Sharon Watson, Author at Writing with Sharon Watson-Easy-to-use Homeschool Writing and Literature Curriculum

The Problem with Storage Units

Self-storage units are springing up in the United States like mushrooms in a warm, shady, moist lawn. You see those units around town with the garage doors lined up in row after row and perhaps wonder what could be behind all those doors.

When people have too much furniture or too many belongings in their houses or they move to a new location, they need a space to store that stuff.

Or maybe an entrepreneur sells items on eBay and needs the storage space for them. That’s where storage units come in very handy.

And it’s all a lot of fun until someone can’t pay the monthly rent anymore.

What happens to these storage units full of belongings when the rent is not paid?

Create a Warning

MIDDLE SCHOOL PROMPTS

Did you know that you should not spray Windex in your eyes? You did?

But did you also know that you should not use hair coloring as ice cream topping? Hmmm? Did you? Or that your TV’s remote isn’t dishwasher safe?

These and other crazy warnings

Help Your Students Avoid These Three Mistakes in Persuasive Writing

SHARON’S BLOG

It’s easy for our students to make these common mistakes in persuasive writing. I’ve seen them in any number of newspapers and magazines in letters to the editor, and they abound in student essays. I’m guessing you have seen them as well.

I won’t keep you in suspense. Here’s the list:

HIGH SCHOOL PROMPTS

The Florida Everglades’ delicate and balanced ecosystem is being threatened by new species of plants and animals that have no natural predators. For instance, Old World climbing fern, which is not native to Florida, is smothering plants that grow naturally there and that are needed for food and protection to other species.

The Burmese python, which used to be imported to Florida for pet stores,

SHARON’S BLOG

Introductions can be boring. Super boring.

Young writers think they have to fight with a blank piece of paper for that first, amazing sentence before they write anything else, and so they get stuck.

Cue the tissues. But it doesn’t have to be that way.

A mom recently asked me to look at her son’s essay. He was entering a state-wide speech contest on the topic of responsibility and had written a solid essay—except for the introduction. He was going to put his listeners to sleep with it.

We were all sitting at his kitchen table. I turned to this teen and asked him,

The world lost an important poet, writer, and human being in 2014.

On May 28, 2014, Maya Angelou, author of I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings and other famous books, died quietly in her sleep. You can learn more about her here.

Maya Angelou wrote many memoirs about her fascinating life. One of them is The Heart of a Woman, from which the following two quotes are taken.

My Fellow Students: A Graduation Speech

HIGH SCHOOL PROMPTS

It’s that time of year when everyone likes to give advice about the future—your future!

Yes, it’s close to graduation time!

Graduation speeches

Colleges and universities enjoy speeches from such luminaries as actor Denzel Washington, poet Billy Collins, documentary producer Ken Burns, actor Matthew McConaughey, Bill Nye (the Science Guy), and former President Obama during commencement.

Here’s a quote from actress Sandra Bullock at the Warren Easton Charter School’s graduation in New Orleans:

Coupons

SHARON’S BLOG

I recently cleaned out my purse and found seven expired coupons, most of them for clothing and craft stores. Now that you know how disorganized I am . . .

These coupons gave me an idea for a prompt you can do with your children.

Why do I suggest that you write with your children? When they see you writing, they learn that it’s a legitimate activity in which they can have success. Plus, it’s a lot of fun to read the results to each other. You might be surprised at what you learn about your kids.

Mozilla Ousts CEO for Belief in Traditional Marriage: Write the Dialog

HIGH SCHOOL PROMPTS

What happens when the CEO of a large corporation supports traditional marriage? And what happens when he gives money to a political campaign to support traditional marriage?

FYI, we’re using the term “traditional marriage” to mean the marriage between one man and one woman.

Mozilla, a software company based in California, recently came under fire when some people discovered that their new CEO Brendan Eich had

Luck: Is it Real?

MIDDLE SCHOOL PROMPTS

Maureen Wilcox bought two lottery tickets in 1980, one in Rhode Island and one in Massachusetts. And she picked winning numbers. Was she lucky?

According to mental_floss magazine , the numbers she chose for the Massachusetts lottery were the winning numbers for the Rhode Island lottery. And the numbers she chose for the Rhode Island lottery were the winning numbers for the Massachusetts lottery. So was she unlucky?

You’ve heard of superstitions: don’t let a black cat cross your path, pick a four-leaf clover for luck, be on the winning end of the wishbone, a lucky stone or rabbit’s foot, and so forth. But do they work? Are they real?