MINI LESSONS

Mini Lesson Merlin and the Dragons by Jane Yolen

Craft No more said!
Connect
Remember when we were reading Merlin and the Dragons earlier during our read
aloud? Remember how we call that reading like a reader and how we are working on
strategies to read like a writer? Well today you are going to have a chance! Let's re-read a
few pages of her book to see if we can find out what makes her writing interesting. Here's
a hint! It has something to do with how the characters talk to one another. *Read the
pages about Welsh stonecutters and the following two pages* What did you notice about
the dialogue between the characters?
Talk about how the author strayed away from the word said and used words like
bellowed, called, roared, asked. Re-read the following examples: Your work is
worthless, he bellowed at the Welshmen. & Vortigern's rage could not be
contained. He called for his magicians. There is some dark Welsh magic here.
Find out the cause. My tower must stand. & Furious, Vortigern turned to his
soldiers. Gold to whomever brings me such a child, he roared. Then re-read the
examples with the word said
Do you see how using words other than said gives more emotion and feeling to the story?
Teach
Now, let me show you how I might change one of the sentences in this book to use a
word other than said. I am a boy without a father, true, Emrys whispered. But I am no
demon's son. You have been listening to the words of frightened children. Do you see

how using whispered added emotion into the story? Well, lets give you a shot at it!
Active/Engagement
-students will have personal reading books with them during this time
Now how about you open your personal reading books and find a sentence that uses the
word said. Can you think of a word to replace it? Think hard! (allow 1 minute) Alright,
turn to a partner and read your sentence using the word said and then using the word you
replaced said with (allow 2 minutes). Now, doesn't that sound so much better?
Link
Alright writers, today when you are writing I would like you to try the No More Said!
approach that
Jane Yolen used in Merlin and the Dragons.
Share

Mini Lesson Raising Yoder's Barn by Jane Yolen

Craft Vivid Verbs
Connect
Remember when we were reading Raising Yoder's Barn earlier during our read aloud?
Remember how we call that reading like a reader and how we are working on strategies
to read like a writer? Well today you are going to have a chance! Let's re-read a few
pages of her book to see if we can find out what makes her writing interesting. Here's a
hint! It has something to do with the words she uses. *Read the first three pages* What
do you think the author is doing to make the writing more interesting?
Talk about the authors use of vivid verbs and give examples from those pages swung,
crept, blazing, grasped, scudded, shot, struck

Teach
Now let's think of a sentence with some not-so vivid verbs... Oh! I have an example, I
walked along the shore. That sounds kind of boring right? Well, what about this, I
scurried along the sandy shore. Sounds much better, right?
Active/Engagement
students will have writers notebooks with them

Now how about you give it a try. Can you come up with a sentence about your favorite
summertime activity using vivid verbs? Write it down in your writers notebook, you
might want it later! (allow 1 minute) Now turn to a partner and share your sentence about
your favorite summertime activity using vivid verbs (allow 2 minutes)
Link
Alright writers, today when you are writing I would like you to try the Vivid Verbs
approach that
Jane Yolen used in Raising Yoder's Barn.
Share

Mini Lesson The Mary Celeste: An Unsolved Mystery from History by Jane Yolen
Craft Lined Paper & Sticky Notes focusing on the sticky note
Connect
Remember when we were reading The Mary Celeste: An Unsolved Mystery from
History earlier during our read aloud? Remember how we call that reading like a reader
and how we are working on strategies to read like a writer? Well today you are going to
have a chance! Let's re-read a few pages of her book to see if we can find out what makes
her writing interesting. Here's a hint! Don't focus on the words, but on the pages

themselves. *read first few pages, including sticky notes and lined paper* Now, what do
you see that we have never seen in a book before? Thats right, friends! Little blurbs on
sticky notes and lined paper, now lets go back a quick second and see just what those
sticky notes were for.
Talk about how the sticky notes give definitions to different words from the story that
will help them better understand the story.
Teach
I will have sticky notes with me during this mini-lesson

Now, I am going to read an excerpt from Raising Yoder's Barn. Remember that from the
other day and how we used it to think like a writer and use vivid verbs? Well, it is going
to help me again! *read The neighbor men came to walk around the cellar hole, talking
in soft vices about fires.* Some of you may not know what a cellar is so I'm going to take
this sticky note I have here and place it right on the page and write the definition. *write
definition: a room below ground level of a house* See, easy, right?!
Active/Engagement
-students will have personal reading books with them during this time
Now how about you open your personal reading books and find an excerpt where
someone younger than you might now know what a word means. Take a sticky note and
write down your definition of what that word means and place it right on the page (allow
2 minute) Alright, turn to a partner and read your sentence and your sticky note definition
(allow 2 minutes).
Link
Alright writers, today when you are writing I would like you to try the Sticky Notes
approach that

Jane Yolen used in The Mary Celeste: An Unsolved Mystery from History.
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Mini Lesson Owl Moon by Jane Yolen

Craft Not Literally
Connect
Remember when we were reading Owl Moon earlier during our read aloud? Remember
how we call that reading like a reader and how we are working on strategies to read like a
writer? Well today you are going to have a chance! Let's re-read a few pages of her book
to see if we can find out what makes her writing interesting. Here's a hint! It has
something to do with her word usage. *read the first 3 pages*
Talk about how the author used something called metaphor, which is a word or phrase
that is applied to an object or action which the object or action literally can't do.
Give the following examples: There was no wind. The trees stood still as giant
statues. & And when their voices faded away it was as quiet as a dream.
Do you see how it word or phrase can't literally be done to the object or action? Can a
tree really stand still as a giant statue? Can their voices fade away and it be as quiet as a
dream? No, these are metaphors.
Teach
Now, let me show you a metaphor from Merlin and the Dragons. Do you remember
reading that the other day and learning the strategy No More Said!? Well, we are going to
use it again today and we don't even have to look far! The first sentence of Merlin and
the Dragons is a metaphor! It says: The night was dark and storm clouds marched along

the sky. Can storm clouds really march? Of course not, its a metaphor!
Active/Engagement
-Students will have writers notebooks with them during this time
Now it's your turn! Can you come up with a metaphor and write it in your writers
notebook? Remember, a metaphor is applying an object or action to a word or phrase that
can't really happen. (allow 2 minutes) Now, please turn to your partner and tell them the
metaphor you have come up with. (allow 2 minutes)
Link
Alright writers, today when you are writing I would like you to try the Not Literally
approach that
Jane Yolen used in Owl Moon.
Share

Mini Lesson The Emperor and the Kite by Jane Yolen

Craft Tiny, Big Words (using a single word to make a big difference in the visual
image created in your mind about an object or person)
Connect
Remember when we where looking at other books and noticed something about the
writing? Do you remember when we took that idea from the book and wrote our own
version of it? Well today we are going to do that again with this book, The Emperor and
the Kite by Jane Yolen that we read in class yesterday. Lets look at one page and see if
we can figure out what makes her writing interesting. *read the first three pages in which
they describe the sisters and brothers* What do you think makes those pages so
interesting?

- Talk about description words. Have students visualize each of Djeow Seows brothers
and sisters and have them relate their visualization back to how the author described them
in the story
Teach
Now, let me show you how I might describe my mom using those descriptive words.
To me, my mom is the moon to my sky. I look up to her and her light guides me.
She is bright, strong and always looking out for me.
Active/Engagement
Now you try it alone for a minute. Think of an object or person in your life and use
description words and metaphors to describe it. (After a minute) Now turn to a partner
and share what you wrote. (Allow 2 minutes)
Link
Today writers, when you are writing, you can try the Tiny, Big Words approach that
Jane Yolen used in The Emperor and the Kite
Share

Mini Lesson Elsies Bird by Jane Yolen

Craft Deep Description
Connect
Remember when we read Elsies Bird earlier during our class read aloud? Remember
how we call that reading like a reader and how we are working on strategies to read like a
writer? Well today you are going to have a chance to use another strategy! Let's re-read a
few pages of her book to see if we can find out what makes her writing interesting. Here's

a hint! It has something to do with the images you see in your head when you hear a
sentence. Listen close! *read a few pages from the book*
- Once you read a few pages discuss the sentences All the way west, the
clacketing of the wheels reminded Elsie how far she was going, away from the sound of
the sea and the familiar bowl of sky and re-read that section without the students seeing
the page and then have the students (keeping their eyes closed), visualize what the
illustrations might look like.
Teach
Now let me show you. Do you remember when we read this book before and found the
craft of this story to be Deep Description? Can someone remind me of what exactly that
craft does? If you need to you can refer to your table in your writers notebooks on craft
lessons. (ask for examples) Yes! It is where the author has sentences with many
descriptions instead of saying that Elsie is traveling far away. They compare where she
came from to where is she going and what it looks like a sounds like as she goes!
Active/Engagement
- Students will have their writers notebooks
Now let me read you another few sentences from the story. Everyone close your eyes
again and this time when I am done draw what you visualize in your head from the words
I read. Is everyone ready? Eyes closed!
And then, oh then sitting there by the burbling creek, in the green-gold grass,
under the sun-washed sky, Elsie finally heard the voices of the plains
Now everyone open your eyes and stay silent. Draw what you heard on the page in your
writers notebook. Write underneath your drawing words that you heard that jump out to

you. After youre done sketching something you can go get markers or colored pencils to
color in your drawing.
Link and Share
Since we are done with our drawings can anyone share some words they used to base
their drawings around? (have students share). Great! Those are examples of the Deep
Description words that authors use to paint a picture in the readers heads. (share portion)
Now can someone show their drawing to the class as well? Great work everyone!

Mini Lesson Sky Dogs by Jane Yolen

Craft Story Telling point of view is first person
Connect
Remember when we read Sky Dogs in class? Well now we are going to look at this book
through the eyes of a writer rather than a reader. Can anyone remember and share with
the class who is telling this story? Thats right! The tribal leader that lived through this
folktale. Well lets look a little deeper into the writing to see if that might mean something
more to the story itself
- First Person allows the story to become more personable to the reader so
telling a story from your own point of view allows the reader to feel as if it happened to
them (discuss this concept)
Teach
Alright lets read back over a few pages and see what the author does to draw us into the
story. Hint! Look for how the words such as I, they or we influence how you feel
about the story.

They were so far away, we first thought they were long shadows. But the sun
was high, and still they came toward us, and that is not how a shadow acts
What did anyone notice about the words I, they or we? What if those words
instead read like this
They were so far away, and the Indians first thought they were long shadows. But the
sun was high, and still they came towards the Indians, and that is not how a shadow acts
Did that make you feel as though someone was telling you about the event rather than
you being there? How does point of view in this case affect the story?
(Talk about how it makes it easier to read and as if the reader was actually there makes
the book more readable)
Active/Engagement
Now in your writers notebooks write two different sentences about your day today. One
in first person or using I, or we and one in third person using he, she or a
persons name
I will share an example so you know what to write
I ate lunch in the lunchroom and I had a turkey sandwich. AND
Mrs. Blood ate lunch in the lunchroom and she had a turkey sandwich.
Link
Now you try it! Write a sentence in first person and one in third person. (give time to
write) Looking at your sentences, when might you use first person? When might you use
third person?
-

Highlight that first person most of the time is used to tell about yourself or
something you experienced. Third person is for rather telling a story of

something that is made up.

Share
Can I have a few writers share their sentences?

Mini Lesson Letting Swift River Go by Jane Yolen

Craft Through the Eyes of a Child point of view
Connect
Remember when we where looking at other books and noticed something about the
writing? Do you remember when we took that idea from the book and wrote our own
version of it? Well we are looking at Letting Swift River Go by Jane Yolen that we read
before. Just like in Sky Dogs, point of view is something that the author does to catch the
readers attention. Lets re-read a few pages to remember what we read the other day.
Teach
Now let me show you in the book how the author uses the point of view of the young
girl to grab your attention. Like in Sky Dogs they used first person to tell the story and its
similar in this story as well. This story tells you that no matter the situation you can use
first person to tell a past story, something in the present or in the future, but it is
something you did yourself or a story that involves you as a character. Here is an
example of a story that I could start One day when I was young, I was walked down the
street with my parents and saw something strange in the distance.
Active/Engagement
Now you try it yourself in your writers notebook. Write a few story starters with
something that grabs the readers attention and use the first person. This starter will use

something that happened to you when you were younger, just like in the book Letting
Swift River Go.
Link
Today writers we will use this technique to write a short story. The craft Through the
Eyes of a Child is helpful when your telling a story in the past about yourself
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