Creative Writing in 5 Simple Steps

The Spilling Ink writing club at Maple Street has been busy preparing for our Literacy Night poetry slam. As they continue through the year, it's possible that more and more styles of writing and interests will begin to emerge and there is a new series that can help any young writer work on his or her craft. Write Fantasy Fiction in 5 Simple Steps is a book in the Creative Writing in 5 Simple Steps series. Each title is a guide for writers of a particular genre. In the fantasy title, students are encouraged to keep a journal, do research, learn more about the genre and its conventions, and complete other activities that will improve their writing.

Specific information about the genre is included, as well as excellent examples of work from popular authors that the students will recognize such as J.K. Rowling, Rick Riordan, and Cornelia Funke. Advice about publishing is provided as well. The book ends will a detailed glossary, a list for further reading, and websites to visit so that students can extend their understanding beyond the pages.

In addition to fantasy, the other genres addressed in this series are: mystery, romance, graphic novels, science fiction, and horror. Students who enjoy reading these genres will love learning more about the conventions and each book provides opportunities for teachers to pull out elements that will help improve their students' writing.

Common Core State Standards Connections:

Sixth Grade:

CCSS.ELA-Literacy W6.3 Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique, relevant descriptive details, and well-structured event sequences.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy W6.3aEngage and orient the reader by establishing a context and introducing a narrator and/or characters; organize an event sequence that unfolds naturally and logically.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy W6.3b Use narrative techniques, such as dialogue, pacing, and description, to develop experiences, events, and/or characters.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy W6.3c Use a variety of transition words, phrases, and clauses to convey sequence and signal shifts from one time frame or setting to another.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy W6.3d Use precise words and phrases, relevant descriptive details, and sensory language to convey experiences and events.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy W6.3e Provide a conclusion that follows from the narrated experiences or events.

Seventh Grade:

CCSS.ELA-Literacy W7.3 Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique, relevant descriptive details, and well-structured event sequences.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy W7.3a Engage and orient the reader by establishing a context and point of view and introducing a narrator and/or characters; organize an event sequence that unfolds naturally and logically.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy W7.3b Use narrative techniques, such as dialogue, pacing, and description, to develop experiences, events, and/or characters.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy W7.3c Use a variety of transition words, phrases, and clauses to convey sequence and signal shifts from one time frame or setting to another.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy W7.3d Use precise words and phrases, relevant descriptive details, and sensory language to capture the action and convey experiences and events.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy W7.3e Provide a conclusion that follows from and reflects on the narrated experiences or events.

Eighth Grade:

CCSS.ELA-Literacy W8.3 Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique, relevant descriptive details, and well-structured event sequences.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy W8.3a Engage and orient the reader by establishing a context and point of view and introducing a narrator and/or characters; organize an event sequence that unfolds naturally and logically.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy W8.3b Use narrative techniques, such as dialogue, pacing, description, and reflection, to develop experiences, events, and/or characters.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy W8.3c Use a variety of transition words, phrases, and clauses to convey sequence, signal shifts from one time frame or setting to another, and show the relationships among experiences and events.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy W8.3d Use precise words and phrases, relevant descriptive details, and sensory language to capture the action and convey experiences and events.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy W8.3e Provide a conclusion that follows from and reflects on the narrated experiences or events.

Currently, this title is available at Maple Street. I am considering purchasing the whole series for Maple Street. Would you like to see it at your middle school as well?

Flashback History

Flashback History is a set of nine titles that describe the lifestyles of people in different parts of the world throughout history. From farming to education, as well as art, religion, inventions, and how people spent their spare time, these books cover each topic briefly with many graphics that provide specific examples.

In each title, a timeline of events related to the specific group of people is presented, as well as a listing of events happening in other parts of the world at the same time. This is particularly useful to the middle school social studies curriculum as it will allow our students to connect new information to knowledge they have previously learned and to get a better perspective of the world as whole. In addition, vocabulary words are in bold text and a glossary and an index are provided at the end of each book.

Social Studies Curriculum Connections:

In the seventh grade Social Studies curriculum, the following scaffolding questions are presented for unit two:

What was life like in Ancient Egypt, India, and China?
What roles did government and religion play in shaping the culture of Ancient Egypt, India, and China?
What role does religion play in a civilization?

Using Flashback History: Egyptians, students can explore these questions as they relate to Egypt, thus gaining additional knowledge and understanding of the topics they are learning in class.

Common Core State Standard Connections:

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH-6-8.4 Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including vocabulary specific to domains related to history/social studies.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH-6-8.7 Integrate visual information (e.g., in charts, graphs, photographs, videos, or maps) with other information in print and digital texts.

In addition to Egyptians, this series explores Amazonian Indians, Aztecs, Celts, Greeks, Inuit, Plains Indians, Prehistoric People, and Vikings, so there are many additional connections to middle school studies throughout the series.

Flashback History books can be found at the Alternative Learning Program, Hillside Middle School, Maple Street Magnet, and *Milwood Magnet (*excluding Aztecs).

Six Questions of American History

The who, what, when, where, why, and how questions of American history are made much more interesting when put into an accessible format. The "Six Questions of American History" series from Lerner Publishing Group seeks to answer questions about the history of the United States in a fun and conversational way. Each of the 18 books in the series follows a similar format: basic background information about the events in question is laid out in an introduction. Then, each short chapter seeks to answer a question such as, "How did the delegates begin working together" (Who Wrote the U.S. Constitution?) or, "Who were the people trying to stop slavery?" (When Were the First Slaves Set Free During the Civil War?) The historical figures, places, and events are highlighted using paintings and photographs and key vocabulary terms are defined in boxes on each page. Many maps and documents are also placed as photographs in modern technological equipment such as cell phones and GPS devices to add interest to the graphics.

One of my favorite parts of this series is the final question in each book. The author always asks, "How do we know so much about . . ." each event and then discusses the primary sources that are available to help students and teachers better understand the concepts. Each book also includes a challenge to have students write their own story using the facts that they have learned, as well as a detailed timeline of the events discussed in the book.

Lerner has included esource downloads to accompany this series, including a series timeline (spanning events from 1492-1957) and teaching guide, which are available by creating a Lerner account.

These books can be used to promote critical thinking skills as students debate the "what if" questions that will inevitably come up when learning about the people and details surrounding the major turning points of American history. This series is the perfect complement to the eighth grade Social Studies GLCEs.

In addition, the titles in this series can be used to address several areas of the Common Core State Standards, including:

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.8.1 Cite the textual evidence that most strongly supports an analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.8.2 Determine a central idea of a text and analyze its development over the course of the text, including its relationship to supporting ideas; provide an objective summary of the text.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.8.3 Analyze how a text makes connections among and distinctions between individuals, ideas, or events (e.g., through comparisons, analogies, or categories).

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.8.8 Delineate and evaluate the argument and specific claims in a text, assessing whether the reasoning is sound and the evidence is relevant and sufficient; recognize when irrelevant evidence is introduced.

Copies of all 18 books in this series are currently available at Milwood Magnet School, Hillside Middle School, and Maple Street Magnet School. Search your school's online library catalog to  locate these resources.