As we begin this schoolyear, I decided that one of their first writing assignments would be to compose a descriptive paragraph. NO descriptive writing is NOT something that is tested but…… as a Professional Educator, I decided that having them focus on “showing” was an effective way to start of the year.
Their mission was to decorate a figure from the selection of Go Noodle coloring sheets and write a description that is accurate enough that someone reading it could recreate their monster.
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- Decorate, describe, switch and recreate
Some of them did better job of accurately describing their monsters than others and it was obvious when we compared the original monster to the recreated one. Those students who received skimpy descriptions immediately expressed their frustration about not being able to effectively recreate the monsters. I reminded them that the purpose of the assignment was to show how important it is to use words wisely.
I am glad that I gave them that assignment. It ws a great way for them to realize that when describing something that they need to be accurate and succinct.
