Mini Mentor Texts - Crafting Success

Mentor Texts and You

Understanding how leading by example can lead us to success.

Mentor texts can help us to become more effective writers and critical readers. A miniature mentor text zooms the lens of read - reflect - respond to its core level.

In English we are all about using (and sometimes abusing), words, sentences, paragraphs and even whole texts.

Practicing the craft of writing using single words, or sentences, can help us to logically understand and improve our own writing.

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Why use a mentor text?

Instructional Goals

Today you will:

• Use mentor texts to practice drafting effective words and sentences by following the style and structure of the text

• Increase the complexity and variety of your sentences by mimicking the structure of of mentor words and sentences.

Sentence by Sentence Dissection

Sentence from the mentor text	​What is the author doing	​Your sentence using the model
"The woods are lovely, dark and deep, but I have promises to keep, and miles to go before I sleep."	​The writer uses assonance to create a musical quality in writing. The use of repeated soft vowel sounds (in "lovely", "deep", "sleep", and "keep") conveys the narrators sense of calm and peace.	​
"I would have written a shorter letter, but I did not have the time."	The writer is using wit and humour to create a sarcastic, dry observation about the challenges of writing. The use of irony is used to present a funny, and paradoxical statement.	​
​	​This sentence is a great example of how to use figurative language to create a vivid description. Hill's sentence uses the metaphor of a world washed clean by rain to describe the darkness of the sky, creating a sense of renewal and freshness.	​

​Miniature mentor text

​Sentence from mentor text	​What the author is doing	​Your sentence using the sentence as a model
​"The woods are lovely, dark and deep, but I have promises to keep, and miles to go before I sleep."	​The writer uses assonance to create a musical quality in their writing. The sentence uses repeated vowel sounds (in "lovely", "deep", "sleep", and "keep") to create a sense of rhythm and calm that mirror the narrator's feelings.	​
​"I would have written a shorter letter, but I did not have the time."	The writer uses tone to make a witty and wry observation about the difficulty of concise writing. The irony presents a humourous paradox to the reader using juxtaposition or contrast for effect.	​
​The sun was gone and the sky was filled with dark clouds, but it was a good kind of dark, like the world had been washed clean by the rain."	​The writer uses figurative language to create a vivid description. The writer uses the metaphor of a world washed clean by rain to imply the need for cleansing and to create a sense of renewal and freshness.	​

Your response using the mentor as a teacher.

​Sentence from mentor text	​What the author is doing	​Your sentence using the sentence as a model
​"I would have written a shorter letter but I did not have the time"	​The author is using humour, created by the paradox of the concepts of 'short' and 'time'. The humour is in the irony of the length of the sentence and the sentiment of the writer.	​I hate impatient people, I just don't have the time for them.

Open Ended

Now let's have a go at using the mentor sentence.

"The sun was gone and the sky was filled with dark clouds, but it was a good kind of dark, like the world had been washed clean by the rain."

Can you use figurative language to convey a sense of cleansing or renewal?

Poll

How would you rate your attempt at using a mentor text?

• Horrible! Just leave me alone to wallow in my failure.

• Not too bad, but I could have done better with a bit more focus.

• Good. I think I replicated the idea and purpose of the sentence.

• Amazing. Move of William Shakespeare, there's a new kid in town.