This Lesson's Title:

Tasting an
Oxymoron

mixing two unusual flavors and describing the taste with details

This lesson was created by NNWP Teacher Consultant Corbett Harrison. You can access all of Corbett's on-line lessons by clicking here.

The ideal "mentor text" that can be used when teaching this on-line lesson is the novel Cannery Row by John Steinbeck. Before writing, students should listen to and discuss the writing style of this book's author, especially from chapter 17 of the book.

Click here to view this book at Amazon.com.

If you are a Washoe County teacher, click here to search for this book at the county library.

Three-Sentence Overview of this Lesson:

After enjoying the funny little passage from the novel, Cannery Row, where Doc orders a beer milkshake, tastes it, then tells the waitress that it tastes okay, writers will brainstorm other "oxymorons in taste." Writers will choose one oxymoronic food to write about, then they will plan a three-part story where they order the concoction. As they draft and revise, writers will work on taste sensation words and details. Teachers: click here to read the entire lesson plan.

6-Trait Overview for this Lesson:

The focus trait for this writing assignment is organization; before writing, students will carefully and thoughtfully pre-plan a scene that has three parts.  The support trait  for this writing assignment is idea development; choosing perfect sensory details related to sight and taste is the goal of the writer's final draft.