Harry Noden's Image Grammar

Let me just start out by saying I absolutely LOVE Noden's idea of image grammar. I just can't believe that he actually designed and created it. My cooperating teacher actually teaches it to her class for a creative writing unit. When she asked the class, "Who invented image grammar?" my jaw dropped and I instantly wanted to yell, "Harry Noden!" as the class sat silently waiting for the answer.

In the beginning of his book, Noden says on page 2 that "when an author lacks a visual eye, his or her writing has no heart and soul: images lie lifeless like cadavers in a morgue." Therefore, he created the five basic brushstrokes: the participle, the absolute, the appositive, adjectives shifted out of order and action verbs. I love all of them and I think they add a definite image to words, but I do have two favorites! I enjoy reading AND writing with the brushstrokes adjectives shifted out of order and action verbs. As I observed my cooperating teacher teach these, I think the students favored them as well. They had so many good examples for adjectives out of order, such as "The airport, a hub of activity, is located in Cleveland, Ohio." and "The airport, a place that never sleeps, is my destination." There were some other really good examples, but I didn't get a chance to write them down as I eagerly listened.

I love how at the end of each chapter Noden gives us activities that we could implement into the classroom. I really wanted to check out the website he gave us on page 24 of the text, but I couldn't get it! Did anyone have any luck with nando.net?

On pages 36-37, Noden gives us an idea that Janet Olsen, a teacher, created for students. The activity consists of students to write a description, draw and color an image of the description, discuss the drawing with a partner, and then revise the description after comparing it to the picture, to implement a creative writing activity. I absolutely love this idea! It not only gets students thinking creatively, but it teaches them to write with an image in mind. Another activity I like is explained on page 43, where random items are placed in various purses and students are separated into groups. They are to then examine the items and write a description about the owner. I think this would be fun!

Noden not only describes how brushstrokes are important, but other things in writing are too such as similes, metaphors, personification, etc. It's funny that I'm reading this book while I teach my unit of writing personal narratives because I feel like using such techniques is so fresh in my mind.

I also like how Noden goes into how to use certain punctuation and sentence fragments to entice readers. I think students assume that teachers always want detailed sentences with a whole bunch of adjectives to describe an image, but it doesn't have to involve that!

One activity that I found to be a little out there is described on page 137, "Perform a magic trick," where you tie a rope around your neck. I don't think I would do something like this! Would you? And why?

The last thing I wanted to talk about was Noden's section on writing introductory leads beginning on page 164. I remember this lesson vividly from his class I took last fall and I REALLY enjoyed it! I remember doing a series of leads to begin a lesson plan and I found them on my computer so I thought I'd post them on here! See below:

1. Statistical lead: “To be or not to be…” Can anyone name which play this is from or what author composed these lines? This author has written 37 plays (plays that have been found at least) and is one of the most famous writers of all time. Born in 1564 under the reign of Elizabeth I, he wrote plays in the form of comedy and tragedy. Some people think he is not the true writer of the plays and he is homosexual—myths or facts?
Lesson: Introduction to Shakespeare’s play, Hamlet. Students will get a general background of Shakespeare, a brief introduction to Hamlet and its history and then begin reading Hamlet together as a class.

2. Experimental Lead: Students will take a survival guide test assessing their knowledge if they would survive being on a stranded island just as the characters in William Golding’s Lord of the Flies do.
Lesson: This will be an introduction to Lord of the Flies, a novel about boys who experience a plane crash and become trapped on an island. The stranded boys become chaotic and almost inhumane deprived of general survival skill knowledge and leadership qualities. This lead will bring the class into a discussion on what would happen if a group got stranded on an island. Students will be able to put themselves in the shoes of the characters.

3. Surprise Lead: As students arrive to class, two teachers will be playing the role of the characters Romeo and Juliet, in Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. Teachers will speak in the language of Shakespeare’s time before class begins and will also be in costume. When the bell rings, the instructors will recite part of a scene aloud from the play Lesson: An introduction to Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. Acting it in front of the students will foster interest and allow for students to listen and try dissecting the meaning of the language.

4. Personalized Lead: Inform the class on the following issue: Pollution/littering and how to cut down on waste—the other day I saw a driver throw a banana peel out his window! Can you believe this? I mean first of all someone could slip (joke), but more importantly this is a form of pollution to our environment! Did you know that it takes a banana peel three to four weeks to decompose? I mean come on! This is 2009; we need to start to taking care of our environment. GO GREEN, right? Not only do people throw out banana peels, but they throw paper, plastic, Styrofoam, aluminum, even cigarettes and more into our environment. These things take even longer to decompose. Scientists estimate that an aluminum can takes up to 200-500 years to decompose. So why do people litter? Well, they are lazy, careless, not aware that they are littering, assume that others will pick it up, and probably dozens of other excuses. Something needs to be done about this, don’t you think?
Lesson: Students will research a problem within their community, school, workplace, etc, that they find as a major issue. They will discuss what the problem is, why it is a problem, and what can be done to eliminate it. Students will present the issue to class.

5. Imaginary Lead: Babies typically talk in babbles that adults can’t understand. But one day, while at the park, you’re sitting on a bench next to two babies. They start babbling, when all of a sudden you realize you can understand them. Even more, they are plotting a nefarious plan. Write this scene.
Or
Create a character that has an unusual phobia. Write a scene that causes that character to face his fear.
Lesson: This lesson could be used for a creative writing class and used as a prompt to engage students in writing a creative story. Several other prompts could be used so students can share their stories to the class.

I briefly browsed the CD that came with the book which is filled with images, but I'd like to find some more that could be used for classroom activities because I think there is SO MUCH you can do with image grammar. I wish I had more time to focus 100% on the book because I think it it extremely helpful for teaching students be creative in their writing.