Transcript Literary Imitation as Instruction for Personal Writing

Literary Imitation as
Instruction:
Using Examples of Grammar and
Literary Elements from Literature to
Empower Student Writing
By: Kathy A. Carlson
2004
Summer
[email protected]
“Ms. Minifred liked wondrous words.
She loved the beginnings of books
and the ends. She loved clauses and
adverbial phrases and the
descriptions of sunsets and death.”
-from Baby by Patricia MacLachlan
-Used in Wondrous Words by Katie Wood Ray
Think about the quote from Baby. Isn’t it
wonderful that Ms. Minifred loved
“wondrous words”? Don’t you wish your
students had such affection for clauses
and adverbial phrases? And, wouldn’t it
be great to walk into a classroom full of
students begging you to teach them how
to effectively use description in their
writing to paint a clear picture for the
reader?
Think and Discuss:
•What was language (grammar)
instruction like for you as a student?
•What effect did this type of instruction
have on your personal writing?
•What do you think led to the
fictitious Ms. Minifred’s love of
language?
• Think of Ms. Minifred as one of
your students. How could you use the
love of language she has developed
through reading to help her develop as
a writer?
As we help shape student writing, it is
important that we offer examples of what
good writing looks like. Teaching students
to read like a writer should be a goal in all
literature classrooms.
“Reading-writing connections have
gone beyond written responses into
actual craft apprenticeships in the
writing workshop,” (Wood Ray, 1999).
“In order to gather a repertoire of craft
possibilities that will help a writer
write well, that writer first has to learn
how to read differently, how to read
with a sense of possibility, a sense of
‘What do I see here that might work
for me in my writing?’ This is what
reading like a writer means – to read
with a sense of possibility.” (Wood
Ray, 1999)
One excellent tool a teacher can impart to
students is the idea that copying an author’s style
is fine, as long as you allow that author keep the
ownership of his words.
We must understand that “writing is individual
– [but] it is not unique” (Wood Ray, 1999).
Writing style is often mimicked. This technique
is especially useful in the classroom as students
struggle to develop a piece of writing, but lack
the sophistication of the craft to define their
own style.
The use of literature as a tool for teaching
grammar and literary language is one way
of offering students models of excellent
writing. As students learn the techniques
good authors use in their writing, correct
use of language and literary elements will
naturally appear in student writing. This
type of instruction will also help foster a
natural love of language, such as that
demonstrated by Ms. Minifred.
Activity:
1) Introduce Language Poster. (In a
classroom setting, this would be done
throughout the year, with different aspects
of grammar and literary elements being
addressed through mini-lessons, readalouds, and author’s chair. For this
demonstration, small groups will focus on
one aspect of the Language Chart and share
findings with the entire class.)
2) Assign each group one aspect of the
Language Chart, first concentrating on
grammar/word usage. Using books
provided, have group members find
examples of how this aspect is used in
literature.
3) Group members share their findings as
teacher or designated student records
information on Language Chart.
4) After all groups have shared their findings,
each group chooses another part of the
Language Chart to investigate. (Preferably
groups will concentrate on a literary element or
exceptional use of language for their second
investigation.)
5) Allow group members time to locate
examples of the grammar or literary
elements in the books provided.
6) Again, each group shares their findings
and teacher or designated student records
information on Language Chart.
7) Discuss how grammar and literary
elements are used in literature to improve
writing. Using examples from the
Language Chart, students compose original
sentences incorporating correct grammar or
literary elements.
8) Once students are familiar with using the
Language Chart, invite students to share
personal writing samples. As students
share, classmates listen for examples to
add to the Language Chart.
9) Students record information from the
Language Chart onto individual sheets for
writing notebooks. This can be used as a
reference for future writing.
In a classroom setting, information on
the Language Chart can be updated
periodically, as students/teacher find
more examples of good writing in
literature or in student/teacher work.
The use of a Language Chart,
tailored to meet the needs of
individual classrooms, will help
students recognize that authors
(including themselves) use good
conventions and rich language to
enhance their writing.
Why use literature to help teach grammar and
literary elements?
•After completing a two-year study of
traditional grammar instruction, Roland Harris
found that, “the formal teaching of grammar
actually had an adverse effect on students’
abilities to write well” (Patterson, Voices in the
Middle, 2001).
• A study by George Hillcocks in 1986
“concluded that there is no evidence that the
teaching of grammar improves writing”
(Patterson, 2001).
• “Traditional grammar instruction is
bound to fail because it is given without
any real context…The classroom must
now become the place where students
become natural language users and learn
grammar as part of the life of reading,
writing, and speaking,” (Meyer, Youga,
Flint-Ferguson, English Journal, p. 66,
1990).
Extension:
As students become familiar with reading like
a writer (as described by Wood Ray;
Wondrous Words, 1999), other aspects of
writing style can be highlighted.
For instance, one might lead students to look
at the use of letter texts, journal entries, or
vignette texts to enhance writing.
Additionally, a close look at how authors use words to
add dimension to text will help writers develop style
in their writing.
Some types of author craft you might want to
examine with your students include:
• Close-echo effect (repetition of words or phrases
very close together in the writing);
• Repeating details (used by writers to create a
thread of continuity throughout a piece of writing);
and,
• Re-say (repeating an idea immediately after it has
been presented to add emphasis).
Examples (taken from Wondrous Words, Katie Wood
Ray, 1999):
Close-Echo Effect:
• Night in the Country (Cynthia Rylant, 1986):
“There is no night so dark, so black as night in the
country.”
• Water Dance (Thomas Locker, 1997): “I wind
through broad golden valleys, joined by streams,
joined by creeks.”
•Miz Berlin Walks (Jane Yolen, 1997): “Without
missing a step, without missing a word…”
Repeating Details:
•The Relatives Came (Cynthia Rylant, 1985):
Grapes are the repeating detail. They are “nearly
purple enough to pick, but not quite” and “almost
purple grapes,” and finally, at the end, “dark
purple grapes.”
•Roxaboxen (Alice McLerran, 1991): The colors
of the desert glass – “amethyst, amber, and seagreen” – are mentioned twice in the text.
Re-Say:
•Dreamplace (George Ella Lyon, 1993): “…and
see for the first time across the trees, like a
dream, like a sandcastle, this city the Pueblo
people built under a cliff.”
• Baby (Patricia MacLachlan, 1993): Only
Byrd looked happily satisfied, as if something
wonderful, something wished for, had
happened.”
Works Cited:
Meyer, Jim, Jan Youga, and Janis Flint-Ferguson. (1990).
Grammar in context: Why and how. English Journal, 79:1,
66-70.
Noden, Harry. (2001). Image grammar: Painting images with
grammatical structures. Voices from the Middle, 8:3, 7-16.
Patterson, Nancy. (2001). Just the facts: Research and theory
about grammar instruction. Voices from the Middle, 8:3, 5055.
Wood Ray, Katie. (1999). Wondrous Words: Writers and
Writing in the Elementary Classroom. Illinois. National
Council of Teachers of English.
Special thanks to Gretchen Bernabei for sharing her Rhetoric
Poster, which was adapted for this presentation.
TEKS CONNECTIONS:
Grades 2-English 4
Reading/fluency. The student reads with fluency and understanding in
texts at appropriate difficulty levels.
Reading/variety of texts. The student reads widely for different purposes
in varied sources
Reading/vocabulary development. The student develops an extensive
vocabulary.
Reading/text structures/literary concepts. The student analyzes the
characteristics of various types of texts.
Writing/grammar/usage. The student composes meaningful texts
applying knowledge of grammar and usage.
Writing/penmanship/capitalization/punctuation. The student composes
original texts, applying the conventions of written language such as capitalization,
punctuation, and penmanship to communicate clearly.
Writing/evaluation. The student evaluates his/her own writing and the
writing of others.
TEKS CONNECTIONS, Continued:
Writing/inquiry/research. The student uses writing as a tool for learning
and research.
Writing/connections. The student interacts with writers inside and
outside the classroom in ways that reflect the practical uses of writing.
English 1, 2, 3, 4
Reading/literary concepts. The student analyzes literary elements for
their contributions to meaning in literary texts.
Reading/analysis/evaluation. The student reads critically to evaluate
texts.