SAVY 2019: Session 5, Day 4 – Witty Wordplay (Rising 1st/2nd)

Posted by hallep on Thursday, July 18, 2019 in Uncategorized.

We were on fire for writing today! First we did a Word Ladder to warm up our word play mindset. Then we continued our evaluation of systems by looking for inputs and outputs as well as boundaries found in cafeterias. From our cafeteria system model, we began thinking about where we would be able to identify systems in other real world situations. We were able to identify the solar system, plants, our human bodies and then one student said a house! The concept of systems is really forming in our minds.

Since we began learning about Similies yesterday, we jumped back in to this system of language by identifying the boundaries for writing this writer’s technique. We then began to write, knowing that our Similies had to have the words like or as to be able to compare two things that are different things. We wrote for close to 45 minutes and everyone was so impressed with what they wrote! One of the most memorable Similies of the writing today was, “My mom is as warm as a bear.” Spoiler Alert: You might need a “boo-whoo” tissue at the Open House tomorrow when your child presents their writing.

Then, we looked at language as a code and wondered if this was a form of a system of communication. We all agree that, yes, writing in code is a language system. One student put it so succinctly when she said: “The message is the language communication and the how to make the message is the code.” Our code today was called reverse alphabet and I started with a message that I wrote for them, and then after cracking the code, everyone began writing their own messages to each other with the code. This was such a blast!

Towards the end of the day, we turned to learning how to write persuasively. To do this, we learned the Hamburger model of writing which includes beginning with the opinion, then writing the reasons that support the opinion and then a conclusion. We had a fun time writing our opinions. Tomorrow is our Open House! We are looking forward to seeing you all at 3:15! Open House is from 3:15-3:45. Students will be performing their favorite writing from this week and they will guide you through everything we’ve learned.

See you tomorrow!

Ms. Tyson