Strategies
Brainstorming
Brainstorming, often used as a prewriting activity, is a technique to get out as many ideas as possible without any editing. This way, ideas are more likely to flow. This is the opposite of sitting in front of a blank page saying, "Oh, that's not a good idea. I can't use that one either, " and before you know it, you have writer's block. Brainstorming sessions can free one's mind from these self-critical and restricting thought processes.
Storyboarding
A storyboard is a term taken from filmmaking. Directors such as Hitchcock sometimes created storyboards prior to filming. These are drawings of scenes, frame by frame, as the camera will later film them. In the storyboards, camera angles, long shots, close-ups, etc. would all be evident. In the classroom, this technique allows students to, in a sense, make their own film. Students would draw a scene frame by frame as they imagine it.
Role Playing
Role Playing allows students the opportunity to take on the persona of a character, or to improvise the reactions of one character in a given scenario. These are done like mini-plays or skits. I ask students to volunteer to do these in front of the class. Often, once things get rolling, and some students think they can do better than what they've seen, even more reluctant students will volunteer to participate.
Character Mapping and Graphic Organizers
Character Maps are one form of many types of graphic organizers. A chart or other form of visual representation can help students who have difficulty conceptualizing ideas, or who are reluctant writers. The web has numerous examples of character maps and other graphic organizers that teachers can download for free, but I find it best to create my own so that it is more specifically addressing the concepts on which I want my students to focus. One example is on the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) web site at http://www.readwritethink.org/materials/ lit-elements/. At this site, you can create your own character map with blanks to be filled in by students at a later time, or have students complete one online themselves. At http://www.readwritethink.org/materials/ plot-diagram/, there is a cool graphic organizer that students can complete on the structure of a story.
Comments: