There are directions to prompt the students' discussions at the top of the page. The groups should certainly talk about the idea development, but you might prompt your students to talk about each model's voice as well.

In small groups, have your students read and respond to any or all of the student models that come with this lesson.

Tell the students they will be writing their own unlikely diaries.

Read the story a second time stop after each entry and ask students, 'What fact about worms did the author just talk or joke about?'.

Talk about how author Doreen Cronin conveys real facts about an invertebrate (a worm) in an unlikely format (the worm's imaginary diary) and successfully shares interesting facts while using humor.

Read aloud Diary of a Worm to your students.

In Social Studies, students could write from the point of view of a document, material, person, landmark, etc.Īnticipatory Set: Have students brainstorm everything they know about an invertebrate.

In ELA, students could write from the point of view of a character, author, literary element, or genre.

In Art, students could write from the point of view of a material, brush, paint, pencil, etc.

In Music, students could write from the point of view of an instrument, composer, musician, etc.

In Science, students could write from the point of view of an animal, disease, element from the periodic table, body part, sense, cell, part of a cell, plant, etc.

In Math, have students write from the point of view of a shape, graph, parabola, fraction, etc.

Suggestions for Topics to Write about in other Content Areas Diary of a worm SCIENCE Student Model.pdf.Diary of a Worm MATH Student Models.pdf.Copies of Diary of a Worm Rough Draft worksheet (one per student).Copies of Diary of a Worm Research Notes (one per student).Copies of Student Models (if you choose to share with class).The Picture book Diary of a Worm by Doreen Cronin.Two 45-minute periods (if time is needed for student research otherwise, one 45-minute period will be adequate) Materials This lesson was created by Northern Nevada Writing Project Teacher Consultant Corbett Harrison.Ĭheck out all of Corbett's on-line lessons by visiting Duration Children and adults alike will adore this worm's eye perspective on the world. Written in diary form, this truly hilarious picture book tracks the ins and outs of a worm's life from the perspective of the worm family's young son. About the Picture Bookĭoreen Cronin and cartoonist Harry Bliss shed a whole new light on a creature that spends most of its time underground: the earthworm.

The support trait in this assignment is voice attempting to capture the 'written sound' of a creature or an abstraction while using humor is an excellent exercise for students who are still discovering their own written voices. The focus trait in this writing assignment is idea development students specifically work on putting learned facts into their own words as they create their diary entries. Northern Nevada Writing Project The National Writing Project Six-Trait Overview The writer will compose a 5- or 10-day diary, from the point-of-view of his/her role each entry must contain a reference to a newly learned fact, and some entries should try to include humor (just as Cronin does in her book). Writers will do research on what they have chosen as their roles, and learn new facts about these roles. The writer will assume the role of a living creature (like an arthropod) or an abstraction (like a fraction).