Catch the Drop Cross Curricular Workshops at Theresa Nuzzo

Professional Development - Sacred Heart College

The aim of the PD was to familiarise the participants with the Writing Process.

I started by showing the video The Brave Turtle.  Participants had to note the background details, such as the colour of the flowers and birds, and list these down.  Subsequently, participants were asked to make play dough from the flour, water, salt and food colouring provided.  They were asked to recreate a scene from the story, which they were then to describe.  In order to make the experience a multi-sensory one, some of the play dough was dipped in sand to represent rough stone, or else dipped in essential oils, to give-off the smell of flowers.  Nature sounds were played in the background, to facilitate the filling-in of the pre-writing senses web.  A writing tool kit presented the participants with sentence starters, nouns and adjectives which they were encouraged to use in their writing.  The writing tool kit is an alternative form of word bank, that provides struggling writers with major support.  Participants were shown how to utilize the writing tool kit and were also provided with a model for writing, before attempting their own description.

Journaling was also discussed during the workshop, and the importance of the writing model discussed.  This should not be copied in class, and in order to eliminate this possibility, it is to be removed soon after the framework is presented.  The workshop ended with an emphasis on the importance of providing enough structure to make writing possible, yet allowing enough space for the students’ creativity.