Name

Morgan Piskadlo

Grade Level: 2nd Grade

Objective: The objective of this text collection is to provide second grade students with excellent examples
of how writers use words and phrases that help create clear, vivid images and feelings that the reader can
visualize without looking at the pictures the author has provided. Through mentor texts and analysis, the
students will be able to represent these vivid images effectively through their writing, letting the reader feel
and partake in there message as a writer. We will discuss how many authors use this language to help
readers visually see the message and what affect it has on the reader.
SOL:
2.2 The student will expand understanding and use of word meanings.
a) Increase listening and speaking vocabularies.
b) Clarify and explain words and ideas orally.

2.7 The student will expand vocabulary when reading.
a) Discuss meanings of words and develop vocabulary by listening and reading a variety of text.

2.12 The student will write stories, letters, and simple explanations.
a) Expand writing to include descriptive detail.
b) Revise writing for clarity.

2.13 The student will edit writing for correct grammar, capitalization, punctuation, and spelling.
a) Use verbs and adjectives correctly in sentences.

Writing Mini-Lesson Template

Mini Lesson Topic

Materials

Connection:

Tell them what you

taught in the
previous lesson.
How does this idea
connect?

Visualization How do we incorporate visualizations in our own writing?
Anchor Chart Paper
Highlighter
Document camera; smartboard
Book: Beadhead By: Margie Palatini
Students Need: WNB, highlighter
Teacher Says: At the beginning of this week, we focused on visualizations from our Hello
Ocean book and how we, as readers, perceived her work as an author. We were not able to
look at the pictures, but were able to create our own based on the descriptive words she
was using. We came to the conclusion that her strategy was to use the 5 senses to describe
the vivid imagery, and what she was feeling through the text.
Raise your hand if you can tell me some visualization that we made based on Hello Ocean.

Students Responses: what the sand felt like, what the air smelled like, etc. (accept answers
as you see fit.)

Teacher: Great Job! These are some things that we put on our anchor chart, we described
the different uses of the words and came up with different words that we could replace
them with. You all did great with this activity!

Explicit Instruction:

Tell them what you

will teach today.
Show them
examples of how
others use the
technique(s).

Teacher: Today we are going to look at how we can incorporate visualizations in our own
writing by reading a book called Bedhead. Do any of you know what bedhead is?

Student: Acceptable Responses

Teacher: We are going to find out today through the words that the author choses and how
we can picture, in our head, what this may look like. The author, Margie Palatini, lets the
reader become apart of the story. Here we are able to feel what the main character is
feeling and what bedhead is doing to his life.
Teacher: Today, we are going to dig deeper in how writers incorporate vivid imagery into
there own writing. Remember we want our reader to feel and partake in the message of
our stories as writers.

Read Story to Students without pictures shown.

Teacher: Oh my goodness! Put a thumbs up if you could visualize what bedhead looks like.
Put a thumbs up if you know how our main character, Oliver, was feeling. Student
responds. Yes, lets take a look of how it is described in the story.
[Descriptions will be previously recorded on an anchor chart. Student ideas will be added
and highlighted as we progress during instruction.]

First, think about what bedhead looks like. How was it described in the story? What picture
do you have in mind?

This quote is read and presented on the anchor chart. Read this to students. There was
hair going this way. Hair going that way. Hair going up. Down. Around and around. And
there was one teeny tiny clump of hair way at the back of is head that looked just like a cats
coughed-up fur ball.
Show students picture in book on pg. 2, showing what his bead head looked like, discuss if
necessary.

Alright boys and girls, can we highlight some details and vivid imagery in this description
that helps us as a reader feel what Oliver was feeling, or how his bead head looked.
Students should respond with: hair was going this way, that way, down, around, teeny tiny
clump, cats coughed-up fur ball.
This is filled with imagery that we could see that made us come up with our own envision
that was similar to the illustrators envision.

Did anyone notice how the story started? How might the author get us interested by her
vivid images and expressive language?
Call on students and take responses.

This quote is read and presented on the anchor chart. Read to students. In a gunkless
corner of the soapy soap dishin a fogless smidgen of his fathers foggy shaving
mirrorright there on the hot water faucet, for heavens sakehe was it! It was BIGIt was
Bad. It was.pg. 1

Call on students to tell you what to highlight throughout the expert. Similar to above have
students highlight what words create a readers images. What are words that we can
include in our own writing?

Continue the above with other excerpts presented below:


So they spritzed him and sprayed him. And they gooped, glopped, and moussed him.
They even hair-pinned him flat in five places for good measure. Pg. 9

What are some words here that we might incorporate in writing? How does it make the
reader feel what the author is feeling?

And then..then..THENbbbBB..BOING! BOING! BING_BING BBBBOING!BOING! BOING!
BBBBOING! Hair started going this way. Hair started going that way. Hair started going up.
Down. Around and around. And the brush that was stuck in the clump of hair way at the
back of his head that looked just like a cats coughed-up fur ball let loose and boinged Mary
Margaret on top of her head and boomeranged right into Mrs. Oppenheimers nose.p.14

Again, what are some words here that describes what the bed head is doing, and how Oliver
may feel?




Students will get out there Writers Notebooks and pick out a short story that they have
written. Within this short story, students will circle words that might need revising giving
Guided Practice:
our discussion today. Students will get 5 minutes to pick our writing and circle words that
Engage them in
could use more excitement. With partners, students will switch writing, and help each
practicing youre
other think of some interesting words to use.
your and/or

other(s).
Teacher: I want each of you to go back to your seats and pull out your Writers Notebooks.
Once you have them, I want you to pick a short story that you have written that you may
want to make better. You are going to circle words that you want to make interesting.
Once you have finished, you will switch with a partner beside you and that partner will help
brainstorm some word ideas for you.

Once student have done so, I would call on a few students and have them put their work
under the document camera. Teacher and/or student will read them out loud with the new
words chosen. Teacher will have discussion with class about how the change makes the
writing more interesting, and how the reader can feel what the author is trying to say.
Independent Practice: Writing Topic: Write about a time when your hair was messy.
Write about a time when your hair was perfect.
Remind students
*Giving two topics, gives students choice of what they want to write about.
how the teaching
point can be used in
For today, I am going to have you write about a time when your hair was messy or a time
independent
when your hair was perfect. T
writing.
Link mini-lesson and Think about what your hair looked like? What did you feel? Where did you see it at first?
What was your plan for the day?
writing lives.
I want you to think about what we discussed with Olivers hair. How did we become
engaged in the story? What types of words were used that made it interesting? How did the
author make us feel when reading the story?
*Have these questions on board as visual for students to refer back to.

Today, we learned how writers use expressive language to provide imagery to its readers.
Restate the teaching We learned that writers want their readers to be apart of the story and how the reader can
feel and partake in the message of the story.
point.

Ask: Did you try
______________ did an awesome job with her story. I am going to have her share with us.
what was taught?
Did it work for you? I want you to think about the interesting words she used to make the reader imagine and
visualize her hair. These words: ________________ made us have a good picture in our
How will it affect
your future writing? mind about what her hair looked like on a perfect day, but gave us the opportunity partake
in how she was feeling that day.

Have other students share their ideas. (1-2 more)

Remember, when you are writing you can engage your reader by using interesting words
where they are able to visualize and partake in the message of your story. Your story
becomes more interesting where the reader wants to read more.

Groups Wrap Up:

Self Check:
I modeled writing for the students.
I used a mentor text.
I used excerpts from the mentor texts.
I provided details as to what I was doing for each stage of the lesson.
I provided details as to what the students were doing for each stage of the lesson.