Letter to Santa 

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Write your Letter to Santa and you could win a Flip Utra Video Camera.

 

Write your letter on any sheet of paper and place it in the North Pole Post Office Box in front of Coulee Hardware by Thursday, December 18.

Letters will be displayed in the lobby of the Coulee Dam Federal Credit Union through the holiday.

 

Rules:

Categories

A: 10 years and under

B: 11 years through 17

Winner:

Most unique letter from each age group recieves a Flip Video Ultra Unit

Additional information:

Put your name, age, address, and phone number on your letter.

 

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How do you write a unique letter to Santa?

First:

Writing is NOT talk written down.

Writing is a thoughtful, committed arrangement of precise images and active events

that clearly express the writer's purpose (story, explanation, or opinion)

in interesting language that moves the reader's (the audience's) mind movie into the writer's vision.

 

Therefore:

Writing in your mind must be PLANNED.  Focus on one topic.

Plan, organize, and choose ideas and words before drafting.

 

Finally:

Revise your writing: reread it for precise words and detailed elaboaration, logical organization with transitions, interesting language using figurative language, and varied sentences (different lengths and different beginnings). Then edit your writing for spelling, capitalization, punctuation, sentence structure, grammar, paragraphing, margins, legibility, etc.

 

Prepare:

 

Preparation to write is planning the possible ideas, details, and precise words (nouns and verbs).

(Click here for advanced prewriters)

1: Prewrite Interesting Ideas:

What are not unique letters to Santa?

List what you would usually write to Santa.

 

So, what would a unique letter to Santa include?

Look at your original list.  Can you twist it into something special, unique, more in the "Spirit of Santa?"

List some ACTIVE requests of Santa.

List some unusual requests of Santa, things or wishes for kindness, memories, etc.

 

Ideas with a unique twist by grades 7 and 8:

 

• Time with my mom in the evening chatting
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• Digital camera to take snapshots of gramma, who is still sick and weak
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• Stronger YZ450F Yamaha motorcycle to ride with my dad more often and invite my friends
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• New car for my family; one that holds all eight of us and still gets good gas mileage; A Chrysler Van gets 26 mpg;
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• Christmas every day so that our family is always together, laughing and telling stories

 

 

2.  Look at your list and decide: 

What is my topic? __________________

Who is my audience?

What is my purpose?

 

What is the message, the main idea I want to explain/narrate/persuade to my audience about my topic:

 

 

_______________________________________________________________________________________________

 

Use our message idea to write a topic sentence:

 

 

_______________________________________________________________________________________________

 

3. Prewrite Interesting Ideas with elaboration:

 

Elaboaration (5Es) includes:

• elaborate: add more details

• explain: explain your idea

• experience: tell some experiences about your idea

• evidence: add evidence to prove your idea

• example: give examples (For instance, For example)

 

Think about your message. Write a new list or choose your ideas from your idea prewriting lists with nifty nouns and a list of details for each main idea. Choose one or more from your prewriting idea list, depending on how you want to present your request to Santa. Do you want a series of things or memories?  Do you have one special wish?  Always ask yourself: Am I adding to my message?

 

Your ideas with nifty nouns:    | Make a list with nifty nouns that elaborates on your idea-- what details (5Es) will thoroughly explain your idea to Santa

 

 

 

4. Prewriting for strong verbs

Look at your message and ideas.  Have you written nifty, specific nouns?  List the nouns you will write about, and then list strong, vivid, ACTIVE verbs for each noun.  Always ask yourself: Am I adding to my message?

 

Idea Nouns or Noun Phrases                            |  Strong Verbs or Verb Phrases

Digital camera                                                            will snap shots of my Grandma to save for my family

 

 

5. Organize.

Look at your ideas. Number them in a logical order.  Think about transition words.

 

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Dare:

 

Dare to write a first draft.

Now especially: Always ask yourself: Am I adding to my message?

 

 

Look at your prewriting. Reread your work.  Think about your message.  Start writing your letter.  Use many details, nifty nouns, and vivid verbs.

 

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Repair:

Repair your writing with revision.

 

How can you add a grabber beginning? 

• ask a question
• tell a story in two-three sentences that introduces your idea
• give an interesting fact

 

Reread your writing -- revise for:

• Names -- add precise words --nifty nouns
• Details -- detailed elaboaration -- more evidence
• Action -- strong verbs
• Organization (flow) -- logical organization with transition words 
• Varied sentences -- different lengths and different beginnings
• Interesting Language -- use figurative language (alliteration, consonance, assonance, simile, metaphor, personification, onomatopoeia, etc.)

 

How can you end your writing in an interesting way?

• Restate your message
• Give an example
• Tell what will happen because of your message.
• Ask a question

 

Review:

• Have I stayed on topic?
• Have I written to my audience?
• Have I written to my purpose?
• Am I convincing -- did I create interesting mind movies for the audience?

 

Proofread your writing:

• Edit for spelling, capitalization, punctuation, sentence structure, grammar, paragraphing, margins, legibility, etc.

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