Reading to Write

Reading to Write

Some teachers and parents complain that their students or children cannot write. Big problem! 

Guess what? This is a secret so please keep it confidential. Some teachers and some parents don't know how to write either!

The solution is simple. Read first, write later. Children and adults who read widely are usually well-informed, have a wide vocabulary, and have an instinctive understanding of grammar.

The bridge that connects Reading and Writing is a writing class in which a teacher who knows (1) how to write and (2) how to teach writing allows the students to stumble and fall. But the teacher gives constructive feedback and cheers the students to get back on their feet. Then run and sprint!

Bella's writing ability at this point is at the beginners' level. But she loves to read! 

She loves to read so much that she reads her picture books, Bible stories, math books, etc. long after everyone has gone to bed.

She loves reading aloud and acting out different scenes. She had a lot of fun reading this particular book:

http://trellian.cachefly.net/girl_images/bigarticles/whosafraidbadbook.jpg

Written by Lauren Child, it is a post-modern picture book. No, I didn't tell Bella and the other kids that they were reading a post-modern book. That's the amazing and interesting thing about it. They took to the book like fish takes to water!

Free Writing Output by Bella

"I Was Lost in the Big Z O O!"

by Ysabella Anne C. Asuncion

April   , 2015

"I was lost in the big zoo." This was the writing prompt which I gave the kids for their first free writing activity. This was what Bella wrote:

I was lost in the big zoo when we went there one summer. I kept looking at the koalas until I relized (sic) that Mom, Dad, and Lucas were out of sight. I felt sad and started to cry. The animals stared at me. I cried louder and louder till my Dad found me.

Bella's Acrostic Poem

B E L L A

by Ysabella Anne C. Asuncion

May 1, 2015

B - eautiful

E - xcellent Singer

L - ovely Lady

L - oving Dawter (sic)

A - spiring Artist

Note:  I keep a child's "invented spelling" to document his/her development. In this case, Bella invented "dawter" based on the sound of  the word. Makes sense, doesn't it?

Mother's Day

by 

Katherine Caye C. Pablo

May 1, 2015

We read a Mother's Day poem, together with other poems. When it was time for the children to write, I didn't tell them to write a Mother's Day poem. When I was a kid, I always felt "pressured" to write one and I thought whatever I wrote lacked sincerity.

The poem which Kat wrote is straight from the heart, I'm sure. She wrote it on lined pad paper, then she drew a heart on two sheets of lined pad paper. She asked me to help her cut the hearts. Then she taped them together which gave her a heart-shaped card. And last, she cut what she had written and taped it on the inner heart.


Mother's Day is a 
time for Moms everywere (sic) 
too (sic) rest, Have fun and enjoy 
their family time together.
Especially you, Mom.
So please take a brake! (sic)

Putting Together a Story

by 

Katherine Caye C. Pablo

April 18, 2015

I gave the kids a mini-lecture on how to put together a story:

1.There must be a setting in which the main characters are introduced. 

2. Then a problem crops up which the characters try to solve. 

3. Finally, the problem is solved and the story ends.

This was what Kat wrote: 

Taeyon breaks her leg and cant (sic) perform in the concert unles (sic) she rests her legs for 3 days. Then she rested for 3 days and is able to perform in the concert in the Philippine Arena in Malolos.

I told Kat that her readers need to know how the story began. What is the setting? Who are the other main characters? What brought about Taeyon's accident? 

Kat wrote two more paragraphs:

Taeyon took her dog for a walk.Then she got hungry. She looked for a food store. When she found one she went their (sic). While buying, Taeyon's dog ran away.

She chased after her dog and fell down. When she fell, she twisted her leg and went to the hospital.

I was impressed with Kat's ability to put together her story's beginning, middle, and end. But she began with the end. Don't we all do that sometimes? 

Lovely City

by

Katherine Caye C. Pablo

April 18, 2015

Kat is Sam's younger sister. Kat's 1st free writing output was very short. It was probably her first time to do free writing. This one, her second free writing output, was much longer. She seems to be frugal with written words. (definitely not when she has someone to talk to!)  Take note of the nobility of her innocent vision. Ah, if only...

In a lovely city, their (sic) was a big pile of dump. One day, a child said let's clean up the dump. The next morning, people came to the dump and started cleaning up the dump. The dump started getting smaller until it's clean and they turned it into a park!

They Need Help!

                                                                 by
                                  Samantha Kaye C. Pablo
                                              May 1, 2015

Sam wrote this poem in class, in response to poems with a social message, notably Janet S. Wong's "Speak up." 


              Looking outside my window
       I saw a boy outside. I checked
       what he was doing. A trash can
       did I see. He picked a can 
       from a noodle soup treat.

             A bottle with no water.
       He opened it right up, shook
       it toward his dry lips, on the drooling
       hungry mouth. I sighed and wondered.

             What other things does he do, to try
       to live every day. Imagine all the food he
       eats from a dirty garbage can. All the heat
       they go through, to search and beg for food.

              They need to go to church, they'll 
        love it there. But how can I convince them?
                        How can I help? 

Acrostic Poems

                                                                  Samantha Kaye
                                                                               
                                                                                  by
                                                                   Samantha Kaye C. Pablo
                                                                            May 1, 2015

S    - sane
A   - awesome
M  - math wizard
A   - alpha
N   - nice
T   - talkative
H  - hopeful 
A  - approachable


K - K-popper
A - artistic
Y - young
E - e.l.f.


                                          KATHERINE    

                                                   by
                                                               Katherine Caye C. Pablo
                                                                         May 1, 2015


K - K-pop
A - adorable
T - tearific
H - honorable
E - excelent (sic)
R - remarkable
I  - interesting
N - neet (sic)
E - exciting                              

A Concert of My Dreams

                                                                            by
                                     Samantha Kaye C. Pablo
                                              April 18, 2015

This was Sam's second Free Writing Output. There was no writing prompt.  

A free writing output is never corrected by a teacher. The objective is not to write an error-free composition, but to come up with an idea -- a big one, a new one, or even a small one, which the writer may pursue at his/her pleasure. Or may be throw away. This free writing output by Sam, written in class, without any interruption, and under time limit, is way too good to throw away. I'm sure you'll enjoy it.

"We're finally here!"  I said trying to keep my voice down. 

"I'm so happy!" my cousin said as we entered the giant Philippine Arena.

I imagined my Dad wanting to run away from the concert I always had looked forward to. 

"Daddy, which door are we?" my sister said feeling so excited.

"Looks like there are no souvenir shops," my Dad said.

"How about that one?" I said.

"What are they selling?" my Dad said.

"Shirts," I replied. "Can we look around?" I asked. 

"Ok," my Dad replied.

Unfortunately, we only found a shop selling CDs of Girls Generation. We bought 2 CDs and went to Door no. 10. 

"Yes!" I screamed. We entered the door and went to our seats. 

Moments later, "I need to go to the comfort room," my sister said, so we all had to come. While my sister was in the cubicle, my cousin heard the announcement and told me the concert is about to start. We kept knocking on her cubicle door, rushing her to go faster.

She finally came out, and we ran to our Dad. So then, my Dad went to the comfort room and told us to stay. Then a stampede of Koreans and Filipinos rushed to the door. That's when we also went to our door and back to our seats. 

The show finally started and I enjoyed listening to all K-Pop songs, especially SNSD. It was THE BEST DAY EVER!  

I Was Lost in the Big Z00!

                                                                            by 
                                     Samantha Kaye C. Pablo
                                     Free Writing, April 11, 2015
       

Free writing is an activity which allows young and grown-up writers to "let it go."  It's a brainstorming technique if one is blank. It's a trick which allows a writer to write freely, without worrying about structure, grammar, vocabulary, spelling, and even the language(s) used. One can definitely switch from English to Tagalog or Cebuano or Ilongo... This free writing activity was prompt-driven: "I was lost in the big zoo." 


I was lost in the big zoo. It was already dark and scary. I tried to trace my trail back but I ended up in the same place I started. 

The time was going slowly, then I heard a loud BANG! That's when I figured the gates were locked and I was stuck inside. I screamed, "HELP!"  But no one replied. 

It became darker and darker by the moment. I noticed a sound and looked back. No one was there. I suddenly saw a huge shadow on the zoo wall. It grew and grew until I saw a lion and a tiger. I saw it look at me.

Then they started running after me. Then I pinched myself and woke up, only to find myself tucked in my bed and safe. But as I took off my covers, I found a stuffed toy tiger and lion. My eyes widened, then I went back to sleep.

"Morning and Evening Skies"

The picture collage of morning and evening skies above is a sample collection of Alyssa Jamela Dadayan's acryllic paintings. She's a competitive swimmer who trains for hours and hours, then relaxes by painting. Sometimes, she also writes poems. She was a former student of mine; and I am delighted that she's given me the permission to post this picture in this blog.

When I Was Seven

by Paolo Kalalo

(With permission to republish from the author; originally published on FB, April 22, 2015. He's a former student of Ms. Anna Cajator Asuncion. 

This is an excellent example of a narrative, autobiographical poem.)

When I was 7
I went to a new school
they made fun of my shirt
I thought myself a fool

My happy self was gone
You couldn’t deny it.
Starting that day,
I became a little quiet.

When I was 13,
My family moved to a new country,
So much I wasn’t used to,
Everything new around me.

Still that quiet kid on the surface,
Peachy isn’t a word I would use.
School was shitty, homesickness too
I hated life’s abuse.

One day, to my expense
A bully had a good time
That was the day
I tried to end my life.

As you can tell,
That plan didn’t quite work,
So instead I found a hobby,
An escape for a recluse.

Little did I know,
What I did to escape,
Would one day become
My little red cape.

Slowly I found out
I wasn’t all that weak,
And in time I rediscovered
The power to speak.

Slowly but surely,
I was getting out of my shell,
All the more having the courage,
to love myself.

The more I lived
The more that was said
The more I started to think
“Hey, I’m not half bad.”

Time goes on,
I make my fair share of friends,
High school is over,
But this is hardly the end

That little red cape,
Which stayed with me throughout
Made me a survivor,
and full of love, Inside and out.

In a short amount of time
I found my rhythm and rhyme,
I found quality people,
And can now call them mine.

I love the life I live
And the person I have become
Every day is a gift
And I’m glad to have this one.

Now the point of this piece
Isn’t to recap the past,
It’s about saying something
That’ll hopefully last

Obstacles are made to be overcome
Barriers are meant to be broken.
You decide your own potential
With every action done, every word spoken.

From someone that thought 
he was a failure to a fighter,
Broken to alive
Know that you're priceless,
Don’t fall for doubt’s lies.

So are you worth life, love
and all the endless stars?
To keep it short, simple, and sweet
The answer is yes, you are.

Stellaluna? Stellaluna! Who are you?

3rd Session
Creative Writing Class for Kids
April 25, 2015
R.E.A.D Tutorial Center
read1618@yahoo.com
09328872662
09178352662

https://encrypted-tbn3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcT_2IOXyQPy-ZLE6bM7cvkjRm-Bwwf7-bkjqsgN54I60SryKxUk

StellaLuna is a BAT?

http://www.storylineonline.net/stellaluna/


Good morning! Rise and shine!

We'll begin our third session by watching a read-aloud of Stellaluna. Then we'll do a dramatic reading ourselves. 


The biggest task of the day is making a dummy of a picture storybook. 

First, we'll talk about lines, shapes, colors, and other visual elements. Then we'll look at several picture storybooks to understand that big concept called, "lay-out."

And then, we'll do a class dummy of a picture book.

Finally, each of us will make our own picture storybooks.

Who knows? One of us is the next Eric Carle!

Kids Deconstruct Anthony Browne's "Voices in the Park"

2nd Session
Creative Writing Class for Kids
Saturday, April 18, 2015

We read. We wrote. We chatted. We listened. We laughed. We fought. We cried. We made peace.

Lucas was very firm about making peace. No matter what the problem was, his Ninja warriors and generals must make peace in the end. 

Our second session last Saturday, April 18, 2015 was more than just a creative writing class. It was a lesson on empathy with the different voices in Anthony Browne's park and most of all, with the different voices of the children in the class.

We began our session with a 10-minute sustained silent reading. It was Kat who chose to read Voices in the Park. Afterwards, she chose the last frame as her favorite picture and WOW sentence.

"When I got home I put the flower in some water, and made Dad a nice cup of cocoa."  

(Note: If you haven't read Voices in the Park, do find a copy.)

Kat definitely doesn't know about last frames. She made an instinctive choice. I asked her why she liked the last frame. She told me, "Well, it was really nice of Charles to give Smudge a flower. And it was nice of Smudge to put the flower in some water and to make cocoa for her Dad."

I  asked again, "What does the flower symbolize?" I was afraid that symbolize was too big a word. 

But Kat repeated the word and said, "I think the flower symbolizes that there will be another flower." 

I stopped asking questions by saying, "So there's hope."

And Kat said nonchalantly, "Ah-huh."

Charles, the third voice in the story, is a lonely boy gorilla. He's the son of the first voice, a domineering Mrs. Gorilla. Smudge is a happy girl gorilla. The fourth voice, she's the daughter of Mr. Gorilla, the second voice.

To check on whether the kids were getting the hang of the story, I asked why the title of the book is Voices in the Park. 

"Whose is the first voice?" I prompted. Lucas promptly said, "Mrs. Gorilla!" And Kat said, "The second voice is Mr. Gorilla."

"So why is the title Voices in the Park?"

Sam said, "It shows the different sides of the story."

I'll tell you about our crying episode next time. 

Speaking to Learn: Kat and Lucas Chats, Laughs, Problem-Solves, Negotiates, etc.!

The children had been assigned to write and illustrate a comic strip. Individually. 

It was the first session of our Creative Writing Class for Kids last April 11, 2015. But Kat and Lucas wanted to work together. And they got the go-signal to do so.

Are they disobedient? Disruptive? Of course not. They're creative!

But they were "noisy."  The other kids who were working individually and quietly were irritated. Solution? I told Kat and Lucas to work in another corner of the room. Not a solution; they were still "noisy."

Better solution? I asked someone to lift the kiddy table and take it just outside our classroom which has a glass door. 

So we all worked in peace. 

Kat and Lucas actually had a blast while working together. They chatted away, laughed, solved their little clashes and their characters' problems, negotiated, divided the work between them, and completed four frames with dialogue and color illustration!

Lesson Learned? Some young children's learning style is cooperative and interactive. They speak to learn.

Ever Heard of the School for Good and Evil?

When Sam told me that her favorite book is School for Good and Evil, I knew there's something new for me to learn. I asked Sam to tell me about her favorite book.

It seems that in that school, witches go to the School for Evil and princesses go to the School for Good. But one witch and one princess went to the wrong school.

Quite an intriguing proposition, isn't it?

Sam will bring her favorite book on our second session, Saturday, April 18, 2015. 

Our Creative Writing Class will have a really interesting session this Saturday. See you all! 

What If Cinderella Met the Holy Family?

As the children writers were imagining a plot, Bella blurted out that her favorite character is Cinderella and she wants to make her "fall" into her book of Bible stories, just like Herb fell into the Goldilocks book with the three bears.

One child said, "That's impossible! There are no princes and queens and kings in the Bible."

Another child said, "Oh, yes, there are. Queen Esther, for example."

I said, "That's going to be really interesting! Cinderella "falling" into the Bible."

By the way, Herb is the main character in the book, "Who's afraid of the big bad book?" Herb "fell" into Goldilock's book and Goldilocks chased him away!

Would the Holy Family chase away Cinderella?

The Fab Four Goes to the Zoo!

Sam, Kat, Bella and Lucas went to the zoo on Saturday, April 11, 2015.  The zoo is located at the Bernabe Ninja Headquarters.  They were expecting lots of fun but they got lost... They fell into a book, a BIIIIIIIIIIG bad book!

What happened to the children?  What did they do to get back home?

Simple.  They wrote a rescue appeal and drew a path back home to their waiting dads and moms.

Welcome Summer 2015! Let's Write Away!

Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Book? This is the title of a post-modern children's picture book written by Lauren Child.

Do you like the title? 

Is there a big bad book?

Why would anyone be afraid of the big bad book?

It's just a book!

If it's a big bad book, then it's not for children!

Are there bad books?

Well, let's find out tomorrow, Saturday, April 11. It's Session 1 of the Creative Writing Class for Kids. It will be held at R.E.A.D. Tutorial Center at 91 Bernabe St., Annex 1618, Better Living Subdivision, Paranaque City. 

(For details, call or text Teacher Anna C. Asuncion at mobile: 0932 8872662; 0917 835 2662.) 

Session begins at 9:00 a.m.; ends at 12 noon. You may bring your home-made "baon" (snacks), in addition to your notebook, pen or pencil, and crayons.

See you!