If You Could Be An Animal.....

.... What would YOU be?

That was the question my Juniors class was asked.  We brainstormed as a class on:
- where we would live
- what we would eat
- what our daily activities would be
- who our friends would be
- who our predators/enemies would be
- who would take care of us
- what we would look like

The students came up with great ideas!  Here are just two great examples of kids imagining what life would be like as an animal.

Dolphins and Friends
By Shefali (4th grade)
(Notice how much scientific knowledge Shefali incorporates into this essay.  She also breaks her paragraphs up nicely into specific characteristics, so her essay is easy to follow!)

     If I were an animal, I would be a dolphin because dolphin friends are always there for each other.  For example, when a dolphin can't swim, two other dolphins bring the dolphin up and down so it can breathe until it can swim again.  Dolphins are very smart!

     But, I would also have predators.  One of the big predators for dolphins are sharks.  I would send two big and strong male dolphins to fight those huge, mean, and nasty sharks.  The sharks wouldn't get anything to eat in our pod!

     I'd have to eat, too.  I would use something called echo-location.  I would send a sound and it would bounce off a fish and come back to me.  If it would come back quickly, then I would go in that direction and eat a tasty treat!

Raya (4th grade) organized her thoughts beautifully before she started writing.  With the Juniors group, I presented "pre-outlining" ideas that will help them organize their thoughts and get them ready for the concept of formal outlining they will be ready for as they get older.

     If I were an animal, I would be a lizard.  I would live in the rainforest.  While staying away from snakes and certain birds, I would climb trees.  I would climb down to eat weeds when my predators had gone away.  Because I would be a mild animal, I wouldn't kill any animals.

     I would be one of a kind when it comes to my appearance.  If my predators saw me, they might be scared and run away.  I would look scary and big.  I would have spikes on top of my head along with scales.  Because I could camouflage with the surroundings, I would look brownish-green.  I would like to be a lizard, but I'm glad I'm a person.

Both girls used the lessons they learned in varying sentence starters/patterns.  Well done!!

Outlining and Essays

My Seniors class received an important lesson in outlining.  I am amazed at how this important organizational skill is just not taught in schools anymore.  To me, it is the foundation of strong essays and even creative stories.  If you can't effectively plan it ahead of time, how can you write it?

My Seniors were assigned to write an outline for a 5 paragraph essay.  The topic?  "My Favorite ________."  Anything was possible!

Favorite vacation spots, favorite sports, and even favorite You Tube videos were some of the topics chosen that day.  Here is Sammy's (6th grade) essay on Football.  His outline included:
An introduction
Object of the game
Equipment needed to play
Where football is played
Success of the sport nationally
A conclusion

Sammy clearly follows his thought process in a clear and concise manner, all stemming from a well-written outline.

Enjoy!

     Foorball is an amazing sport that is played on a 100 yard long field.  The object of the game is to march down the field and score.  Football is one of the most popular sports in America.  It is played at schools everywhere and even has its own pro league.

     The object of the game is to make your way down the 100 yard field.  The offense can either run the ball or pass it while the defense tries to tackle them.

     Some equipment is needed to play football.  First, you need a football.  Then, you need a helmet and shoulder pads.  Because you need to protect your ribs, you need to wear rib pads.  When you're playing football, you also need cleats.

     (Did you notice his "Because" and "When" sentence starters there??)

     Football is played in many places.  Some people play at the park and in their backyards.  Many junior highs and high schools have football teams.  College football is very popular in the U.S.  One sport that is even more popular than college football is the pro football league, the NFL.

     The NFL is so huge that their championship game, the Super Bowl, has the highest TV ratings every year.  The teams that get into the Super Bowl have to first qualify for the playoffs, then win every game in the playoffs.  The winner of the Super Bowl is the NFL Champion for that year.

      As you can see, football is a fabulous sport.  You should give it a try.  Just don't get hurt.