one of them. Unsure? Ask your parent
or explain how to set the table, step by step. Writing that explains a
process is an art and is something that occasionally shows up on the CA
writing assessment. (Speaking of that, the writing assessment workshop is
coming for fourth and seventh graders in January! Check out ww.cde.ca.gov
and search for samples of assessments.
12/10/07 Did you get to attend the Nutcracker ballet? Seen any good movies
lately? Write a review of a performance. Help your reader decide if this
movie or performance is worth attending. Unsure of how to write a review?
Check your newspaper, TV Guide, or online reviews to get ideas. Think of
audience and purpose.
12/17/07 See you in 2008! What are your new year's resolutions? Or, did you
keep any from last year? What are your hopes, dreams, goals for 2008? Put
them in writing!
WELCOME to 2008!
Week of January 14:What are your New Year's Resolutions? Have you kept them
or broken them already? How will you keep yours? Did you make them last
year? Did you keep those? Ask Mom or Dad to seal them up in an envelope,
address it to yourself and ask them to mail it to you when you need a
reminder.
Week of January 21:With Dr. Martin Luther King, jr. Day and the Presidential
campaigns in full swing, we think and hear a lot about how people are going
to change the world. If YOU were the President of the United States, what
would you do? What do you think needs to be done?
Week of January 28: Think about people in history. If you could have 5
minutes to speak with one person from any period in history, who would it
be? What would you talk about?
Week of February 4: Wasn't the Super Bowl a great game? (We're Giants fans.)
Write about a time when you were part of a great game (or... make it up, AKA
fiction).
Week of February 11: Finish the statement: Love is....
Write about an example of true love What does love mean to you?
Week of February 18: Who was your favorite President of the U.S.? Explain
why. Feel free to use a quote from that U.S. President that shows why he is
so great.
Week of February 25:The Tehachapi News is running a Leap Year special. Have
you had anything special happen on a Leap Year? What happened? Write about
it.
Week of March 3: You've heard the expression, "March comes in like a lion,
goes out like a lamb." Has that happened this year? What do you think that
expression means? Do you enjoy hot weather or cold weather more? What
activities do you like to do during your favorite type of weather?
Week of March 10: If (or should we say, when?)you were a famous author, what
types of books would you write? What age readers would you write for?
Write a short outline for your first book.
Week of March 17: Happy Spring Break! Happy St. Patricks Day!
Week of March 24: Welcome back! The poor seventh graders had to write a
persuasive letter for their writing assessment. Your turn! Write a letter
to the Governor of California expressing why homeschooling is a valid,
excellent educational choice.
Week of March 31: The cliche goes, "Laughter is the best medicine."
Describe the time you laughed the hardest. What was so funny? Were you
laughing at someone else's expense? Add dialogue to make your writing more
interesting.
2006-07 PROMPTS OF THE WEEK
4/21 - 4.25 What do you imagine your summer to be? What plans do you have?
4/14 - 4/18 You are visiting the zoo and come across an animal that no one
has ever seen before. Describe the animal.
4/30- 5/4 Most of us at some point have had to wear something we did not
want to wear. Write a story about what happened when you had to wear
something that you didn't want to wear. Where were you going? What did the
article of clothing look like?
4/23 - 4/27 You find a baby bear on your porch this morning. Write about
what happens.
4/16 - 4/20 You got stuck on Mount Whitney and have just been rescued after
being lost for 24 hours. Write about what happened. Were you scared? What
did you do to stay safe and pass the time?
3/26 - 3/30 Imagine you are on a magic carpet. Think about where you would
go and what you would do. Write a story about your adventure. Include
specific details.
3/19 - 3/23 Everyone has lost something. Write about a time either you or
someone you know lost something. What happened?
3/12 - 3/16 Everyone needs help sometimes. Write a story with a good
beginning, middle, and end about what happened one time when someone helped
you.
3/5 - 3/9 Everyone has lost something. Write about a time either you or
someone you know lost something. What happened?
2/2 - 3/2 Everyone needs help sometimes. Write a story with a good
beginning, middle, and end about what happened one time when someone helped
you.
-Your parents are super however, imagine that one of them is replaced for a
day by Superman (or the super-hero of your choice). What would your day be
like? Tell about it.
-Imagine you are walking outside. A spring storm is coming. Describe what
you see, hear, smell, taste, touch.
-Valentine's Day is coming up. Love is in the air. Define "love." Write
about a time someone was loving towards you. What happened? Why was that
important? Or, write about a time you were loving to someone. What did you
do?
-Over the holiday, one of our favorite stories to read is "A Christmas
Memory" by Truman Capote. (You should read it!) Write about one of your
favorite holiday memories from our last break. Include sensory details.
What made it special?
-Resolutions: Write about the New Year's resolutions you made this year.
Have you kept them so far? Did you have the same ones last year? Are you
sticking to them?
-It has been SOOO cold! On one day in particular, I noticed that my knit
gloves stuck to everything metal and my face hurt... and that was during the
warmest part of the day! Write about the cold using only your sense of
touch.
-I love winter and just today I was noticing the differences in the colors,
the trees, the smells from other times of the year. Describe winter using
similes and metaphors. (Remember a simile compares two different things
using "like" or "as" to make the comparison. For example, "The tree in
winter was as gray and craggy as an elephant's skin." Remember, a metaphor
compares two unlike things without the words "like" or "as." So, a metaphor
would be: The tree in winter was a craggy, gray elephant. Your turn!
-Dr. Martin Luther King's birthday makes us think of his famous "I have a
dream" speech. What is your dream for our world? Write about it.
1/29 - 2/2 We just celebrated the birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King.
Write about a time YOU stood up for someone or something. What happened?
Tell a GOOD story with a beginning, middle, and end. Add some dialogue to
spice things up.
12/4 - 12/19 The holidays are coming! Write about a favorite holiday. Be
sure to answer the following questions: 1. who was there? 2. When was
it? How old were you? 3. What were some of the sights? Smells? Sounds?
Tastes? 4. Was there anything special that anyone said? 5. Were there
any special traditions?
11/27 -12/1 We've talked about sensory details and their importance.
What if one of your senses was taken away. Which one would you choose to
lose? How would life be different? Describe a typical day without that
sense. Or, be creative... wear earplugs then write how life was different.
11/13 - 11/22 PROMPT IDEA #1
As we recently celebrated Veteran's Day, it's a good time to write about war
and peace and patriotism. Here are some quotable quotes to inspire your
writers:
"One sword keeps another in its sheath." (George Herbert, 1593-1633)
"If you wish for peace, prepare for war." (Latin saying, cited by John
Keegan in A History of Warfare.
"... the soldier who is called upon to offer and to give his life for his
country is the noblest development of mankind." (General Douglas MacArthur,
1880-1964)
Parents: depending on the grade of your student, you could have them select
a quote and write about it. What does it mean? What does it mean to them?
Also interesting is to look up the people who said them and learn a little
about them. For the younger students, have them write a thank you note to
the veterans who unselfishly sacrificed.
PROMPT IDEA #2
We recently voted. Use the recent elections as a chance to talk about
democracy and the election process with your student.
Then have him/her write about it. Or, use a quote from Abraham Lincoln, "No
man is good enough to govern another man without that other man's consent."
What did Abraham Lincoln mean by that? How does that quote relate to the
United States government? OR...
"Man's capacity for justice makes democracy possible, but man's inclination
for injustice makes democracy necessary." (Reinhold Niebuhr, 1892-1971)
11/06-11/10 Parents: There's always interesting stories in the news.
Pick one (or two) and talk about it. Have your student write a summary of
the story or write a letter to the people involved. (One week we wrote
sympathy notes to the family of Steve Irwin, for example).
10/30-11/3 The seasons are a changin'... the time is set back. What
are the best things about this time of year? Include sensory details that
appeal to sight, hearing, smell, touch, and taste.
10/16-10/20 We've certainly had some wonderful school experiences...and
the year is young! Choose one of your special experiences... it might be a
great field trip (Pulford's, Mercy Air, hiking) or it might be a great class
(Nanotechnology, Guitar, Art) or Tall Ships! Whatever you've enjoyed the
most... write about it. Include SPECIFIC DETAILS (sensory or otherwise) and
explain why this was such a wonderful experience.
10/9-10/13 "Change is Good!" the banner at K-Mart says. (All I know is
I can't find anything!) Is "change" always "good"? Write about a time when
there was a change for the better... or worse!
Note to parents: Have your writer focus on specific details.
10/2-10-6 Last week we visited a friend who had a cold. We took her a
get well teddy bear and thought she was going to be fine. The next morning
she was airlifted to Children's Hospital with severe asthma! We were
worried sick. By the time she got to the hospital, she was responding to
the asthma medication and was sent home. What a rollercoaster! Write about
a time when something unexpected happened... or a time you were concerned
for a friend. Include lots of specific details. (That's what we realized
we REALLY like at the Writing Workshop last week!)
Parents: Focus on one mechanical concept to correct. For example, in this
piece, be sure that your student writes in the same verb tense or in the
same person.
9/25 -9/29 Your students should be keeping a journal and writing
everyday! Below
are six possible journal topics for the week:
My idea of a perfect day....
If I was a ________________ in the ocean....
If I were a _______________ in the sky....
My hero is ... because....
My greatest fear is.... because....
I had the (scariest, craziest, funniest, weirdest....) dream. It went
like this....
Set the timer. Have them write in their journal for ten minutes. Ask
them to read their writing aloud. Better yet, write with them! Make
corrections very gently. At the end of the week, have them choose one
journal entry they really like to rewrite, add dialogue, add details,
etc.
"A writer writes!"
9/18 - 9/22 Point of View, that is, who is telling the story, is
important as the story itself. It affects how the story is told. This
week, try writing from a different point of view. It could be shifting from
first person (I) to third person (he, she). It could mean shifting from an
involved narrator (the character telling the story) to an uninvolved
narrator who has nothing at stake in the story. With my younger kids, we
chose an animal we were studying or interested in and wrote from that
animal's point of view. Older students (grades 5-8) can take a piece
they've already written and rewrite it, changing the point of view. For
example, "My Family Had the Best Summer Vacation" becomes "The Grissoms'
Camping Trip." Get it?
9/11 - 9/16 What do you want to be when you grow up? This is one of
our favorite subjects of discussion. Why is that something you want to
pursue? Now the big question, what are you going to do to achieve that
goal? We've talked a lot about goals the first two weeks of school... goals
are great but how do you accomplish them?
Note to parents: You want to get your student(s) writing on a daily basis.
I treat this as a journal entry which I do not grade. I do correct very
gently. Then we take their favorite journal entry and develop it into an
essay. I also use the journal entries to see what needs work or what they
don’t understand. Last week we had a great lesson on contractions because
of problems in a journal entry. I call it Prescription Grammar... just fix
what ails 'em!
9/5 - 9/8 The first few weeks of school we spend a bit of time talking
about goals... mainly academic but also personal, spiritual, physical. An
important part of goals is what we do to achieve them. What are your goals?
Short term? Long term? What are you doing right now to try and achieve
them? And hey, take a minute to look up the word "goal" in the dictionary.
That's a great way to start your writing.
Note to parents: At this point in the school year, it's just great to get
your student(s) writing again. In fact, try sitting down and writing with
them. You have time. The laundry and the phone calls can wait. You'll be
amazed at how difficult it is to sit and write on a given topic in a short
time AND what good modeling it is! Then read aloud what you've written.
See if they'd like to read theirs aloud as well (no pressure). Have fun!
Also, feel free to look up archived prompts from last year. Have your
students writing four days a week. You'd never send them into a soccer game
without drills and practice! Why assign an essay when they haven't
practiced?
8/28 - 9/1 I had the best summer. It all started when....
or
My favorite part of summer vacation was....
These make great journal entries that can later be developed into
narratives, complete with dialogue, etc.. At our house, we used these for
the first day of school. We are writing on day #2 about our goals. We will
begin by defining the word, "goal." Day #3 we'll write about our immediate
goals... day #4, long term goals... then, on Friday, we'll write about how
to achieve long term goals. Are the short term goals helping us get there?
Coming next week: How to Use the Prompt of the Week to get the most
mileage! Happy writing!
2005-06 PROMPTS OF THE WEEK
10/21 – 11/4 Sensory details--Autumn is in the air. What does it smell
like? This morning I smelled a wood-burning stove and immediately thought
of Autumnal things. The golden leaves are poised and ready to abandon
trees! What are some other sights of Autumn? We had crisp Tehachapi apples
for a snack... what are some other "tastes of Autumn"? We crunched the
layer of leaves on the lawn.... What are some other sounds of Autumn? Use
SPECIFIC adjectives to describe your sensory details!
11/7 -11/11 Welcome to week 2 of Prompt of the Week. I thought this
might be a time to explain it a bit. You can use it several ways, depending
on the needs of your student writer.
First, use it for a journal entry and leave it at that. I like to have my
students write in their journals a minimum of 3 days a week. I DON'T grade
their journal; I do make GENTLE corrections. (For example, crazy spelling
of a word they need to know: "That's a great try but the real way we spell
it is....") Journal writing should be selfish, not worried about the reader.
Second, use the journal to be developed into an essay later in the week.
Have your student writer return to the journal entry and develop it.
Discuss how they could improve their writing; complete a web using the
journal entry. Also, have them read it aloud, proofread, edit, and rewrite.
Third, use the prompt for timed writing. Print it and give your student one
hour (or more or less, depending on your needs) and have them write, much
like the writing assessments of last week. Or, give them ten minutes to
write to the prompt without stopping.
Got all that? Great! Here's the prompt:
Last week we wrote about Autumn using our senses. This week I'd like you to
return to that prompt and write to it but from a different point of view.
How would Autumn feel to an old dog? If you were an old dog, would you
welcome the feel of the cold in the air? What smells of Autumn would you
appreciate? How about the sights and sounds? What if you were a bird or a
squirrel preparing for the winter? Or, try writing from the perspective or
point of view from a person different than you. This is a great exercise
for any type of writing!
11/14 - 11/18 As the holidays approach, let's write about a favorite
holiday memory. One tool I like to use to get my writers writing is to ask
them a series of questions on our topic. It's just another way to get them
started. They can answer in phrases or sentences Then we'll write from
that....
1. Looking back my favorite holiday was.... (it could be Thanksgiving, a
birthday, Fourth of July, whatever)
2. How old were you? Did you look different than you do now? What did you
look like? Were you wearing anything special?
3. Who was there? Describe some of the people who were there.
4. What were you celebrating? Are there any special traditions in your
family that were part of this celebration?
5. Where did this celebration take place? What did this setting look like?
6. How did you feel about the celebration? Were you excited? nervous?
7. Do you remember anything that was said that was meaningful? (This could
be written as dialogue later.) What was it?
8. What were some of the smells? Some of the sounds?
9. What was your favorite part of the celebration? Why?
10. How did the celebration end?
Now that you have your answers, let's go 1-10 and rewrite your answers in
complete sentences. Then read your writing sentence by sentence. Ask
yourself, could I add more details (specific is terrific).
11/21 - 11/25 "What I Am Thankful For" This could be a poem, or just a
journal entry, or again, developed over the course of several days by adding
details, proofreading, reading aloud, etc..
11/28 - 12/2 "All I want for Christmas is my two front teeth!" What do
you want for Christmas? What was the best Christmas present ever? Why was
it so special? Who was it from? Was that what made it special? Describe
it. Again, treat this as a journal entry or, use it as a pre-write and
develop it with dialogue and details
12/5 -12-9 As we approach our last week of school for 2005, let's
reflect back on our first week of 2005. Did you have school goals for this
year? What were they? Have you accomplished any? all? What are your
goals for 2006? How will you accomplish them?
Again, this is fine for a journal entry but could always be developed into
more.
12/12 - 12/16 Good friends.... The holidays are a great time to think
about and spend time with good friends. What is your idea of a good friend?
Who is your best friend? What is he/she like? What is something they often
say or do? What makes them special?
Again, use this as a journal entry or develop into more. A good dictionary
of quotations will have many listings of what "famous people" have said
about friends/friendship. Choose a quotation for your student and have
him/her write about it.
1/3 - 1/7 New Year Resolutions: Benjamin Franklin said it best
when he said, "Resolve to perform what you ought. Perform without fail what
you resolve." What are your resolutions? How do you plan to stick to
them? What are your resolutions regarding school?
Parents: A cool thing to do with this is to have your student write a
letter to themselves, address the envelope to themselves, etc. regarding
their resolutions. Then you mail the letter to them in March or April (or
whenever they need encouragement). Again, this could be merely a journal
entry or developed into more. Use the dictionary to define terms. For
example, how does Webster's define resolution?
1/16- 1/20 *We all had many nice days during winter break and, like
snowflakes, no two were alike. What is your idea of a perfect day? Use
specific sensory details to describe it. Or, organize it in chronological
order. (First this would happen, then this, then this....) This prompt
could stand as merely a journal entry or could be developed into a very nice
five paragraph essay.
*Bonus Prompt: Dr. Martin Luther King jr. took a stand for what he believed
was right. Write about a time when you took a stand for what was right. It
could be as simple as sticking up for a sibling or something bigger. What
was it? Describe what happened, perhaps in chronological order, and what
you did. Did this incident change you? In what way?
1/23-1/27 Last week (1/17) we had the 12th anniversary of the
Northridge Earthquake. We lived 3 miles from the epicenter and our home was
destroyed. It was the scariest thing that ever happened to me. What was
the scariest thing that ever happened to you? Why was it so scary? What
happened? Use specific verbs and good sensory details to describe what
happened. Did you learn anything from this? Explain.
1/30-2/3 My favorite of Aesop's fables is "The Fly Upon the
Wheel."
It goes something like this: What a dust do I raise," said the fly upon the
coach wheel. "And what a speed do I go," said the same fly, this time from
the back of the horse.
What was "the moral of the story"? What was Aesop teaching? If you're not
sure, talk to Mom or Dad about it. Can you think of a time when you
were "the fly"? What happened? You could explain this in chronological
order (this happened, then this happened). Do you know someone who is like
the fly? Describe.
2/6-2/11 Post-Super Bowl: Suppose you awoke in the morning to
find yourself drafted on to your favorite sports team. Tell a good story
about what might happen. What sport? What team? What happened?
(Parents: This was the prompt one year for the 4th graders.)
Looking for past prompts of the week to enhance your curriculum? All prompts
are archived on our Curriculum webpage.
2/14-2/17 (Fictional Narrative)If you could travel in time and meet
Abraham Lincoln, what would you want to talk to him about? What would you
tell him about 2006 and your life? (I know I'd tell him NOT to go to the
theatre!) What would you want to ask him about?
2/20-2-24 Welcome back from "President's Day."Who is your favorite
President of the U.S.? Why?
or....
If YOU were President of the United States for a day, what would you do?
3/1-3/3 Write about your special friend. Use sensory details
(your senses) to describe what your friend looks like, sounds like (laughs
like), etc. Tell a story (an anecdote) about something this friend did or
does that makes them special. You could use dialogue to show your reader
what your friend sounds like, talks like. (Parents: this is a good
opportunity to pull out your grammar book and review punctuating and spacing
of dialogue.) You could begin with a quote on friendship or a rhetorical
question (What is a friend)
3/6-3/10 Imagine that you are traveling in a spaceship with
several robots. Write a story telling about your adventure. What can each
robot do? What is your function on the journey? Where are you going?
Include specific details and... create a surprise ending!
3/13-3/17 Every writer has to write one of these stories at some
point in their writing career so let's get ours out of the way and have some
fun with it!
Begin with: It was a dark and stormy night.
End with: Then I woke up.
You write the middle! Come up with an interesting conflict and create some
crazy characters.
3/27-3/31 Good-bye's are never easy. Last week we said "good bye"
to our beloved Mr. Hokit. Write about a time you had to say a difficult
good bye. It could be about a good friend moving away or losing someone
close to you. Who was it? Why were they special? Why did you have to say
good bye? What happened? How did you handle it? This may be just a
journal entry or developed into a 3-5 paragraph (or more) narrative.
4/17-4/21 This week we travel back in time, either at history camp
or on Living History Day at the museum. If you could travel back in time to
any time period, when would it be? Why? Who would you want to meet? What
would you want to do? How would life be different than it is now? Be
creative! Be specific!
4/24-4/28 Hopefully you all had a wonderful Spring break... if
not... some times the less-than-wonderful times are more interesting to
write about. What was your favorite part of your break? Did you do
anything memorable? What made it memorable? Who was there? What did you
do? Or, if you could rewind your week, what would you do differently?
| |
