The Elusive Sentence: Recovering the Rudiments of Writing

by Rita Eulalie Hatfield, Leta Marie Young

Overview

Across our nation, many within our educational system complain that America’s children cannot write well. Hatfield and Young assert that the problem lies at the foundation of our pedagogy for writing, that most elementary writing curricula lack rudimentary instruction at the sentence level. The authors introduce a sentence-level writing intervention that explicitly defines the elements found in great sentences. This intervention forms the foundational framework for writing skills acquisition, helping teachers, students, and writers of all ages to understand how to craft well-written sentences and paragraphs. Research supports that the most effective instruction is skills-based and multisensory; therefore, Hatfield and Young also introduce a cognitively differentiated writing model, which uses arts-integrated instruction to enhance learning and memory for other content areas. This writing model is based on best practice and this sentence-level intervention serves as a precursor for mastering the new writing standards for CCSS. It offers novice writers a precise blueprint for what successful writing looks like and clearly defines the elusive sentence.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781475823394
Publisher:	Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc.
Publication date:	12/08/2015
Pages:	172
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 8.90(h) x 0.40(d)

About the Author

Both Leta and Eulalie started teaching in a small private school in Fairbanks, Alaska, yet most of their teaching careers were spent in a one-room school house in North Pole, Alaska. Eulalie earned her Master’s in Educational Leadership at Concordia University in Portland, Oregon, and Leta earned her Master’s in Cross Cultural Education at the University of Alaska at Fairbanks. Leta retired from classroom teaching to pursue a life-long passion, a three-year training program in French Classical Dressage, and Eulalie works as a private tutor for an international business couple, teaching their young daughter and traveling with them as needed. Both Leta and Eulalie continue to write and to develop multimodal resources for their cognitively differentiated writing workshop.

Table of Contents

Introduction


Part 1: Language Objective: Sentence-Level Writing Intervention


Why should we teach sentence level writing?


Chapter 1The Problem: Inverted Writing Pedagogy

Chapter 2The Solution: Sentence-Level Writing

Chapter 3Sentence-Level Writing Intervention
Elementary Writing Pedagogy

Chapter 4Linguistic & Musical Syntax
Audiation Theory for Music/Writing


How do we teach sentence-level writing?


Chapter 5Ingham-Webster-Pudewa Method
Dress-Ups
Sample Writing Matrix
Sentence Openers & Decorations
Phrase & Clause Manipulation Diagram
Basic Report/Essay Model
Critique Model & Super Essay Model
Scaffolding Common Core State Standards for Writing

Chapter 6Writers: Middle School, High School, College, & Beyond
Advanced Stylistic Techniques

Chapter 7Sheltered Instruction for Writing







Part 2: Content Objective: Cognitively Differentiated Learning


What is cognitively differentiated learning?


Chapter 8Cognitively Differentiated Learning


Why should we teach academic content through arts-integrated experiences?


Chapter 9Rationale: Teaching through the Arts
Art & Cognition

Chapter 10Arts-Integrated Learning
Rehearsal Effect
Elaboration Effect
Generation Effect
Enactment Effect
Production Effect
Effort After Meaning Effect
Emotional Arousal Effect
Picture Superiority Effect

Chapter 11Arts-Integrated Instruction & Cognition
Writing: Cognitive& Physical Skills
Cognitively Differentiated Teaching & Learning
Teaching & Learning Relationship
Cognitively Differentiated Writing Model


Why should we teach academic content through song?


Chapter 12Song as a Teaching Tool
Balanced Learningthrough Horizontal Differentiation

Chapter 13Operational Definitions
Rationale: Teaching Content through Song

Chapter 14Inherited Dissociated Philosophy
Historical Background of Mnemonic Learning

Chapter 15Neuroscience of Music & Memory
Memory & Music
Music & Mnemonics
Mnemonics & Diverse Learners
Assumptions & Final Thoughts on Mnemonic Song

Chapter 16Method & Practice: Putting It All Together
Cognitively Differentiated Writing Wheel
Sample Weekly Outline
Pictures of Writing Journals

Chapter 17Best Practice for Writing Instruction

Chapter 18Training Teachers for the New Millennium
The Hippocratic Oath for Educators

Chapter 19Final Reflection

Appendix AArts-Integrated Resources

Appendix BWriting Matrix

Appendix CComposition Checksheet

Appendix D Sample Syllabus for College Course

Appendix EWebster’s Formulas/Chants for Written Communication

References

Editorial Reviews

When great—but old—ideas are overlooked because of a fascination with the newest progressive pedagogy, it requires both careful and determined research to unearth, dust off, and re-present them to the education world. In The Elusive Sentence, Hatfield & Young have done exactly that for the teaching of writing, and just in time, too, as basic composition skills decline to new lows countrywide! Teachers (and teachers of teachers) will find these ideas not only refreshing in their common sense but truly effective.

Andrew Pudewa

A landmark book for teachers, parents and writers of all ages! The practical approach of The Elusive Sentence provides explicit instruction strategies that systematically define sentence structure and style with clarity and precision. With a focus on differentiation, the integration of music, and sheltered instruction, the authors provide a sound structure to support Common Core State Standards.

Colette M. Zea