by Donna | Jan 25, 2018
One of the first things that we teach students who are learning to write sentences is that every sentence must have two things: a subject and a verb. (Technically, I teach that a sentence must have FIVE things—CAVES: Capital, All Makes Sense, Verb, End Mark, Subject.) Verbs are important! Action verbs are the forward motion of sentences. They persuade in persuasive writing; inform in research-based writing; and entertain in story writing. They do all of this in spite of one man, Michel Thaler, writing a 233-page French novel in 2004 that did not contain a single verb. (And I would say it also did not contain a single sentence! đ ).
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by Donna | Jan 22, 2018
I love mnemonics–tricks, songs, jingles, rhymes….anything that helps students learn! I love them even more when they have something to do with the purpose for learning that topic or the topic itself. Like in the case of prepositions–songs can help you learn about three dozen of the over 200 prepositions–but Check Sentences can help you learn 150 or more because Check Sentence have to do with the function of prepositions. (Learn more here)
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by Donna | Oct 24, 2017
We had an interesting conversation in my high school creative writing class this week. One of the students started a sentence with and, and, of course, the more grammarly types thought that he should not.
Being the kind of teacher who does not like to let any potential lesson pass, I delved in. That is what I would like to “teach” here today–but first let’s go back to those earlier lessons on compound sentences and comma use–and, of course, what a coordinating conjunction is to begin with.
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by Donna | Jul 15, 2017
Teaching writing is not for the faint of heart! It is the most subjective âsubjectâ in schoolâand, consequently, can be one of the most challenging to teach. Oftentimes, materials designed to teach writing are more writing idea than writing instruction. They leave the student (and the teacher!) wondering exactly what to do to complete the writing prompt. This is one reason that after I write a book (one hundred in all!), test, test, and retest the book with real (or virtual starting this fall!) students to be sure that all of the steps are included and clear. Last week I shared a lesson from one of my books that I did with a mixed live/virtual class about writing from a given source. This week Iâd love to give you another peek into my online writing classes for the fall with another cooperative âguinea pigâ group!
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by Donna | Jul 3, 2017
Writing class is often the most difficult class for teachers—homeschoolers and brick and mortar schoolers alike. Oftentimes, a teacher has not had much writing experience herself to draw from. (Perhaps her writing classes were lacking in school, and she hasnât had reason to write much in her adulthood.) Many writing programs are vague and more idea-based than step-by-step-based. You have probably heard me talk on here about how I overcame these obstacles in my writing curricula by utilizing my Directed Writing Approach. This Directed Writing Approach has churned out several *perfect* scores on the verbal SAT/ACT! And…this approach carries over into my writing checklist for students, known as the Checklist Challenge.
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by Donna | Jul 3, 2017
The capitalization of this holiday isn’t the grammar/writing issue. It’s the spelling!
Of course, like any other holiday, both words are capitalized:
Independence Day
Or if written with the informal name: July 4th.
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![Teaching Writing With a Thorough Checklist [with video!]](https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4140/35700733195_f5e1371e35_z.jpg "Teaching Writing With a Thorough Checklist [with video!]")
