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These three lessons will show students how to write a clear and concise blurb and give them an opportunity to publish their writing and recommend books to other students in the school.
To show students how to write a good blurb
To assist students in selecting good reading material
To give students an opportunity to share their reading with others in the school
To give students the opportunity to publish their writing online by becoming involved in Bulldog Blurbs Inc.
To give students the opportunity to use the following techniques to formulate their blurbs: modeling, brainstorming, collective drafting, individual writing, team editing, redrafting, revising and publishing.
Each member of the class will select any book from the class library. The instructor will ask a few students to read the blurbs on the back of the books. The instructor will then have a vote to see which book is most appealing based on the blurb. (Ideally, some of the students will have read these books). The instructor will ask if any of those who have read the books found the blurb adequate or lacking in something.
The instructor will then give a five-minute definition of the blurb and explain what the uses of the blurb are in publishing and in the promotion of a book.
The instructor will then list the key characteristics of a good blurb:
Tell us who the main characters are
Tell us where the story takes place
Tell us when the story is set
Tell us what the main plot and related sub-plot of the story are
Ask two suspense questions that can be answered by the phrase: "Read this book to find the answers to these questions."
Tell us what excites the blurb writer about the book
Having established this, the class will then select a very common story like "Little Red Riding Hood". Each child will be asked to prepare a blurb on this story based on the guidelines listed above. It may be best to review the story of Little Red Riding Hood before this part of the exercise.
The exercise should last no longer than five minutes. After the time has elapsed, the instructor will ask students to volunteer sentences that could go into the blurb.
The instructor will write the evolving blurb on the chalk-board, taking suggestions for changes and edits from the class until a decent blurb for the story has been formulated.
The final exercise in the class will be for each child to write a list of five of their favorite books in ranking order. This list will be important for the next class.
The instructor will ask the students to name their favorite book. The instructor will ask the students to write down what single thing they liked most about the book. The instructor will then ask the students to answer the following questions in single sentences.
1. What did I like most about this book?
2. To whom would I like to recommend this book?
3. Why would I want this person to read this book?
4. What three elements of the book do I regard as the most interesting and appealing aspects of the book?
The instructor will tell the students to treat the answers to these questions as "raw material" for the writing of the blurbs.
At this point, the instructor will inform the students about what the Bull-Dog Blurbs program is all about: how it is to work, what it is intended to do, and what are the rules surrounding the program. The instructor will use this opportunity to talk about audience and to talk about the importance of writing for a specific audience.
After this, the students will begin to draft their blurbs for the books they have selected. To do so they will follow a few guidelines that the instructor will share with the class orally and with a handout:
Write down ten words that express your feelings about the book. Try and use a few of these words in your blurb.
Write down five of the main themes in the story and try and make sure that your blurb mentions at least three of them.
To draft their blurbs, the students will then be instructed to follow the guides outlined below. The instructor may replace the following fictional examples with the examples from "Little Red Riding Hood":
a) Begin by summarizing the central problem/situation that opens the story.
E.g. "When a little girl who lives in a small village decides to go to visit her sick grandmother who lives deep in the forest, she encounters a wolf on the path..."
b) Describe the complication of the story.
E.g. "The wolf seems friendly at first, asking her very intimate questions about her grandmother. But he is slowly he leading the girl off the path and deeper into the forest. Soon we discover that the wolf is hungry. He runs ahead to the grandmother's house. He knocks on the door and says in a little girl's voice, 'Here I am grandma'"
c) Ask "what happens next" question.
E.g. "Will the hungry wolf deceive the grandmother? And what of the little girl who is going unknowingly to visit her grandmother? Read this suspense-filled story of deceit, mayhem and murder to find out what happens next?"
The class will end with after these drafts are completed. The students will edit them the next day.
The class will split into pairs. Students will then try out the drafts of their blurbs on each other. The "listening" student will test the blurb by seeing if it conforms to the basic requirements of a good blurb that were discussed on the first day.
The Blurb...
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Tells us who the main characters are |
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Tells us where the story takes place |
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Tells us when the story is set |
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Tells us what the main plot and related sub-plot of the story are |
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Asks two suspense questions that can be answered by the phrase: "Read this book to find the answers to these questions." |
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Tells us what excites the blurb writer about the book. |
Once the students are satisfied that the blurb has met these expectations, each student will be given some time to make changes and corrections.
The instructor will then ask a few students to read their pieces to the class. The rest of the pieces will be posted for the rest of the class to see.
Finally, the instructor will explain exactly how students can submit blurbs for the Bull-Dog Blurb project. The instructor will explain how the students can participate in the project.
Students will select books for reading that their peers have not yet read.
Students will write blurbs for the books they have read.
Students will share their reading with the whole school community.
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