Creature creation - an elaboration writing activity
This lesson will focus on the writing element of elaboration. It will also tap into higher order thinking skills with the creation of a Coastal Plain imaginary animal and a creative story about the creature. This lesson could be linked to 4th grade Science and Social Studies objectives. For more in-depth knowledge in those other subjects, go to the lesson entitled Researching the Coastal Plain
A lesson plan for grade 4 English Language Arts and English Language Development
About the authors
My name is Ana Milazzotto Sanders. I have been teaching English as a Second Language for 5 years at Four Oaks Elementary School. Besides the pull-out program, I have been developing ESL Inclusion classes.I taught Portuguese as a Second Language for about 15 years at the Graded School (an American school in Brazil). I have a Master’s degree in Education with a focus in ESL from Michigan State University. I have been trained for Reading Recovery, and I am working now on my AIG (gifted and talented)certification. I am a natural advocate for the English Language Learners, and I fight for quality instruction for them and have high expectations of my students. They can be very successful when they break the language barrier walls down. I participate in the training of new ESL teachers in our county as well as some mainstream teachers for ESL modifications.
My name is Heather Ennis, and I am an Assistant Principal at Four Oaks Elementary School in Four Oaks, NC. I am in charge of Curriculum and Instruction at our school. I have taught the fifth and fourth grades, and I have had several experiences with English Language Learners in my own classroom and as an administrator. I participated in the workshop entitled English Language Development Standard Course of Study Lesson Planning Institute where I became more aware and knowledgeable about lesson planning and the English Language Learner’s modifications. Creative narrative writing has been changed and a topic of conversion in the schools for several years. Lesson plans like this one are appropriate for all students in the fourth grade, with the use of modifications. Students will gain a better perspective of elaboration in creative narrative writing if this lesson is used in the classroom.
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Related topics
- Learn more about English language arts and English language development.
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Learning outcomes
Students will:
- exercise and improve their elaboration skills in creative narrative writing.
- practice their creative narrative writing abilities.
- use higher order thinking skills for the creation of the Coastal Plain creature.
Teacher planning
Time required for lesson
4 days
Materials/resources
- The Terrible Eak - A Japanese Tale retold by Patricia A. Compton and Illustrated by Sheila Hamanaka. If this book is not available to you, then any story about an imaginary animal would be acceptable.
- Transparencies, vis-a-vis markers, overhead projector, construction paper, markers, crayons, clay and other arts and crafts material available.
- Writing paper and pencils.
- Provide each student with a cut out circle (which will be the body of the animal), in which they will create their imaginary creature.
Technology resources
None
Pre-activities
The students should have read or heard some information about Coastal Plain animals. We recommend that this activity be done after studying The Coastal Plain in Social Studies.
The students should have some knowledge about elaboration in creative writing. Elaboration is a way of describing specific events in a story in order to move the creative writing along in a smooth, flowing process. The teacher could have the class brainstorm descriptive words before this lesson.
Activities
- The teacher will read to the class the book The Terrible Eak using good facial expressions, voice tone, and showing the pictures.
- Teacher and students will discuss the book focusing on imaginary creatures. The teacher could promote some critical thinking about how the students would feel if they encountered a creature that they have never heard of or seen before. Have the students to discuss these feelings. During the discussion, the teacher could be writing the descriptive words being said by the students, on the board.
- Model how to create the creature activity while adding elaboration. In this activity the teacher will draw a circle on the transparency, using the overhead projector. The teacher will explain to the students that the circle is the body of an imaginary Coastal creature that they must help. The teacher will then ask the students to give the circle some elaboration by adding on details. While drawing these details on the circle, also the teacher will write these descriptive words at the bottom of the transparency. When the class is satisfied with their newly elaborated Coastal Plain creature, the teacher will discuss the difference between the plain circle and the elaborated one.
- The teacher will pass out one cut out of the body of the imaginary animal to each student, and they will create their own elaborated Coastal Plain creature. The students are allowed to use any kind of arts and crafts materials there are available in the class. The students also must write the descriptive words that describe the additions they make to their creature.
- The students will share their imaginary creature with a peer and discuss.
- The teacher will write on the board and read out loud the following narrative imaginary prompt:
One day you are fishing off the coast of North Carolina with some friends, when all of the sudden you feel a tug on your fishing line. You begin to reel your “catch” in and you have caught an unusual animal you have never seen before. “Wow, look at this”…tell what happens next.. - After the prompt has been given to the students, teacher will tell the students that they need to use the creature created in class (activity 4) as their imaginary creature in the story. Teacher will also remind students to use the elaboration skills that they have practiced.
- When students are finished they will peer edit for elaboration (the students will find/be assigned to a partner in order to add or delete elaboration in the story).
- The student will also edit their own story focusing on elaboration, and then they will turn it in to the teacher along with their creative animal.
- After the rubric assessment, the teacher will give feedback to each student about the assignment.
Assessment
Supplemental information
None
Related websites
http://rubistar.com
http://teach-nology.com
Modifications
When reading the book, make sure you use visuals, gestures and facial expressions to the Novice High English Language Learners.
The modeling of the creation of the imaginary creature is already a good resource for the Novice High English Language Learners, because the teacher will be demonstrating with the overhead projector.
The Novice High English Language Learners will create their own animal using arts and crafts and describe it with short sentences/simple phrases. The teacher can provide a word bank, picture dictionary, and/or biligual dictionary.
The Novice High English Language Learners would be responsible for a short paragraph for their creative story or they can write the story in their native language mixed with descriptive words they learned in English. The Novice High English Language Learners might need teacher assistance during this process.
Alternative assessments
Critical vocabulary
Imaginary, creature, Coastal Plain, elaboration, Rubric
Comments
This lesson plan was developed during the English Language Development Standard Course of Study lesson planning institutes hosted by the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction and LEARN NC, June and July, 2004. It includes specific strategies, instructional modifications, and alternative assessments which make this lesson accessible to limited English proficient students. Please note that this lesson has been aligned with the goals and objectives of the N.C. English Language Development
standards.
North Carolina Curriculum Alignment
English Language Arts (2004)
Grade 4
- Goal 4: The learner will apply strategies and skills to create oral, written, and visual texts.
- Objective 4.07: Compose fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and drama using self-selected and assigned topics and forms (e.g., personal and imaginative narratives, research reports, diaries, journals, logs, rules, instructions).
- Objective 4.09: Produce work that follows the conventions of particular genres (e.g., personal and imaginative narrative, research reports, learning logs, letters of request, letters of complaint).
English Language Development (2005)
Grade 4
- Goal 1. Listening: The learner will apply strategies and skills to create oral, written, and visual texts.
- Objective NH 1.02: Understand and follow one-step and two-step directions with modeling and prompting when spoken slowly and distinctly.
- Goal 4. Writing: The learner will apply strategies and skills to create oral, written, and visual texts.
- Objective NH 4.05: Compose a simple sentence with direct instruction and support materials (e.g., word walls, personal dictionaries, teacher modeling, peer assistance).
