如何有效组织初中英语写作思路
2018-06-11陆晔
【摘要】寫作是英语语言学习的重要内容。相对于听说技能,初中学生写作能力的发展相对滞后。本文结合教学实践中的经验和思考探讨了几种帮助学生组织、整理写作思路,并进一步拓展其思维深度的有效方法,以求优化写作教学过程、提升学生写作品质。
【关键词】写作教学;思维导图;配读文章;换位提问
【作者简介】陆晔,湖州市第五中学。
写作是英语技能的重要组成部分。英语写作水平是衡量学生综合语言运用能力的重要标准之一。在初中英语教学中,写作对师生而言都是一个难点。不少学生对写作有畏难情绪,经常感到无从下笔。有的学生词汇量和想法皆有,但一动笔,就条理紊乱、结构松散、思维狭窄、行文不畅。一线教师时常感到任务重、时间紧,对语言知识的讲授较多、对写作方法的研究较少。导致学生对写作既没信心,又无兴趣。在此,笔者就教学实践中的经验谈谈几种帮助学生组织、拓展写作思路的可行方法。
一、建构思维导图
思维导图(mind-map)是英国教育家托尼 · 巴赞(Tony Buzan)于20世纪60年代提出的有效的图形思维工具。它以绘图的形式直观地呈现人的放射性思维过程,使人的思想过程得以可视化。思维导图以特定主题为中心,将各级知识结构用相互隶属的层级图展现出来,以提高信息分析的效率。
在根据某主题展开论述时,很多学生觉得有话想说,但又感觉信息碎片如一盘散沙,杂乱无章。这时可用思维导图来整理思路。例如学生要描写其喜爱的一位老师,头脑中会浮现很多零散的词句“中等身材,长头发,有耐心,严格……”。但想了很多以后,还是无从下手。这时教师可引导学生小组讨论,用思维导图方式归类,明确从哪几方面着笔。然后具体讨论每一方面可写什么信息,用什么关键词。随后展开个人创作,增加独特的观察,融入不同的情感。最后,学生用连接词和过渡句把各部分串联起来,得到完整的个性化作文。例:
有了思维导图,学生对要写的东西就胸有成竹了。尤其对于基础较差的学生来说,更是为其搭建了有力的脚手架。思维导图的建构利用了小组合作的结果,同时教师也应留给学生足够独立思考的时间,并对个人作文中的独特观点进行点评分享。
二、选编配读文章
配读文章对于学生明确写作方向有很大的帮助。教师可以以不同的形式为学生提供相关作文主题的配读文章,让学生在已有知识经验的基础上进一步丰富写作视角、理清写作思路。如A Special Friend 一文,笔者从课外资源中选取了几篇和朋友相关的短文,有的描写具体的人、有的描写抽象的物,或幽默有趣、或感人至深。通过品读不同风格的语言材料,学生对其已有的英语知识和经验进一步创新加工,使写作内容和思路得到了拓展。此外,也可自编范文。教师自编文章是学生语言输入的途径之一,它为学生思维发展和语言输出搭建了支架。如 A/An _____ National Day Holiday 一文,笔者自编了2段文本,其主题相似,但选材角度不同。一段侧重描述在外游玩的旅程,一段描述在家陪伴父母的经历。
A Relaxing National Day Holiday
Though I didnt take a trip, I had a great holiday. Every morning, I made breakfast for the family so that my mom could get more sleep. After breakfast, I went to the market with her and decided what to eat for lunch. Home-made food was very delicious. After lunch, I helped do the dishes and sweep the floor. In the afternoon, I usually gave my dad a hand, such as gardening and car cleaning. After dinner, we took a walk around our neighborhood. I really enjoyed talking with my parents about their early life. We had a relaxing holiday together.
A Wonderful National Day Holiday
During National Day holiday, my family went to Shanghai Disneyland. There were so many Disney characters and attractions there. We were really excited. Hunny Pot Spin was my favorite. We sat in a pot and it turned and turned around. I felt like I was a butterfly. I also enjoyed Pirates of the Caribbean Battle because Captain Jack was a hero in my heart. My mom took lots of photos to share with friends. We also did some shopping in the shopping center. I bought something special—a dress with Mickey on it. As for food, we had famous Shanghai snacks. We had a wonderful time.
无论是自编范文还是利用各种书刊网络资源,配读文章都应起到帮助学生开拓写作思路、丰富写作内涵、激发表达欲望的作用。这些配读材料的组合往往存在着比较的因素,能拓展思维的深度和广度。教师应勤于收集和编写具有相同主题、相似写法或其他相通之处的文章。同时要注意两点:一是确保所选材料与写作主题的关联性,尽量贴近学生生活和时代发展。二是材料难易度要适应不同层次学生的“最近发展区”,能激发学生的写作潜力。
三、引导换位提问
写作的目的之一是满足读者的需求,因此可逆向而行,引导学生从读者角度出发换位思考。在写作之前,学生先推测读者对于这一文章主题会产生哪些疑问,明确作者与读者之间的信息差。具体操作时可先将文章分为3部分:开头、主体和结尾。先引导学生对每一部分进行提问,明确哪部分传递什么信息。而后学生以具体信息逐一回答问题,并用连接词把答案按照逻辑顺序串联起来。再加以修改、润色,最终形成完整的作品。
以记叙文为例,读者通常会用五个W和一个H来提问,即:what, who, when, why, where, how。在讨论My Trip to _____一文时,学生们列出了以下的提纲:
明确了读者想了解的信息,学生就可以独立用回答问题的方式来写作了。习作如下:
My Trip to Mount Tai
I went to Mount Tai with my parents yesterday. We took a bus there. The bus ride was a little boring. But when we got off, we were surprised to see the blue sky and green water. We started climbing at eight. There were many people climbing along the way. After 2 hours, I felt tired and stopped to have a rest. We had a picnic under a tree. Everything tasted delicious because we were really hungry. When we got to the top, we were so excited. The people there were very friendly. They helped us a lot when we got lost. It was a wonderful trip. I hope I can go there again!
在利用这种方式展开写作活动时,问题的有效性是值得关注的。应注意:1. 问题数量切勿过多,导致主次不分,模糊了学生的思考方向。2. 问题要有一定的梯度和发散度,能激发学生从不同角度和层次去思考,增加发现新问题的可能性。同时,教师作为指导者和参与者,也可设置一些有启发性的问题,以触发学生丰富的联想。
四、定制模型样板
样板(template) 本指工匠切割材料的模版。教师可根据写作任务的不同设计相应形式的样板,学生借助其框架表达个人的观点和见解。这种方法对于表达能力弱的学生或者初次接触某种题材写作的学生都有很好的支持作用。它能有效降低语言输出的难度,提高写作活动的质量。
以议论文为例,这一文体通常要回答下列问题:
Whats the matter?
What do some people think of it? Why?
Whats your opinion? Why?
因此,在A Good Way to Relax一文的写作任务中,教师可设计这样的样板:
Describe ways to relax
Describe your friends choice and your opinion about it (Why not…?)
Describe your choice and give 3~5 reasons with examples
Conclusion
通过这样的框架,学生能更简单清晰地明确写作任务的要求和方向。学生习作如下:
Reading — A Good Way to Relax
There are many ways to relax ourselves. Some people like shopping and others prefer sleeping. My sister loves travelling. She says travelling makes her feel free. I think its a good way, but not an easy way. Because travelling costs much money and time. In my opinion, reading is a good way to relax myself. First, it opens up the world to me. Reading makes my life colorful with different stories. Also, reading helps develop our interests. We can read about anything we are interested in. My hobby is collecting coins. For me, reading books about coins is like having an enjoyable talk. Whats more, reading is healthy for the mind. The more you read, the more you think. Thinking helps keep our mind active and clear. In a word, reading is an easy and fun way to relax.
五、结语
英语写作既是学习的过程,也是学生英语运用能力的形成和发展过程。因此,教师绝不能忽略英语写作教学。以上几种方法帮助学生降低了写作的难度、提高了写作的技能、引导了方法的形成,学生在写作过程中的自信心和成就感都得到了很大的提升。
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