in the loop: writing what you see..

We have established a weekly routine for individual writing assignments, using a new technique for a writing prompt. This typically involves the films we use for Literature. I select very brief clips - around 20 seconds or so - and on the laptop I can set this clip on a repeating 'loop'. This is projected on the Smartboard and the students use their laptops to write what they see. The goal is for them to try and be as accurate as possible, which means including all the dialog they see, plus actions and expressions. The next step will be to add relevant information that is not always explicit in the clip: such as setting, background, emotions and thoughts. As I said to one student who was working with Chaplin's The Kid, if there is something touching in the movie clip, then I want to be touched in the same way by your writing. We have a good editing process in place, and I am seeing improvements in their first drafts.