Encouraging Nonfiction Writing in School

Guest Post by Moira Rose Donohue

When I was a kid, I read fiction with two very limited exceptions: I read books about dogs and ballet. As an adult, it was pretty much the same story. So when I started writing for children, naturally I wrote only fiction.  Then, a number of years ago, I was asked to write a series of nonfiction books about civil rights figures in Virginia.  Hmmm.  I didn’t think there would be a lot of dogs or ballerinas involved. And it sounded a little like homework. 

I thought about it for a while. I didn’t mind the research. In fact, I was ready to learn new things. But it was the thought of note taking on small white index cards, one thought and source to a card, made me feel faint. I absolutely hated doing that in school. But fortunately, before I said, “NO,” I had an epiphany: I can take notes in a way that works for me.

I realize that piles of index cards with one or two lines on each one may be a great organizational tool for some. But for me, a visual learner, that stack, with all that wasted space, is totally overwhelming. If I could take notes in my tiny handwriting, on colored legal pads, with page numbers in the margins, I would be much happier. Then I could star things that I liked, use pink highlighter on facts I wanted to be sure to include and annotate others with cross-references. I could even color code things. It worked. In fact, I kept writing nonfiction and I haven’t looked back.

Writing nonfiction teaches the writer so much. So why not encourage your students to write nonfiction?

GETTING STARTED: Before setting children to the task of writing nonfiction, it’s important to have them read nonfiction. Next, pick topics that they can research easily. Writing about animals is a good starting place, because animals, in general, are less mired in conflicting information. Then consider moving into cultural and biographical subjects. I would suggest that you save history, especially long-ago history, for later, as it is hardest area in which to verify facts.

RESEARCH: This is a great time to teach children that not everything they read is true. It’s not about finding three sources that say the same thing anymore, like when I was a kid. And not all internet sites are reliable. Finally, sometimes it’s a question of saying “experts differ.”

NOTETAKING: Obviously it is crucial to keep track of where a particular bit of information comes from. But it doesn’t have to be done on white index cards. I would suggest providing children with several options.

OUTLINING: It’s a good idea to ask students to outline their stories, but only in a general way to give the story some structure. Then comes the really fun part. A writer I really respect told me that when you are researching a topic and come across something that makes you say, “Wow!” include it in your story. If it surprises you, it will surprise others as well. I encourage you to share this idea with your students. And then let them put pencil to paper!

  

BIO: Moira Rose Donohue has written over 20 nonfiction books for children.  The Invasion of Normandy from North Star Editions came out in January 2017. Dog on a Bike from National Geographic was released in February 2017. Moira offers a school program called "Writing Interesting Nonfiction" that she loves to present to elementary schools. And she still loves dogs and ballerinas. Visit  www.moirarosedonohue.net     

Writing with Animal Scientist Alexandra Horowitz

by Mary Quattlebaum

Many kids think that scientists work with beakers and microscopes, but Dr. Alexandra Horowitz is a scientist who works with her pets.  By carefully watching her dogs, she gains insight into how dogs in general behave and learn.  In a recent interview with the KidsPost section of the Washington Post, she talks about her newest book Inside of a Dog, a fascinating nonfiction account about the way dogs learn, how they descended from wolves, and why they behave as they do.

Below are writing lessons for the classroom or for individual writers ages 8 and up.  They are adapted from suggested activities in Dr. Horowitz’s Inside of a Dog.

EYES OPEN, PENS READY:  Some scientists study exotic animals—like pandas and lions--in the wild, but Dr. Horowitz thinks we can learn a lot about animals that are part of our everyday life, such as squirrels, sparrows, pigeons, and our pets.  Brainstorm a list with students of possible “everyday” animals. 

Classroom Writing #1:  Ask students to choose an animal at home and observe it closely for 15 minutes every day for a week.  Have them write down what the animal does during that time.  At the end of the week, ask students what they observed about their animal.  What did it do?  Why do they think the animal did that or behaved in that way?  Were students surprised by any specific behaviors?

Classroom Writing #2:  A dog is not a person in a furry suit.  Humans experience the world by seeing it; dogs smell it.  Imagine walking into a room and being extremely aware not of the lamp or the book on the floor but of the many smells therein.  Have students close their eyes and concentrate on their sense of smell.  What are all the different smells?  Have them try this in two different rooms (perhaps one could be a kitchen at home) and record what they smell.  They also might get down on their hands and knees and pretend to be a dog and move through the rooms for about 10 minutes, experiencing things at the dog’s level.  How does the room look/feel different to a dog than a human?

Ask students to do one of two writing projects: (1) Based on what they learned/recorded in Classroom Writing #1, they might choose a particular behavior they observed (sleeping in certain postures, eating a certain way, barking, tail wagging) and do some additional research to learn why this species of animal does this behavior.  The first paragraph might focus on what they learned by watching this one animal, with the second paragraph providing information on why this particular type/species of animal does this behavior.   Or (2) Based on what they noticed about smell/perspective in Classroom Writing #2, they might pretend to be a dog (or their dog) and write a story or poem in the first person (using “I”) from the dog’s point of view.  What do their dog-selves notice about the world?

www.maryquattlebaum.com

Finding Your Own Forest

by Karen Leggett Abouraya

This is the season to take a sketchpad or journal outside, walk a trail or just lie in the grass. Watching. Writing. Drawing.

That’s what Lulu Delacre did before writing ¡Olinguato De la A al la Z! Descubriendo el bosque nublado (Unveiling the Cloud Forest) . She traveled high up in the Andes Mountains of Ecuador to find the elusive little mammal, the olinguito. Lulu’s book was inspired by a Washington Post article about the discovery of the olinguito . Her journey to the cloud forest of Ecuador resulted in a fascinating, elegant bilingual book filled with a whole alphabet of wildlife – and many ideas to spark summer writing and drawing.

1.    Look at a newspaper and find an article that inspires you to write a short story or a poem. Illustrate your story.

2.    During your own walk outside, try to find something that begins with each letter of the alphabet. Take the first five words on your list and write a story using all the words. It might be a very silly story!

3.    If you are in a place where you can pick up leaves or twigs from the ground, bring some back to use in your illustrations. Lulu used real leaves to get the texture just right for the background in these pictures (now on display at Strathmore Mansion in Rockville, Maryland.

4.     Find the zoologist hiding on every page of ¡Olinguito!  Go to the library or use the Internet to find other people who work with animals. Choose one and write a paragraph about what that person does.  Maybe you can even interview someone who works in your community.

Need more ideas?  Here’s the Lee and Low Teacher’s Guide for ¡Olinguito!

You never know where an outdoor adventure could lead on paper and in your heart.  Lulu says she “came back from my trip amazed at the interconnectedness among all the life-forms in the cloud forest, and with a deep respect for what these rich places mean to humans and the earth.”

http://childrensbookguild.org/karen-leggett-abouraya

Writing Connections with Science

by Mary Quattlebaum

How to connect writing and science?  Both are important areas for learning for students of all ages.  At the same time that you teach one, you might look for opportunities to reinforce learning in the other.

The website of the publisher of my new nonfiction picture book, Mighty Mole and Super Soil (ages 4-9), features an article with activities related to the book (including making a dirt cake) and Common Core-related projects.

Here are two activities that connect writing with science:

DIRT LETTERS: The United Nations named 2015 the International Year of Soils, in honor of this important resource.  Soil is vital to the health of the planet, but most humans rarely think of it because they can’t see it.

Classroom discussion:  Have students look around the room and out the windows and brainstorm ways that soil is important to life.

Writing:  Young elementary-aged children might choose one of those ways and write and illustrate a letter thanking soil for what it has done/gives and how that particular child has benefitted.  Older children might send their letters to a congressman.

Sharing:  Letters might be posted on a classroom bulletin board, to help celebrate World Soil Day on December 5 (as well as the year-long celebration).   Also the class as a whole might plant a seed or transplant a houseplant into a special pot so that students can feel soil and experience it through many of their senses.  (Chad Wallace brings the underground world to vivid life through his illustrations for Mighty Mole and Super Soil, and students might look at them as they illustrate their letters.)

Playing with Font/Letter Shapes:  Patty Arnold, the book’s designer, worked carefully with the font so that the title and words in the main story look “gritty,” as if they’re fashioned from soil.  As Patty says, the shape and design of the words can help to create a picture and enhance the story.  Students might make some of their words (such as “soil”) look as if they’re made of dirt, perhaps by using a brown crayon when writing that one word.

ARGUE ON PAPER:  Mighty Mole and Super Soil grew out of an ongoing discussion with one of my brothers about moles.  I was Team Mole, appreciating the shy mammal in our backyard.  Moles mix and contribute to healthy soil.  My brother was Team No Mole, irritated by the ridges and molehills in his plush lawn.  He called the mole a pest!  Doing the research to persuade him otherwise gave me the idea to write this book, which I dedicated to him. J

Classroom discussion:  Ask students to list creatures that many people label as pests (specific types of animals or weeds, perhaps).   Why are they considered pests?  What do they do that disturbs humans?

Research and Prep:  Ask students to each choose one of these “pests” and to research its benefits (find at least three).  Then ask them to close their eyes and “become” this pesky animal or plant.  What does it see, hear, smell, taste, and feel?  What is its world like?

Writing:  Continue to pretend to be that pesky animal or plant, and write a letter from it to someone (the world at large, an exterminator, a mole catcher, human parent, etc.) to persuade that person that it is not a pest.  Why should this creature or plant NOT be destroyed or removed?  Have students work in pairs to peer review one another’s work and enhance the persuasiveness.

Share:  Ask for volunteers to share and encourage students to send their letters to the person or to a newspaper editor or organization.

www.maryquattlebaum.com

Writing Nonfiction--Look for the Superstar Moment

Guest Post by Moira Rose Donohue

Sometimes it can be hard for students to read nonfiction—and even harder to write it.  But nonfiction can be fun to both read and write if the author strives for the “superstar moment.”

I have written a number of educational biographies and two books for National Geographic that tell amazing but true animal stories.  And I have learned a simple, but helpful, lesson. After I finish my research, I identify the rock star moment.  Then I draft a general outline, making sure that somewhere between two-thirds and three-quarters of the way through the book, I will hit that big moment. 

For example, if I am writing about Vasco Núñez de Balboa, I need to make sure that his superstar moment—being the first European to see the Pacific Ocean from the New World—is the climax of the story.  Likewise, if I am writing about a kangaroo that rescues his injured owner, that has to happen towards the end of the story.  And if I am telling you about my summer vacation, I need to build up to the best part of it—the day I learned to swim alone.

This may sound a bit simplistic, but it’s a rule that gets easily forgotten when pencil hits paper.  Why?  Most nonfiction writers have learned a tremendous amount about the subject of their report or book.  They want to share it, so they cram in all kinds of data and lose the sense of story and climax that holds the reader’s interest.  That means that bits of information, even really fun ones like a dramatic fight with another explorer over a girl, have to be jettisoned if they don’t advance the story towards the superstar moment.

Next time you assign a biography writing project, or even a “What I Did This Summer” essay, remind your young writers to identify the “superstar moment” and edit their stories so that they take the reader up the mountain to superstardom.  Hopefully that will put them on the road to superstar writing.

BIO: Moira Rose Donohue is the author of Parrot Genius from National Geographic; 13 biographies from State Standards Publishing; and Alfie the Apostrophe and Penny and the Punctuation Bee from Albert Whitman.  Coming soon-- another explorer biography (de Soto) and Kangaroo to the Rescue from National Geographic in Spring, 2015!

NOT YOUR ORDINARY ANIMAL STORY

by Jacqueline Jules

We all know that kids love animals and animals are frequently a topic they choose to write about. Most often kids write about their pets, particularly the day that special dog or cat came into their lives. While we all enjoy a sweet Christmas puppy story, they can also be tedious. Challenge your students to imagine a more exciting scenario involving an animal.

For example, a few years back, when I had just started teaching at a new elementary school, I attended a mandatory teachers’ meeting where safety issues were addressed. The assistant principal lectured us to be more careful about the recess door.

“Remember what happened last spring,” she said. “A teacher was holding the door open for her class to file through. At the end of the line, a squirrel walked right into the building.”

Everyone grinned—last year’s teachers who had been there to see the squirrel running through the halls and the new teachers who were just imagining the pandemonium. But my smile was the widest of all. Hearing about a squirrel loose in the school had unlocked my writing block. For months, I had been trying to think of a way to begin a third Zapato Power chapter book. I needed a way for my character, Freddie Ramos, to show off his super-powered sneakers in the first few pages. Now I had it! Freddie could chase a fast and furry gray creature through Starwood Elementary.

 “I never thought I’d need to save my school from a squirrel,” Freddie thinks. “But any hero job is a job for me.” Zoom! Zoom! Zapato! Freddie’s off, following the screams of students shouting “SQUIRREL! THAT WAY!”

On several occasions, I have read students the first chapter of Zapato Power: Freddie Ramos Zooms to the Rescue and then asked them to imagine what it would be like if a squirrel or other animal was running through the halls of their school. It always produces a good discussion, resulting in fun story ideas.

Another possibility is to use the song “Mary Had a Little Lamb” and ask students to write about an animal that might follow them to school. Encourage students to consider horses, goats, cows, and a variety of farm animals who might appear at school. A picture book that might inspire some creativity on this theme is Book! Book! Book! by Deborah Bruss, a story about a pig, horse, goat, and hen who visit a public library.  

The image of an animal in a school or other public setting where animals generally don’t belong is inherently funny. This writing prompt can also give students the opportunity to describe more movement and mayhem than you would see in the ordinary how-I-got-my-puppy-story. At the very least, the silly scenario should elicit some writing workshop giggles.

www.jacquelinejules.com

HOW TO GROW A NATURALIST

by guest blogger Nancy Viau

A naturalist is someone who loves and appreciates nature and who studies plants and animals as they live in nature. Naturalists often write about their observations in journals, magazines, and non-fiction books. I chose to pen my observations in the form of a picture book, Look What I Can Do!. My goal was to have children see a variety of animals in their natural habitat, accomplishing tasks and overcoming challenges that are part of growing up. Illustrator Anna Vojtech has done a wonderful job bringing my words to life and creating lush spreads filled with color and depth.

What follows is a very basic science activity with writing tie-ins (for grades K-2). Its purpose is to increase awareness and respect for the animals in our immediate surroundings.  

Introduction
Train your young students in the art of observation by practicing with common objects. For this activity, they should use only two senses: seeing and hearing. Allowing children to use only sight and sound as reference points helps them to stay on task. Plus, later on, when observing animals, students may be too far to smell them, and of course, they shouldn’t be encouraged to touch them!

Put a pencil on every desk.

Using the questions below, have students create a list (oral or written) based on what they see and hear.

           What color is the object?

What shape is it?

            How big is the object?

(Big as a______; Long as a _______; Fat as a _______, etc.)

                          What is the object’s placement in the environment?

                          Does the object make a sound of its own?                           

Repeat with three other objects: a watch, a cup of water, a crumpled paper.

Research

Students research three animals that may be found in the immediate area of the school. They note color, size, what they eat, their homes, families, and habits.

Activity

The easy part:

Students choose two to three favorite animals.

Each student receives a notebook (Naturalist’s Journal) and pencil. A towel or rug square to sit on comes in handy, too.

Time to head outside! Students find a place where they are likely to spot one or more of the animals they have picked.

The hard part:

Students sit and wait, very quietly. Students should not coax any animal out with snacks or noises.

The writing:

When an animal is spotted, students observe and make notes based on sight and sound only.  

They are not to make up stories (yet).

A sketch is also appropriate.

Back in the Classroom

Share and compare findings.

Make a classroom collage using sketches or cut-out pictures of animals observed.

Create a map of the observation area. Students add in their animals.

Discuss non-fiction and fiction, and how facts and research are used in both.

Children use their detailed observations of animals to write each type of story. Encourage use of descriptive language with sight and sound elements.

Corresponding Lessons

             Five Senses

             Habitats

Onomatopoeia

Communities/Neighborhoods

Introduction to Scientific Method 
              

Nancy Viau is the author of three nature-inspired books: Look What I Can Do! (Nominated for the Keystone to Reading Book Award), Storm Song, and Samantha Hansen Has Rocks in Her Head. Her Fall 2014 title, City Street Beat, invites readers on a toe-tappin’ musical journey from the country to the city. When not writing, Nancy can be found hiking, biking, or visiting schools across the country and around the world (via Skype). Visit her at www.NancyViau.com

Writing Connections with Erica Perl

by Mary Quattlebaum

I’m delighted to welcome Erica Perl to Pencil Tips!  Erica is the award-winning author of many picture books and middle-grade and YA novels and, through her work with the nonprofit First Book an enthusiastic advocate for literacy.  Below Erica shares a classroom prompt that helps promote a rich pre-literacy environment and gets kids interacting with her latest picture book King of the Zoo (Orchard, 2013, $16.99), with lively illustrations by Jackie Urbanovic. (Visit www.ericaperl.com for information on other titles.)

Erica, I’m a big fan of your Ninety-three in My Family, with its deft rhymes and cast of funny critters.  King of the Zoo also has kid-pleasing rhyme and animals.  What are some of the challenges you faced with this picture book?

This picture book started out as a story called “Zootube” (a title that ultimately proved to be a non-starter because the word has, er, inappropriate connotations online… trust me on this!).  It was about a zoo chameleon named Carlos who desperately wanted a webcam for his enclosure so he could be a star like the other animals.  My biggest challenge was that the webcam plot point distracted from the character’s main existential crisis: being noticed and appreciated for who he was.  So I revised the book substantially and developed a new idea: that Carlos felt snubbed because he was no longer the one and only “king of the zoo.”  I was thrilled when Jackie Urbanovic, my fabulous illustrator, tipped her hat to the book’s origins: look closely and you’ll see that the little girl who helps Carlos feel validated takes a digital photo of him and shares it with her grandma.  Carlos got his wish to be on camera after all!

Thanks for sharing your process.  You remind us that often a first attempt (or even a second or third) needs some finessing and fine-tuning before it’s “book-worthy.”  I so enjoy the playful energy of King of the Zoo. Do you have a writing prompt that connects with it? 

King of the Zoo is a book for preschoolers, so the ways I get them excited about books and writing involve actual exercise!  When I read the book aloud, I invite students to play the parts of the animals in the book – hopping like kangaroos, stomping like elephants, scratching like monkeys, and so on – as well as chiming in for the book’s rhyming refrain (“Not again, the [name of animal] too?  The king of the zoo is ME, that’s who!”).  I then invite the students to make their own crowns, draw their favorite zoo animals, and write or tell reasons why each animal should be the king of the zoo.

Well, that sounds like a hopping-stomping-scratching good time!  And you have another book coming out soon—right?  Is it as rollicking?

My next picture book is called Goatilocks and the Three Bears, illustrated by Arthur Howard (June 2014).  It is the story of a (goat) kid named Goatilocks who visits the house of a family of bears and, well, makes herself at home… (burp!).  I hope lots of (human) kids will devour it, too!

What fun!  Your young readers and I look forward to meeting Goatilocks.  Thanks for joining us at Pencil Tips!

www.maryquattlebaum.com