The Monsters Are Back in Second Grade

I am so happy the second graders will again participate in The Monster Project. It is one of my favorite projects as students learn about adjectives and the important role they play in helping writers "paint pictures with words." Using monsters as a vehicle, students exchange written descriptions via a wiki, and then recreate their partner's monster without ever looking at the "real thing". The project is a bit involved, requiring coordination with forty schools, but it is well worth the effort.

The kids have been partnered with the following schools: Mrs. Cameron - Miss Thaggard's 2nd graders - Calvary Day School, Savannah, GA Ms. Graham - Mrs. Aspaas's 3rd graders - Lewis and Clark Elementary, Minot, ND Mrs. McKenzie - Mrs. Mattes 2nd graders - Lincoln Elementary, Ottawa, IL Mrs. O'Mullane - Mrs. Oro's 2nd graders - Saint Michael School, Cranford, NJ

Here is a general time line of the project.

During week one, students listened to the story If You Were an Adjective by Michael Dahl. Next, they picked their favorite food and brainstormed at least ten adjectives to describe that food. They were challenged to move beyond simple adjectives such as good, fine, great, etc.

During week two, students were introduced to the project by viewing samples from last year's classes. We compared the original and redrawn monsters, focusing on the writing sent from our students. We looked at the different types of monsters drawn and discussed the importance of drawing monsters that could be described. Adding too many details may make writing the description very difficult. The students used Early Learning Toolkit to create their monsters and give them a name.

During week three (this week), students will create a Kidspiration web to brainstorm adjectives for their monsters. Back in the classroom, students will exchange webs and monsters with a classmate for additional adjective suggestions.

During weeks four, five and six, students will use Microsoft Word to type their written descriptions. The paragraphs will be reviewed by a peer as well as the teachers. These will then be sent to the partner school.

During week seven our students will recreate monsters from their partner school. These recreations will be added to the project wiki.

And then we wait. Hopefully, our partner schools will have our monsters back some time in early April. It will all depend on when their Spring Break falls. Stay tuned to future posts for project updates!