Teaching Project Proposal - Descriptive Writing

Topics:  

Descriptive Writing and Mentor texts

For the Teaching Project, I would like to propose working with descriptive writing and mentor texts.  Descriptive writing is vital for all styles of writing.  As my seniors continue with their research work this semester, I find that many of them have forgotten the work they did last semester on different writing strategies, most importantly, and tragically, descriptive writing.  I find that their leads are lacking energy and their paragraphs are missing any life-giving description. I would like to work with mentor texts and examples to show the importance of descriptive writing in different genres.

Resources:

I am currently looking at using the following craft lessons from the texts for this course:

from Georgia Heard's Finding the Heart of Nonfiction: Teaching 7 Essential Craft Tools with Mentor Texts (2013):

Writing with Imagery (pp. 51-59) and Precise Language (pp. 76-94)

• Turning facts into scenes (p. 59)
• Sensory Words (p. 77)
• Concrete Nouns and Active Verbs (pp. 80-81)
• Avoiding weak word construction (p. 82)
• Using Figurative Language (p. 85)

from Ralph Fletcher and Joann Portalupi's Craft Lessons:  Teaching Writing K-8 (2007):

Details and Imagery

• Using sensory details (p. 62)

Setting

• Using details to describe setting (p. 43)

from Ralph Fletcher and Joann Portalupi's Nonfiction Craft Lessons:  Teaching Information Writing K-8 (2001):

Description

• Describing your subject (pp. 61, 89)

from Jeff Anderson's 10 Things Every Writer Needs to Know (2011):

Models

• Using Mentor Texts (pp. 23-40)

Details

• Selecting the Concrete and Necessary (pp. 61-78)

Note:  I will also use mentor texts that I have not selected yet.

Goals:

Some of the learning goals for this project are:

• deepening my understanding of the importance of descriptive writing;
• enhancing different styles of writing with description;
• using figurative language to improve description; 
• elevating writing through the use of mentor texts; and
• teaching writers how to "show" instead of "tell".

Format:

Although I love this blogging format and I am a huge fan of Jing, I have never tried to do audio and slide recording on PowerPoint.  Our technology guru at the school tells me that it is easy technology that I will learn it quickly (We'll see about that!).  I would like to try this format for this project, so I intend to use PowerPoint for my final project.

Questions:

I don't find myself with any questions at this point other than:  Am I on the right track with this assignment?