Author: Erica Zatarain

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A hippo fell into a well

He was stuck inside

We knew we had to help him out

Each took turns and tried

So elephants, a buffalo, hyena, chimpanzee

All trying to save him on their own

They could not get him free

No one could lift him on their own

It seemed to us that rather

The hippo would stay stuck inside,

Be in there forever!

It Will Take Alot of Us to Lift a Hippopotamus!

Each beast had struggled on his own

So we could comprehend

That we need to put our pride aside

So we can save our friend

Once we all worked as a team

We saw there was no doubt

We had the skills, and smarts and strength

To lift this hippo out!

No one could do this task alone

But soon we saw that rather

We were much stronger as a team

We rescued him together!

It Will Take Alot of Us to Lift a Hippopotamus!

I opened up my journal

Then made a little note

I did not know where to begin

So I simply wrote…

It Will Take Alot of Us to Lift a Hippopotamus!

It Will Take Alot of Us (We can do anything!) to Lift a Hippopotamus! (Working as a team!)

It Will Take Alot of Us to Lift a Hippopotamus!

We can do anything! Working as a Team!

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10/20/2022

Bonus Song Based on the Mentor Text: Heimlich to a Horse

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Through the fence I saw my sweet mare

Gasping for a breath of air

I could see her throat was blocked with

Oh my goodness it’s a granny smith

And I hoped that I could free her if I made her laugh or made her sneeze

And I know that time is running out I’ve got to formulate a plan quickly

It hit me that I’ve been trained to solve such problems like these

The heimlich maneuver, a life saving squeeze.

It will take a lot of force to give the heimlich to a horse

Oh, It will take a lot of force to give the heimlich to a horse

First I tried the heimlich by myself

I found she was too big, I needed help

I made a pulley with a rope and tree

I pushed and pulled but I did not succeed

And I hoped that I could free it with the leverage that the pulley made

And I know that I could save this if horse if only I had greater strength

I called over a group of friends and they helped me achieve

The heimlich maneuver, a life saving squeeze.

It will take a lot of force to give the heimlich to a horse

Oh, It will take a lot of force to give the heimlich to a horse

And I know what a difference that my training and quick thinking made

And I hope you all pay attention when it’s time to learn first aid.

Oh, It will take a lot of force to give the heimlich to a horse

C’mon, It will take a lot of force to give the heimlich to a horse

Oh, It will take a lot of force to give the heimlich to a horse

Yeah!

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10/20/2022

Write a Summary

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WRITE A SUMMARY

If you need to summarize what you have read

but you don’t have time to re-read again

Use 5: someone, wanted, but, so, then

And you begin to write a summary

summarize what you’ve written

but you don’t have time to re-write again

Use 5: someone, wanted, but, so, then

And you begin to write a summary

first take you thumb it stands for “someone,”

who is your lead character say it’s Brian?

First finger stands for “wanted,” what did he want?

to save the world, or open a new restaurant?

“but” is the finger that always comes next

But the world can’t be saved

without…. unless…

The last two fingers stand for “so” and “then”

So Brian must prevail then win.

If you need to summarize what you have read

but you don’t have time to re-read again

Use 5: someone, wanted, but, so, then

And you begin to write a summary

summarize what you’ve written

but you don’t have time to re-write again

Use 5: someone, wanted, but, so, then

And you begin to write a summary

Well you can write a paragraph to sum up your work

If it helps just think of a hamburger

The first and last sentences are fun

Your topic and conclusion should match like buns

What was the main idea of this one

Write it down and you’ve begun

The next few sentences must agree

to fit in the buns like meat lettuce and cheese

these are supporting details they help readers to see

A smaller version of a bigger one

If you need to summarize what you have read

but you don’t have time to re-read again

Use 5: someone, wanted, but, so, then

And you begin to write a summary

If you need to summarize what you’ve written

but you don’t have time to re-write again

Use 5: someone, wanted, but, so, then

And you begin to write a summary

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10/20/2022

Ideas Are All Around Us

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Ideas are all around us

Writer Look up, Look down, look side to side, and all around

Are you stuck? Have a frown? Open your eyes right now

There’s a kite in the sky (put it in my story)

I see a girl on a horse (put it in my story)

I hear a moose on a motorcycle (put it in my story)

Who’s hiding in my fort? (put it in my story)

I stepped in some gum… (put it in my story)

and it tastes like cheese! (put it in my story)

Jeff yells Gesundheit (put it in my story)

For a grandpa’s sneeze (put it in my story)

Ideas are all around us

Writer Look up, Look down, look side to side, and all around

Are you stuck? Have a frown? Open your eyes right now

There’s a kite in the sky (put it in my story)

I see a girl on a horse (put it in my story)

I hear a moose on a motorcycle (put it in my story)

who’s hiding in my fort (put it in my story)

I stepped in some gum (put it in my story)

And it tastes like cheese (put it in my story)

Jeff yells Gesundheit (put it in my story)

For a grandpa’s sneeze (put it in my story)

Ideas are all around us

(All around us)Put it in my story?

Ideas all around us

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10/19/2022

Slo Mo

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This is the heart of my story. What can I do to stretch it out?

To let the reader know just how important that this moment is, invite them in to look around?

Just like a video in slo mo. Take time to let it all unfold.

Linger on important descriptions. What was I thinking and feeling? Are my explanations bold?

We should slow down

Write the story like we were in slo mo

We should slow down

Write the story like we were in slo mo

We should slow down

Write the story like we were in slo mo/ On my cellphone

We should slow down

Write the story like we were in slo mo

This is the heart of my story. What can I do to stretch it out?

To let the reader know just how important that this moment is, invite them in to look around?

Chronicle sensory descriptions, illuminate what is untold

Use figurative language, simile, hyperbole, and metaphor

This moment will explode.

We should slow down

Write the story like we were in slo mo

We should slow down

Write the story like we were in slo mo

We should slow down

Write the story like we were in slo mo/ On my cellphone

We should slow down

Write the story like we were in slo mo

We should slow down

We’re in slo mo now

So write it down

We should slow down

We’re in slo mo now

So write it down

We should slow down

We’re in slo mo now

So write it down

We should slow down

We’re in slo mo now

So write it down (Like we were in sloooo moooo)

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10/18/2022

Pick. Organize. Write! (POW!)

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PICK. ORGANIZE. WRITE! (POW!)

P is pick a topic

O is organize

W is write write

write write write

P O W!

Pick a topic organize and write

P O W!

Pick a topic organize and write

B-B-B-Brainstorm

a bunch of topics,

this is the very first step.

Write the topic on the middle

of your page,

List everything you know,

you can make a word web

Now that you’ve got

your thoughts

in front of you,

displayed, and out

of your head

It’s time to organize

with an outline, a map,

a writer’s best friend.

P O W!

Pick a topic organize and write

P O W!

Pick a topic organize and write

What is an outline?

It’s like a story’s skeleton,

a framework, essential tool.

Like a GPS for your car

to help your driver

get to school.

Just like a map, it directs you

where you’re going,

that’s why you create this first.

It’s not full sentences,

just small notes from which

your writing will emerge

P O W!

Pick a topic organize and write

P O W!

Pick a topic organize and write

P is pick a topic

O is organize

W is write write

write write write

Go!

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10/18/2022

Start Off With a Bang!

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START OFF WITH A BANG!

Start Off with a Bang!

Onomatopoeia!

Gotta have a HOOK!

Boom Shakalaka. Oh My!

Gotta have a HOOK!

Now that I’ve got your attention, you see how I hooked you in. You’re interested, engaged in the book or the story, maybe even worried! Is our character ok..?

You will never find out, unless you live through every word on every page.

Every single good book has an opening that starts out with a BANG!

Boom! Onomatopoeia!

Gotta have a HOOK!

Gotta have a HOOK

“Wait, stop!” cried mom. Use dialogue!

Gotta have a HOOK.

Gotta have a HOOK

The next thing that I knew – transitional phrase!

Gotta have a HOOK!

Boom Shakalaka! Oh My!

Gotta have a HOOK!

Here are a few tips you can use to hook your audience:

You can start with a word that is used for a sound, like “zip,” “zoom,” “splat,” “smash,” or “wham.”

It’s called an onomatopoeia. Use it on your reader.

The excitement will grab their attention quickly and they will be in the palm of your hand.

Here is another way, hook your reader by opening with dialogue. That’s using quotation marks to begin with something that a character says.

A transitional phrase is another way to keep your reader hooked, a sentence that keeps your story flowing that often has words like “next,” “last,” or “then.”

Chorus

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10/18/2022

Words Paint a Picture

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WORDS PAINT A PICTURE

My best friend Numbat came to me wanting to share about his summer.

We had been on vacation many weeks and I knew he’d have stories to tell me… about who he’d met, what he’d seen… when he went to where he had gone… why he left… how he traveled each way.

When I asked him, “So what did you do over break?” He replied, “I just hung out at home.”

Could you please elaborate?

Who, What, Where, Why, When, How?

You’ve got to explain a little more…

Close your eyes and recount!

Paint me a picture with your words.

Words paint a picture.

He stopped to think and squint his eyes, and then he opened them wide and smiled. He said, “My brother, mom and dad and I got to see a real crocodile!”

It turned out he had boarded a plane and flew down to Miami Florida to visit his uncle and his aunt that he hadn’t seen in something like seven years!

Then he said, “Oh yeah, and we went to a zoo…”

Could you please elaborate?

Who, What, Where, Why, When, How?

You’ve got to explain a little more…

Close your eyes and recount!

Paint me a picture with your words.

Words paint a picture.

“So I went to Zoo Miami. It was so cool. We saw elephants, crocodiles, otters, baboons… believe or not, I stood three feet away from two very large hippos who started to play… their bodies were massive, their jaws like shovels. We saw black rhinos, electric eels, and a toad. We saw flamingos, koalas, tigers (my favorites!)… um… I guess that’s pretty much it.”

Could you please elaborate?

Who, What, Where, Why, When, How?

You’ve got to explain a little more…

Close your eyes and recount!

Paint me a picture with your words.

Words paint a picture.

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10/18/2022

What Kind of Writer Are You?

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What Kind of Writer Are You?

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WHAT KIND OF WRITER ARE YOU?

What kind of writer are you?

Do you write about your life,

write narratives,

or write to share information,

share the expertise in your mind?

What kind of writer are you?

Do you wish that you could fly

into fantasy or,

write arguments for persuasion

maybe realistic fiction? Oh my!

A personal narrative

is a story from your life,

the moments that you’ve lived.

Maybe you’re an expert in

an aspect of non-fiction

a writer of information

What kind of writer are you?

Do you write about your life,

write narratives,

or write to share information,

share the expertise in your mind?

Do you dream that you could be

in a world made of your own

in a writer’s fantasy

Is your point of view unique,

are you passionate

and want to make a change?

Or maybe you just want to write

a story that could be real life,

a tale crafted with your imagination.

What kind of writer are you?

Do you wish that you could fly

into fantasy or,

write arguments for persuasion

maybe realistic fiction? Oh my!

What kind of writer are you?

Do you write about your life,

write narratives,

or write to share information,

share the expertise in your mind?

It’s time to make a choice and write.

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10/18/2022

Said is Dead

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Said is Dead

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SAID IS DEAD

She replied, he murmured,

I gasped

She explained, he shouted,

I asked

She proclaimed, he whispered,

I read

There’s so many superior

words to said

She retorted, he bellowed

I beseeched

She consoled, he clambered,

I screeched

She cried out, he acknowledged

and I pleaded

I now declare that the term “said”

has been defeated!

So long, goodbye, I’m afraid

the word said has died

This dialogue is stale

and predictable

The words we write are glass

slippers that fit just right

Said is dead! This is the funeral.

She demanded, he bellowed

I professed

She crooned, he mumbled

I confessed

She quivered, he emitted

I agreed

Don’t settle find the best

words to complete

So long, goodbye, I’m afraid

the word said has died

This dialogue is stale

and predictable

The words we write are glass

slippers that fit just right

Said is dead! This is the funeral.

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