Tag: teaching ideas
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What Rhymes with Ketchup Bottle?
At a recent SoMIRAC (conference), author and illustrator Susan Stockdale told the audience how she grew up with a love for language in part because her mother used rhyme so playfully around the house. Here’s one rhyme she heard many-a-time during her childhood at the dining room table: Shake and shake the ketchup bottle, none’ll come and…
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Mary Amato’s Tips for Teachers: How to Encourage Creative Writing
Children have a lot of writing assignments in school. Often, time for creative writing is squeezed out of the curriculum. If you are a teacher who wants to introduce/encourage more creative writing, here are some ideas. Keep a Writer’s Notebook. See my Tips for Keeping a Writer’s Notebook for more info. Create a Writer’s Corner.…
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What is the Weirdest Thing?
When Hannah Tinti, author of The Good Thief and editor-in-chief of One Story Magazine, gets bored writing, she doesn’t ask, “What happens next?” She asks herself this question: “What’s the weirdest thing that can happen right now?” At this year’s AWP conference, Tinti said that you don’t want weirdness for the sake of weirdness, but…
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How to Hear a Character’s Voice
Youtube link for video.https://youtu.be/MKSPVcFP6U8 Teachers, if you can’t access youtube, try teachertube.
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Writing Edgar Allan’s Official Crime Investigation Notebook
Teachers if you can’t access youtube, please see teachertube.
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Poetry Writing Activities
Try these poetry writing activities based on Mr. Crew’s lessons in Edgar Allan’s Official Crime Investigation Notebook by Mary Amato Metaphor Poem When Kip doesn’t understand how to create a metaphor, Destiny says, “Thinks of candy…then think of something else that’s really fun, like a party. Then squash the two things together: Candy is a…
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Discussion Questions for Edgar Allan’s Official Crime Investigation Notebook
Edgar Allan’s Official Crime Investigation Notebook By Mary Amato To Discuss: 1. Edgar spies on his classmates in an effort to solve the mystery, and in the process he learns something important about each one. Specifically, he reads: Destiny’s poem about the willow tree; Taz’s article about osteosarcoma; and Patrick’s poems about his parents’ divorce.…
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How to Write a Funny Poem
The characters in Edgar Allan’s Official Crime Investigation Notebook write lots of funny poems. Download this pdf to discover how to write your own humorous poetry: How to Write a Funny Poem by Mary Amato
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Edgar Allan’s Official Crime Investigation Notebook Vocabulary List
Edgar Allan’s Official Crime Investigation Notebook by Mary Amato Vocabulary List Directions: Fill in the definitions for the following terms. Professional (p.3) Nonchalant (p.20) Forensics (p.30) Cosmetics (p.32) Seizure (p.39) Tread (p.41) Damaging (p.45) Sleuthing (p.46) Neglecting (p.50) Verified (p.67) Spectrum (p.68) Doorjamb (p.94) Flourish (p.99) Alibi (p.116) Precision (117) Bonus Using the context of…