Writing Strategies

“The truth is often hard to chew.  But if it is sweetened with love, then it is a little easier to swallow.”  Libby Louise learns this very valuable life lesson in this wonderful story by Patricia C. McKissack.  Ruth Culham praises The Honest-to-Goodness Truth for simplifying a “complex subject to the core level where it really works for readers.”  Honesty is the topic of this warm and relevant story, and Libby Louise learns how to be honest without hurting her friends’ feelings.

Here are a few definitions that will help your students to better understand the story...

• commence – to start, begin
• quiver – to move with a slight shaking motion
• own up – to take responsibility
• trudge – to walk with much effort
• sashay – to glide
• victim – a person harmed by another

* Teaching Ideas* 

In her story, Patricia C. McKissack tackles a “big idea” and breaks it into a series of smaller pieces, giving the audience a well-developed topic that is accessible and clear.  Teaching our students to do the same – to support their topic with relevant examples – will help them to master the trait of Ideas.  As we follow Libby through her day, we cringe each time she tells the truth, knowing full well that she’s going to make someone else mad!  Ms. McKissack uses each of those situations to further develop Libby’s character and illustrate her struggle with too much honesty!  Those awkward moments are the real story!  And that’s a lesson for our students – the story is in the details! 

Teaching Ideas:  “Catch Phrase” ~ Elaborating on the Ideas

1. Early in the story, we hear Libby’s mama say, “Speak the truth and shame the devil.”  For the rest of the story, we get to watch Libby’s commitment to the truth make everyone around her very upset!  But where did that phrase come from, and what does it mean?
2. Go to www.phrases.org.uk/meanings and look up a few phrases for your students to use!  Then assign each student a saying, and ask them to write about a few scenarios that would illustrate the meaning of that phrase. 
3. For example, you might choose “Heard it through the grapevine.”  Allow your students, or help them, to look up the meaning and origin of the phrase (in this case, “a piece of information was obtained via an informal contact”).  Then ask them to use that phrase in a short story that includes two or three scenarios when a character “obtained information from an informal contact”.  We all know how often that happens in real life!  These stories could get really interesting!
4. Here are a few others you might try…
• “A friend in need is a friend indeed.”
• “Bad hair day”
• “Barking up the wrong tree”
• “Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.”
• “Between a rock and a hard place”
• “The early bird catches the worm.”
• “Three strikes and you are out.”

Teaching Ideas:  “Ask Me a Question” ~ Elaborating on the Ideas, 6+1 Traits, p. 64

1.        Divide students into groups of three. 

2.       Each student tells the group a short story of a memorable event that happened to him or her.  The listeners cannot comment during or after the story.

3.       Instead, they write on a piece of paper three questions for the storyteller, and then hand the questions to the storyteller.

4.       That way, the storyteller becomes aware of details he or she might have left out, which can be included next time the story is told, either orally or in writing. 

Teaching Ideas:  “Leave It Out” ~ Elaborating on the Ideas, 6+1 Traits, p. 64

1.        Rewrite a familiar story – a simple story that your students have read and enjoyed before.  Take out some of the juicy details, ones that are important to the central idea of the story.

2.       Share the story as you rewrote it and ask students what is missing.

3.       Now read the original.

4.       Discuss which version makes more sense, is more interesting, and why.  Help students discover that taking time to elaborate and fill in the banks for the reader is an important step in making their ideas clear. 

Additional Ideas

Teaching Word Choice:  “The Ugly Truth”

1.        “The truth is often hard to chew.  But if it is sweetened with love, then it is a little easier to swallow,” Miz Tusselbury explains to Libby.  This lesson will allow your students to practice “sweetening” the truth, and selecting words that convey their message without offending their audience!

2.       Begin by making a chart, divided into two columns.  Label the columns as follows.  You may want to create a handout that matches your chart so that the students can work independently later in the lesson.

3.       In the left column, list Libby’s “ugly truths”, and on the right, work with your students to reword those statements so that they are more appropriate and kindly spoken. 

4.       Finally, ask your students to think of several other “ugly truths” that they have heard or spoken themselves, and then work independently to rewrite them to be a little sweeter! 

6+1 Traits of Writing by Ruth Culham