List of Ideas for Writing Across the Content Areas

Today, Nicole asked us to brainstorm a big list of ideas for writing across the content areas. Here's my version of the list (Thanks to Lorynda for helping to type it!):

Writing Across the Curriculum (from Nicole's Demo)

History/Social Studies

• Question/answer books
• Accordion books
• Big wig letters
• Historical war as a dodge ball game
• Trioramas (paper folding)
• Treasure maps with written directions
• Book shares with historical novels
• Blogging as a historical character
• Pamphlets for or against a big historical subject (American Revolution)
• When have you experienced something similar (connecting to history through writing)
• Newspapers
• Compromise comic strips
• Voyage to the Milky Way – Life from a new perspective
• Nova Builds a Trebuchet (Video from PBS works in multiple content areas)

Language Arts

• Blogging as a fictional character
• Odyssey travel brochure
• Chris Van Allsburg study
• Magazine as a final project
• Students create fictional schools based on the works of Emerson and/or Thoreau, support your creations with quotes from their works
• Double entry journal (two-sided, works in any content area) put quotes on one side, interpretation on the other)
• Write personal ads for literary characters seeking companionship

Art

• One student writes a description of a piece of art, another student tries to reproduce the art
• Respond to a work of art with a creative writing piece and/or vice versa
• Write a book and each person in class illustrates a page.
• Write an interpretation of an illustration
• Place self in a painting and write from the paintings point of view
• Personal responses to paintings-interpretations, descriptions, various points of view

Science

• Sciecne notebooks – toolbox, hypothesis, connections, etc.
• Create non-fiction books – ask older students to write for younger children explaining concepts
• Science biography – write about the events that led up to a scientific concept
• Create your own mythology to explain acts of nature
• Describe chemical reactions that occur in a favorite recipe
• Life of a meal-worm and butterfly journals
• Science lab planning/design
• Write to Discover Magazine challenging a theory and asking scientists to refute it
• The use of essential questions to build analysis

Math

• Teaching nutrition in math
• Create math strategy toolboxes
• Class published book of story problems to solve over time.
• Math word wall

Music

• Write poetry implied from music
• Create raps, songs around vocabulary
• Listen to Romeo and Juliet instrumental and write a story inspired by music
• Write a song that best represents a book or play
• Write a piece inspired by music

Keep a practice journal and write what practicing and, needs to be done.