Creative Writing for Advanced Writers: Writing Chapter Stories

In this on-going course, learners will meet once a week, in a writer's workshop series of lessons. Learners will be focusing on writing skills in developing personal, narrative writing, fictional and informational writing skills. Learners will engage in activities such as drawing pictures, labeling pictures and using their pictures to create sentences to tell a story about their picture.

This class will focus on adding more details of the characters, setting, and plot of each week's story. Students may choose how much they want to include in their story, but are encouraged to add more advanced, specific details to develop their characters, setting and story elements.

LESSON OUTLINE: 
Each lesson will begin with a focus on prewriting skills, such as think - alouds, planning, using graphic organizers and drawing pictures and organizing ideas into chapter parts.

At the beginning of each lesson, learns will be introduced to a small mini-lesson, focusing on a skill to focus on in their writing for this class. Learners will start class brainstorming a specific event they would like to write about using a graphic organizer. Teacher will provide supports for students unsure about what to write about. Learners will then use a graphic organizer to draw a picture about this specific story idea discussed during the mini-lesson. Learners will then use the graphic organizer to write down, draw, and label some details they want to include in their story.

The last part of the lesson will include time for learners to develop the details to include in each chapter. Students may choose to add pictures for each of their chapters, or just begin to write their first draft of their chapter book. 

Learners will be supported with writing, but encouraged to sound out words they do not know. 
Teacher will model all aspects of writing to support learners. 

Course Monthly Focus Outline (Mini-Lessons):
MAY: *Please note: Each lesson will follow the same outline, however, mini-lessons will change depending on the week*
May 3: Introduction to drawing a picture focused on specific event
May 10: Learner Focus on adding details to picture on specific event
May 17: Learner Focus on adding a strong beginning to our story
May 24: Learner Focus on adding details to our writing

JUNE: *Please note: Each lesson will follow the same outline, however, mini-lessons will change depending on the week*
June 1: Learner Focus on stretching sentences
June 7: Learner Focus on expanding word choice
June 14: Learner Focus on adding a strong ending
June 28: Learner Focus on editing our writing

An example of the graphic organizer is attached. Organizers will be updated weekly depending on the focus animal. Learners will be invited to draw a picture of their chosen animal. Teacher will model different parts of the animal to label. Learners will be invited to add color to their picture at the end of class. 

These lessons will include skills taught from the First Grade Common Core Standards in Writing, including standards, W.1.3 -focusing on writing narrative stories, including a sequence of events, and transition words to develop their story.  

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.1.3
Write narratives in which they recount two or more appropriately sequenced events, include some details regarding what happened, use temporal words to signal event order, and provide some sense of closure.

Course Synopsis:  
Writing is a very important skill for learners to develop, but it is also important they have time to practice this skill on their own. In this writer's workshop type class, learners will have a mini-lesson at the beginning of class, to actively engage and learn a new skill, or practice an older skill. 

At the end of the lesson, the teacher will model how to use a drawing of an event in each learner's own experiences to write a story.  
Learners are included to add as much details as they can to their story. Each week, learners will be invited to write a new story. In this course, considering learners may need more than one class to develop a chapter story, learners MAY bring a story they have been working on and continue to develop that story. This is up to each learner in each section of class. Learners always have the option to complete their stories on their own time, or wait for their next lesson to complete their work.

Learners will see skills modeled from the teacher during each lesson. During class, learners will have ample time to practice using this skill on their own. Skills will include, answering a prompt with facts, drawing a picture and dictating what they drew, or using vocabulary to discuss what they can see in a picture. Learners will be provided with support from the teacher, including visuals, word banks and sentence starters. 

At the end of the lesson, learners will be given time to share their writing if they choose to. Learners are encouraged to share their stories they have worked on during class. However, this is not a requirement and is dependent on each learners comfortability in sharing with others.