Piddle, PEE and Wee!

‘Tis the season of exams, acronyms and practice essays. The exam season is now in full flow. Remember to use ARTWARS. Remember to PEE. Remember to PEEL. I was recently part of a Twitter discussion about the value of PEE (Point Evidence Explanation). Like most things, the discussion got nowhere. Some like it. Some hate it. This, I think, should be the motto for Twitter: Some hate, some like. I, like some, use PEE, but I use it sparingly and I always adapt the structure depending on the context. For the less able students, it is a great set of coat pegs to hang things on. For the more able students, it is a ball and chain that holds them back. Now, I am not going to write a lengthy analysis on ‘to PEE or not to PEE’, instead I want to explore the idea of formulating writing.   

Do we use enough formulae in our writing? As English teachers, we search for patterns and connections in texts, yet do we teach linguistic patterns in our writing? Do we teach patterns enough in lessons? Or do we spend most of our time teaching techniques and features of writing?  

I remember my interview for my PGCE and in the interview I raised the issue of using mathematical approaches to writing. I was aghast at such an idea, but like most things in teaching, after time and a few gins I am starting to see that maybe, on some level, it has some legs.

Last year, I did some Inset on report writing. It wasn’t that the report writing in the school was bad; it was just that there wasn’t any consistency in style. The style of the report varied from person to person and subject to subject. We needed a formula to help people structure their writing. To help them with making the style of their writing consistent.

 The formula was:

 Name  -  he /she – his/her – name

Now, it wasn’t an epiphany moment. It wasn’t really ground breaking. It was, instead, a pattern to adhere to, and people did. Their sentences followed the pattern. The rhythm that we had set.

Chris has made excellent progress this year. He has had his writing published in two books this year. His ego is clearly increasing as a result. Chris must understand that two bits in two books does not make his an established author.

This pattern allowed for clear writing. It allowed for variety and cohesion. But, it was a formula that I taught. Sadly, report writing is never explicit taught to teachers. It is something we are expected to be able to do. But, do we use any linguistic patterns in our teaching of writing. Yes, I teach them great words. Yes, I teach them clever techniques. Yes, I teach them some clever sentences. But, do I teach them patterns in writing. Do I? The answer is plainly: no. The closest I get to patterning is teaching rhetoric, but it is no cigar.

Having young children you realise how patterns and the order of words are explicitly taught through songs or even through saying the words.

All together now: Mon-day, Tues-day, Wednes-day, Thurs-day, Fri-day, Satur-day, Sun-day

Don’t forget: One times two is two. Two times two is four. Three times two is six.

That rhythmic pattern becomes ingrained. It becomes natural to students. It becomes second nature. Yet, we don’t apply a formula to writing. We expect students to make endless choices about their writing. We apply general formulae to genre, yet on grammatical level we don’t consider a formula. We give students a structure for writing like PEE, but we don’t give them a pattern for the real ‘nuts and bolts’ of writing. Would teaching students the following pattern help a class to write an effective analysis?

Name / writer / author /Surname

Susan Hill uses the setting of funeral in daylight to reflect the woman in black’s power. The writer’s use of sunlight and the sighting of a ghost surprises the reader as the two wouldn’t be usually associated together. This links to the author’s use of a nursery and presentation of things we normal expect to be safe and free from supernatural events. Hill clearly wants to invert the traditional conventions of a ghost story.  

We have all marked a piece of work and groaned internally we have read thirteen ‘the writer’s in one paragraph.  But, have we ingrained the pattern of cycling the possible nouns you could use? May be this use of patterns need to be ingrained more in the teaching of English. If we regularly use the patterns, then students will probably internalise the pattern more.

Does this patterning of things or formula work in other places?

1^st person narratives  I / my / the / we

I felt the sunlight gaze its eyes over my back. My skin burned. The window was open. We usually keep the window closed. I knew something was wrong. My gut instinct was to get up. The house was silent.

Persuasive writing -  you / we / some / our

 You have probably have never voted before. We have heard so much about politicians and their claiming of expenses. Some even think they have a right to steal from the taxpayer. Our hard-earned money is being wasted to fund a politician’s birdbath.

Clearly, I am focusing on nouns and pronouns in the blog, but maybe there is some scope for using verbs or adjectives. Or, something else.

 Present / Past / Future – The clock ticks. The battery was replaced yesterday. Maybe he will replace it with a new, digital one tomorrow.

 Sight / sound / touch – Sprinkles of light floated in and out of the shafts of sunlight. The slow creaking of wooded floorboards hid the rumble of traffic outside. The smooth boards were smothered with a thin carapace of dust and dirt.

 

Now, the title of the blog: Piddle, Pee and Wee. It is all about patterns and patterns of words. We like to use easy to remember patterns. Step forward: PEE. Maybe we just need to be more sophisticated with our patterns. Rather than a blanket for all pattern, we pick a pattern that works well for the task or text. We teach patterns rather than things. Good writers use patterns and connect words and idea together in interesting ways. And, the great thing about patterns is that you repeat it. Again. And again.  


Thanks for reading, 

Xris

P.S. Although this blog isn't really linked to 'Writing Tools' by Roy Peter Clark, I'd like to acknowledge that Clark's book has made me reflect on writing more than anything I have read in the last ten years.  

Of Mice and Men and symbols

I make no apologies for this, but my blog’s content is often inspired by my teaching that week or what I am planning to teach next week. This week, I am doing a bit of both. Most of us are in that awful stage that is the equivalent of holding someone’s hand over a cliff. You can see you haven’t much time as your grip on their hand is weakening. They could plunge or they might at the last minute find something else to hold on to. I mean: the last few lessons before the Year 11s sail off into the sunset.

Like most of us, we are cramming and hoping that something sticks. The lessons tick by and we panic that there is less and less time. The help sheet left on the desk becomes a symbol of a missed chance, less marks in the question or a defiant student.

Over the years, I have learnt that less is best in the revision process. It is better not to revise everything, but focus on a few key things and subtly cover a few more things along the way. This week we were preparing for the ‘Of Mice and Men’ Literature exam. We were looking at extracts and analysing them in detail. During those lessons, I came across two symbols.

 

Symbol 1: The red shoes, nails and lipstick of Curley’s wife symbolise danger.

 

Symbol 2: Curley’s wife is only seen in buildings in the novel which symbolises how women are trapped and locked away in society.

 

Both comments were made by the same student. But, for me, they highlight an aspect of teaching that might help my Year 11 students. The use of symbolism. Or, importantly, how to make effective comments about symbolism. Both comments warrant merit, but for me the second one is insightful, and shows original thought. The other, dare I say it, is clichéd and predictable. There’s the obvious thing to say and there is the not so obvious to say. And, I’d even go so far to say that the ‘not so obvious’ is what we aim to develop in students, but often or not we teach them the ‘not so obvious stuff’.

Then symbols then started to roll out in the lesson and I came up with one:

Symbol 3: Slim’s smoothing of his crumpled hat symbolises his role in the novel; he fixes the problems on the farm.

Symbol 4: Curley’s hair is curly to symbolise his lack of masculinity.

Symbol 5: Curley’s curly hair symbolises his tightly wound personality. Like a tightly wound spring, he is ready to pounce.

 

But, aside from being original, what makes some symbols better than others? It is the connection with something far greater in the story. The structure. The plotting. The themes. The writer’s intent.

Take symbol 1 again:

The red shoes, nails and lipstick of Curley’s wife symbolise danger.

Becomes, when linked to other aspects:   

The red shoes, nails and lipstick of Curley’s wife symbolise a desire to be noticed and how she is so different to others in the farm. (theme)

The red shoes, nails and lipstick of Curley’s wife symbolise danger for the reader. This ‘red’ is a warning to the reader that she will cause trouble for the protagonists. (structure)

So, I am going to work on looking at linking symbols to the wider picture. But, what else develops an explanation of a theme? A connection. A student’s understanding of a novel is what usually shows in an explanation. Those that make links to other aspects make better explanations than those who don’t.

Symbol 3: Slim’s smoothing of his crumpled hat symbolises his role in the novel; he fixes the problems on the farm.

Becomes:

Symbol 3: Slim’s smoothing of his crumpled hat symbolises his role in the novel; he fixes the problems on the farm such as when Curley’s hand is crushed. Slim takes charge and resolves the conflict.

Then, there is the alternative interpretation:

Symbol 3: Slim’s smoothing of his crumpled hat symbolises his role in the novel; he fixes the problems on the farm such as when Curley’s hand is crushed. Slim takes charge and resolves the conflict. Or, the smoothing of the hat could symbolise just how perfect he is.

Next week, we are going to look a symbols in another text and look at developing insightful explanations about symbolism.

We’ll focus on events and objects.

We’ll explore the deeper meaning.

We’ll explore the links to the structure, themes and ideas.

We’ll explore the links to other parts of the novel.

We’ll make alternative interpretations.

 

Oh, but then there are metaphors – and those are a just a little bit more complex.

 

The grass outside needs cutting. It is a symbol of my tardiness. It stands tall and unkempt. It is a symbol of my role in the household. But it is a metaphor for ….

Thanks for reading,

Xris32