Starting Sentences - Hooking the Reader

At the beginning of the year we write about ourselves. All children can write about themselves and or their dreams.

To encourage them to write I show them some story starters, these can be used to start paragraphs or sentences but the hook the reader and help to keep the reader interested through the story.

 

We had a lot of fun writing a paragraph at a time using different hooks to keep the momentum of the story going.

Writing interesting Stories - Paragraph Starters

At the beginning of the year we write about ourselves. All children can write about themselves and or their dreams.

To encourage them to write I show them some story starters, these can be used to start paragraphs or sentences but the hook the reader and help to keep the reader interested through the story.

 

We had a lot of fun writing a paragraph at a time using different hooks to keep the momentum of the story going.

Making Christmas Cards

I usually make a range of Christmas Cards early in October. Providing me with a selection to hand out to colleagues, friends and family at that festive time of year.

This year it was December before I knew it and I was making cards with my class. We used a range of left of pieces from previous years and I posted samples that I had been their inspiration. The challenge was the children then had to make their own version mixing up the ideas.

The range help to cater for all the different abilities in our hub and the mixing of ideas gave children who I had worked with before the opportunity to challenge themselves. Although this year I did very little to help them. Once they had made 3 cards they could go a step further and try one that also left the recipient with a tree decoration.


Everyone found this a little trickier keeping all the pieces still, trying to hold the ribbon straight, giving yourself enough ribbon to go around the first bead and then add a little more to create the illusion of a tree. But we did it we made 25 in an hour. Most people start from the bottom of the tree we started from the top using a double over hand knot so the decoration could hang on the tree.

We then pushed the string and knot through a star shaped bead (to hide the knot).

Each turn we added more ribbon. After about 8 beads we stopped. and tied them off using 2 single over hands..

The finished product on silver cards made the decoration stand out. We we attached using double sided tape, so it was easy to pull off.

Then I challenged myself, I love the idea of love hope joy and peace all through the year but at Christmas time especially to I thought how to best represent this. I looked at a lovely wooden decoration with a heart, anchor and cross that I received when I was younger. To get the heart and anchor to stay in shape I would need a wire (which I didn't have). So I  tried the cross.

CRL - City Rail Link

Following the brief sent from the City Rail Link Project under the theme ‘Imagine where you’d like to go on a train’.  We could use any art medium (paint, felt-tips, etc) we wish but they wanted the artworks to be bright.

We have been working to create different destinations we would like to visit possibly by train.  we experimented with pastels and paint then water colour pencils which was the final medium we decided to go with.

Here is our mock up of the possible final piece...

 

Art Alley Update

Originally the fence was green on one side and grey on the other and many of our students come through the alley to get to school. Once our new school build has been completed this alley will be close to the visitors car park and so we though we would brighten it up.

Here you can see us starting to make improvements using stripes, the colours from the new school logo.

Plot more than telling a Good Yarn.

Reality often seems to have no rhyme or reason in fiction you can shape it, giving events patterns and meaning.

Classic Story Structure

Classic Story structure includes the beginning, the middle and an end.

Beginning

The beginning is where you introduce the audience to the setting, characters and the situation. It often ends with a something catchy to draw the reader in. A dramatic turning point, upsetting the routine everyday things (status quo) and sets the story in motion. The beginning of the crisis/dilemma or problem forces the characters to grow, changing direction and take action.

Middle

This is the longest part of the story.Characters pass through a series of events, complications or obstacles that increase the intensity. This causes tension to rise and fall building toward the BIG climax.

Climax happens after a dark point for the protagonist, pulling them self to triumph and employing what they have learnt, or it could be a downfall when they are feeling at the highest point.

The goal the hero is trying to reach could be irrelevant, and they may find the real goal is beyond what they first thought. E.g. The student may want to get past the bully and arrive at school. The ultimate goal could be to achieve at school but this isn't happening when you can't get to school safely. This realisation is the  mid point of the story not the moment of climax, a shift in direct creating more tension.

End

The end is a short section the pulls all the pieces after the climax to together, tying up lose ends.

Character Arcs

This is for more able writers, as they begin to show how a character grows through the story both emotionally and possibly physically (Grows from being 5 to 7 years of age). This change is called the character arc.

In the beginning of the story the character doesn't know things about himself. The character may think they are not strong, through events the character may realise to be strong doesn't mean you have to have muscles. The first turning point shakes up their beliefs helping the story and character to change course.

The middle of the story is the learning and growing section of the story for the character building to the climax. Where the character uses what they know and have learnt.

By the end the character has grown and changed their is a new equilibrium, way or the character could be defeated and completely disillusioned.

Of course the characters path should not be easy, they need to struggle toward the goal as each new challenge raises the stakes.

Painting Alley Fence 2 - Art Alley

Phase one 

Started last year when we designed murals for four of the panels and column pictures for the individual boards on the wooden fence. This took a long time as the group wanted detailed pictures.

Phase two

We also did in 2017 undercoating the fence so we had a white platform to paint onto so our murals were the colours we wanted.

Phase three: 

We started this year painting the panels so we could display what we as an art group liked, favourite foods, places, patterns, labels, games, and even family. Unfortunately we then had a mishap with the fence and we had to redo some areas.

Phase Four: 

We wore our cool new uniforms to school but got changed into an old set of clothes, some of us brought our old uniform. No way did we want paint on our new uniforms.

Krystal Leigh  - My fingers ended up blue, and I seemed to have more paint on me that on the fence. Strangely my teacher wasn't too happy. But I had fun. When we added the dark blue around paint splashed it started to look much better.

Demetrius P - I thought it was cool painting the poles red, but we had to be careful not to get it on people or what they were painting and that was not easy.

Amelia - I was painting the background for the hibiscus flower in green. It was cool to see the flower take shape even through we weren't painting the flower yet. We took our time to make sure the paint was in the right place, the boys seemed to be in a hurry.

Steven - I enjoyed spending the whole day painting and not working. I painted the poles red there seemed to be a lot of them and we still have 3 more to do. It was even better when Auntie Jess came and helped us.

Shawn - Painting the fence was fun as we didn't have to do school work. When Auntie Jess helped us she thought it would be funny to paint her hand yellow and add it to my shirt. The worst part was when we painted and the drips went in the wrong place.