Dear Mr. Blueberry - The Writing Process

Introduction



Welcome: Dear Mr. Blueberry - The Writing Process 

Description: This WebQuest is based off of the Tradebook Dear Mr. Blueberry by Simon James. The goal of this WebQuest is for students to use the writing process to create a friendly letter to a friend in the class. 

Grade Level: 2 
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.2.1

Write opinion pieces in which they introduce the topic or book they are writing about, state an opinion, supply reasons that support the opinion, use linking words (e.g.,because, and, also) to connect opinion and reasons, and provide a concluding statement or section

Curriculum: English / Language Arts 

       Keywords: Dear Mr. Blueberry, Writing Process, formatting letters 

The WebQuest I have created was developed from an idea Professor MaryLou Aylor gave me while conferencing for a Unit Plan I am creating for the same course. It was constructed by adapting/recreating the ideas and materials provided on Dear Mr. Blueberry's Kids Page.

   Author(s): Alanna Constance

EDU 538  |  Summer 2014
Chapter 13 - Project

Task

Have you ever been to the beach before and seen a whale in the water? 

Where do whales live? Why can't they survive in a pond?

Boy, do I have a job for you! You see, my friend Mr. Blueberry is having trouble convincing his student, Emily, that a whale does not live in her pond. She seems to write him letters every day describing her whale encounters.

Can you write Emily a letter using all of the steps in the writing process (plan, draft, revise, edit, and share)?

You make use any outside resources you’d like in order to gain knowledge about whales. [Resources found on ‘Process’ page]

STUDENTS:

  1. Plan by organizing all of their thoughts onto a sheet of paper
  2. Organize thoughts into sentences.
  3. Revise and edit work to ensure it is ready to send to Emily.  

 

Process

Mr. Blueberry needs your help! He can't seem to convince Emily that a whale does not live in her pond. Mr. Blueberry has tried everything! Get creative! Use books, the internet, magazines, or other Tradebooks to gain more knowledge about whales.

Possible things to research:

  • Types of whales
  • Habitat (location)
  • Diet
  • Physical features (appearance, type of teeth, etc.)

Steps:

1. Read the Tradebook Dear Mr. Blueberry by Simon James


2. View the video “Writing Strategies” to review the steps in which you will take in order to help Mr. Blueberry compose a letter to Emily.

[video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iobYihZ4FvQ width:500 height:500 align:center]

3. Write a letter to Emily explaining WHY a whale cannot live in her pond.

Remember: Don’t forget to write a greeting and a salutation at the beginning and end of your letter.

[These items can be reviewed here!]

4. Make sure to include several different facts about whales in order to help Mr. Blueberry convince Emily there is not a whale living in her pond. You may use outside resources in order to find out more information about whales.

IMPORTANT INFO FOR PARENTS: Ms. Constance's Second-graders know what percausions to take when viewing internet sources. Here are a few friendly tips to use while surfing the web with your child!

Resources to get you started:

http://www.whale-world.com/facts-about-whales-for-kids/

http://www.whalefacts.org/whale-facts-for-kids/

http://www.sciencekids.co.nz/sciencefacts/animals/whale.html

http://www.wdcs.org/wdcskids/en/story_details.php?select=584

Evaluation

Students: You will be evaluated on the proper steps taken in the writing process in order to create a letter to Emily. It is important to make sure your letter has a greeting and a salutation as well as organization. Creativity, clarity, sentence structure, and grammatical errors will also be evaluated in your final draft.

 

Needs Improvement

Fair

Good

Excellent

Student opens with clear topic, stating opinion.

1

2

3

4

Students stays on topic.

1

2

3

4

Student gives reason for opinion.

1

2

3

4

Student includes a closing.

1

2

3

4

Student uses accurate punctuation and capital letters where appropriate.

1

2

3

4

Student includes appropriate organization materials (draft/revising)

1

2

3

4
Conclusion

Thank you for all of your help!

Mr. Blueberry sure does appreciate all of your hard work.

Emily enjoyed all of her letters, and although she may still believe a whale is her pond, she sure does know a lot more about whales and how to take care of one.

Now that you know how to formally write a letter, you can begin to write letters to anyone. Ready, Set, Go… Mr.

Blueberry & Ms. Constance challenge you to write a letter to a friend and let them know about everything you have learned.

The writing process is very important and I, Ms. Constance, and Mr. Blueberry are proud of your hard work!

Credits
Teacher Page

Thank you for checking out my WebQuest created for EDU 538!