✎ In this section, I found some great quotes that could help writers add descriptive language. The quote I loved was found on page 2 and read, "Paint. That's the magic word. Paint pictures with words. That's the greatest advice I can give anybody. Paint the pictures with words. The pictures will appear in the imagination so the person reading it can say, 'I can see that'" (O'Neill). I enjoyed this quote because many students struggle with adding description in their writing. Not only students, but adults can struggle with this as well. This quote shows writers that if you relate writing to painting, then maybe you can "paint" a visual image and be able to write about that image. "A good author writes with a camera, not a pen" (3). Writers need to write with pictures, not necessarily words. I think the activity Dr. Kist had us do with the postcards could really help students create that picture. This activity could help students begin writing about an image, then you could have students create their own image based on the activity.
Painting with Five Basic Brush Strokes
Painting with Participles
✎ In this section Noden describes participles as evoking action. As I grade my students' essays, the sentences are bland; they don't have a variety of sentences. Using the metaphor of brush strokes to help students add to sentences is a great way to introduce different elements of writing that students may struggle with throughout the school year. In the participle section, Noden says, "Using a single participle creates rapid movement, while expanded phrases add details at a slower, but equally intense pace" (Noden 5). I believe one of the strongest ways to show students how to use this first brush stroke is by modeling what they are expected to do. The brush strokes cover more complex elements that are added to sentences, so modeling will help students see what needs to be done, but also it will allow students to work as a class. Dr. Kist's strategy example with the note cards is a great tool to use when using brush strokes, specifically participles. I believe that the note card activity will allow students to expand on sentences, and allow then to add participles. I like how Noden defines certain words or examples in each section because I haven't covered a lot of this information since my high school days. The terminology is a good refresher.
Painting with absolutes
✎ Again, I like how Noden simplifies the definition of an absolute. He says it is "defined simply as a noun combined with an ing participle" (Noden 6). Noden uses the metaphor of a telescope lens to introduce and teach absolutes. I think this is a great idea because you need to zoom in on the sentence to identify the different places where absolutes should/could be used. Students, according to Noden, can learn absolutes by imitating. To help students write absolutes, they could watch video clips and write absolutes based on what they observe. A video example I found was about nature. Students can use absolutes to describe what they see in each video clip. This is the video I found:
Students could also use this brush stroke to create a character profile from a story. Students can use absolutes to create an image from the words.
Painting with Adjectives Shifted Out of Order
✎ In this section, the two examples of adjectives helps students and myself see how not to overload a description. In high school, I remember being taught the rule of three because it makes a description more balanced; however, in this section, Noden says that professional writers "avoid a three-in a-row string by using a technique called adjectives out of order" (Noden 9). I want my students to write like professionals, so this is new to me because of what I was taught in school. I like this rule / brush stroke because it adds variety to a description and doesn't create the dull three word description.
Combining Strokes
✎ A good friend of mine has been a teacher for many years now and graduated from Kent State. This past winter break I observed her classes for extra field work. When I observed she was having students complete this brush stroke activity Noden discusses in chapter 1 of Image Grammar. I observed at the end of this unit because students were combining strokes in their narratives they wrote.
Strategies
✎ There were three strategies that I liked the most in this section. The first was the Create an Artist's Image Palette. I feel this strategy will help students find/locate words and images to help create their own writing. Students can add this Artist's Image Palette to a list provided by the teacher. This list can be a resource for words and terms to use in future writing. The second strategy I liked was Stimulate Images with Derived Poetry. Because I will be teaching a poetry unit in February, I thought this section would be a great resource for me when teaching my unit. This strategy allows students to look for words that could be used in their writing in poetry, and students can then create their own poem. As a teacher, I would like to model this activity with my students based on a poem I select. I could modify this strategy and use it when I teach figurative language and emotional language. Students can find their own poem for homework so all students have different words to select. Then, after the lesson on emotional language/figurative language, students can create their poems for homework. Lastly, I liked the strategy Paint Models from the Nando Times. I liked this because the images are preselected and appear to be school related. Unfortunately, the Nando Times website is no longer available, so teachers would have to select images for students. This strategy though will allow students to select a brush stroke they feel fits the image the best.
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