【摘 要】小学英语写作教学要拓展写作话题,将课内外话题写出新意;在传授写作技巧的同时注重课堂情境创设;在加强学生词汇积累的同时发展学生写作的逻辑性、完整性和丰富性;注重思维训练和语言表达,使写的能力的培养融入教学的各个环节中。
【关键词】写作教学;写作题材;情境创设;思维训练
目前,小学英语写作教学存在如下一些问题:
1. 重课内话题,轻多样题材。写作的话题基本与单元内容一一对应,大多局限于书本的题材,学生对于要写什么不抱期待,写作缺乏与真实生活相联系的题材。
2. 重技能传授,轻情境创设。有些写作指导课虽然指导学生写作技巧,但缺乏情境创设,课堂生硬无趣。
3. 重语言内容,轻思维认知。写作内容低于学生的认知水平,作文思维含量低。
4. 重写前指导,轻写后打磨。许多写作课只注重写作前的指导,而缺乏对如何进行二次作文的指导。
本文将结合译林版《英语》教材以及部分课外题材,阐述写作教学的有效策略。
一、拓展写作题材,丰富写作话题
1. 引导观察体验,丰富课内话题
课内话题写作是夯实学生写作基础的必要过程。但如果总是让学生写与课内话题或课文标题相同的作文,久而久之,学生就会对写作失去兴趣。那么如何让学生不厌倦课内话题的写作呢?教师除了鼓励学生制作思维导图,从全方位进行描写外,更应引导学生仔细观察、用心体验,这样才能加入更多细节描写,把课内话题写出新意。
例如,五年级上册Unit 2 A New Student以杨玲向新生Nancy介绍新学校为话题,用there be句型介绍学校的各种教室和教室所在楼层。通常情况下,教师会要求学生按照文本的模式,用there be句型介绍自己的学校。学生的习作如下:
My School
My school is big and beautiful.
There are many classrooms in my school. There are two playgrounds in my school. There is a computer room in our school. It is on the first floor. There is a music room in my school. It is on the second floor. There is a library in my school. It is on the third floor.
I like my school.
(注:学生习作中的语言与表达未作改动,下同。)
上面这篇习作按照课文的模式把学校教学楼的情况写下来,仅仅停留在仿写的水平,既没有体现学校教学楼的美,也没有表达出对学校的情感。那么如何引导学生围绕话题,用更加丰富、生动的语言表达呢?
首先,教师用校园四季美丽景色的图片作铺垫,先让学生欣赏校园美景,引导学生说出校园的美,并提问:Which season do you like best in our school? What's in our school? 学生纷纷发言,有的介绍春天的花和草,有的介绍夏季的游泳池,有的介绍冬季雪景下的小河和教学楼。紧接着,教师出示教学楼的照片,并对学生说:You know the rooms in the building. What do you do in the library/music room? 由此引导学生说一说自己在学校各个地方做的事情或发生的故事。这样学生能从自己的内心感受、真实体验出发,写出真情实感。改写后的习作如下:
My School
My school is big and beautiful.
There is a river in our school and what's more, there are trees and flowers too. The river is clean and there are fish in it. The trees are short and green. Look at the flowers. They are red, pink, and yellow in spring. How pretty they are! There are many classrooms in my school. There are two playgrounds in my school. We often play football there. There is a computer room in our school. It is on the first floor. There is a music room in my school. We have music lessons there. There is a library in my school on the third floor. It is big and clean. We can read books there. We read books quietly. We are very happy.
What a lovely school. I love it!
修改后的作文以there be句型为基本句型,辅之以形容词、副词、细节描写、感叹句等。虽然还是课本话题,但多了自然、人文环境描述,表达了学生的真实体验和内心情感。
2. 充分操练语言,延伸课内话题
中低年级学生虽处于用英语写作的起步阶段,但话题也不能仅局限于教材,可将话题适度延伸,举一反三。
例如,四年级下册Unit 4 Drawing in the Park的写作教学中,教师先呈现一张在公园的图片,通过“When is it?/What do you see?/What do you do?/How do you feel?”等问题的引导,给学生提供写作的范例,帮助学生搭建支架,并传授写作技巧,在充分操练的基础上激活学生的语言储备。学生写作练习由 In the Park到On the Beach,自然转换,实现迁移运用。教师提供的课堂练习范例如下:
Fun in the Park
It is Sunday morning. It's sunny. Tom and Joe are in the park.
They can see a nice bird and some colourful balloons in the tree. They can also see a beautiful kite in the sky and some cute boats on the river. They sing and dance in the park. They jump high and skip happily.
They are very happy in the park.
一位学生的习作如下:
On the Beach
It is summer holiday. It's hot and sunny. Tom and Joe are on the beach.
They can see the blue sea and the hot sun in the sky. They can also see some children playing on the beach. They play ball games. They fly kites. They run and sail a boat. Then, they have a rest under the umbrella.
How happy they are!
这样的写作训练让学生运用已学词汇和句型进行创造性写作,不仅使学生写得好、记得牢,而且能使学生产生成就感,增强了他们学习英语的兴趣和动力(倪红娟,2020)。
3. 联系实际生活,整合课内外话题
课本中的很多话题与实际生活有一定关联。如果不鼓励和引导学生联系自己的真实生活,他们写出的作文容易千篇一律,缺少个性化。教师需将课本话题与实际生活相联系,整合成新的课外话题。
例如,四年级下册 Unit 3 My Day中的句型比较单一,以 “I ... at ...” 为主要句型,列出一天所做的事情。教师可引导学生写一篇题为A _____ Day的作文,学生根据亲身体验,有的写An Interesting Day,有的写A Happy Day,还有少数学生写A Boring Day。为了写出真实的一天,学生除了运用已有知识储备外,还主动查阅词典,扩充词汇量,丰富写作句型。
又如,学习了Chinese New Year的话题后,教师可引导学生结合自己的家庭情况写一篇题为The Spring Festival of My Family、My Summer/Winter Holiday或A Spring Outing的作文。这些话题来自生活,可充分激发学生的写作热情。
4. 故事写作,拓展课外话题
故事是小学生喜闻乐见的阅读形式,如果学生能用英文写故事或创编、续写故事,无疑能增强他们学习英语的信心。对于五、六年级教材中出现寓言故事的单元,不少教师由于担心学生不会写故事,因而不知如何在该单元进行写作拓展。其实,选好课外题材并给予恰当的方法指导,学生能写作富有创意的故事。
例如,教学完六年级下册Unit 1 The Lion and the Mouse后,教师首先通过课文总结出以下故事写作技巧:
Tip 1: 开头三要素(who、where、what),使故事背景清晰。
Tip 2: 过程三要素(when、why、how),使故事主体有逻辑。
Tip 3: 设计结局,使故事完整。
Tip 4: 加入对话,使故事活泼。
Tip 5: 形容词和副词使句子生动、形象。
Tip 6: 连接词使故事连贯。
接着,根据本单元Culture Time板块介绍的伊索寓言和中国成语故事,教师选择了中国成语故事《守株待兔》(Wait for Windfalls),用总结的六个故事写作技巧指导学生开展如下写作活动:
Tip 1: 开头三要素,使故事背景清晰。
There was a farmer. He lived in a village. He was busy and hardworking.
Tip 2: 过程三要素,使故事主体有逻辑。
One day, when the farmer worked in the field, a rabbit ran towards him. It ran too fast and hit a tree near the farmer. The rabbit died at once, and the farmer picked it up.
In the evening, the farmer took the rabbit home. He told his wife what happened that day. His wife was happy and cooked the rabbit. They ate the rabbit for dinner.
The next day, the farmer went to the same place. He didn't want to work. He waited for another rabbit to come and hit the tree again. He waited all day but no rabbits came.
Tip 3: 设计结局,使故事完整。
Two children went by and laughed at the farmer.
Tip 4: 加入对话,使故事活泼。
Farmer: Oh, a dead rabbit. Let me take it home for dinner.
Wife: The rabbit is ready. How lucky we are!
Farmer: What a yummy rabbit. Let me wait for another one tomorrow.
Farmer: Why didn't the rabbit come today?
Children: Ha, ha, ha! What a silly man!
Tip 5: 形容词和副词使句子生动、形象。
A rabbit ran towards him quickly.
It hit the tree very hard. The farmer took the rabbit home happily.
They ate the rabbit for dinner happily.
“Why didn't the rabbit come today?” said the farmer sadly.
Tip 6: 连接词使故事连贯。
Long long ago, ... One day, ... In the evening, ... The next day, ... Finally, ...
通过提炼出的故事写作技巧,学生能按照步骤看图写话,写出的故事在条理性、逻辑性、连贯性方面都增强了。写作时学生展开想象,创编对话,写出很多有创意的内容。除了此故事外,学生还能够运用上述写作技巧写出The Fox and the Grapes、The Crow Drinks Water等耳熟能详的故事。
二、创设完整情境,打造灵动课堂
真实、自然的教学情境能为学生营造优化的学习环境,引导学生积极探究,使学生在愉快的心境中学会思考(倪海棠,2016)。教师应通过创设教学情境,以任务为驱动,以活动为载体,使学生体验写作教学的全过程。写作指导课要有技巧的指导,也不能忽视情境的创设。在创设情境时,要注意情境的完整性和趣味性,同时将写作技巧指导融合在情境中。
1. 情境主线贯穿,体现完整性
完整的课堂情境能让一节课条理清晰。例如,在六年级上册 Unit 4 Then and Now的写作课中,教师可引导学生以Mike和Su Hai一家观看国庆阅兵为情境,以Mike采访Su Hai的爷爷奶奶30年前的情况和现在的变化为主线,教学中穿插连词的使用、细节描写、划分段落等技巧指导,最后让学生帮助Mike把采访内容写成一篇新闻报道。以下为采访内容:
(Mike在采访Su Hai的爷爷。)
Mike: Hi, Grandpa Su! What was your life like thirty years ago? Please tell me about how China has changed.
Grandpa Su: Yes. Thirty years ago, we lived in small and shabby houses. But now we live in tall buildings. What's more, traffic changes very fast! Thirty years ago, we went out by bike or on foot. Later we went out by bus. But now we go out by car or by DiDi. And we can also ride shared bicycles.
教师让学生听读Mike和Su Hai的爷爷的对话,找出连接词和过渡句,如but、later、 and、or、what's more等,从而引导学生认识到连接词能使文章的表达更为通顺。
(Mike在采访Su Hai的奶奶。)
Mike: Hi, Grandma Su! How has life in China changed in the last few years? Please tell me about how China has changed.
Grandma Su: Many years ago, I did housework every day, so I was very busy and tired. But now I have a robot. He can do many things for me, such as cleaning and cooking. He is very clever and helpful.
学生听读Mike和Su Hai的奶奶的对话后,教师鼓励他们展开想象,添加细节。比如,针对“But now I have a robot. He can do many things for me.”这句话,教师提问:What things can he do? 学生回答:He can clean rooms and cook. He can wash dishes. 从而引导学生总结出细节描述可以使文章更为生动。
本节课情境逼真,与生活实际紧密结合,主线贯穿始终,使学生在情境中习得写作技能,体现了课堂的整体性。
2. 情境与时俱进,体现趣味性
写作课应重视写作技能的教学,但单纯教学写作技能枯燥无味。为改变这一情况,教师应重视创设写作情境。创设写作情境时,一要体现趣味性,二要结合当下,与时俱进。
例如,六年级上册 Unit 4 Then and Now的写作课中,教师可以设置如下情境:全家在观看国庆阅兵直播时,爷爷奶奶讲述国家几十年的变化。之后,可要求学生根据爷爷奶奶的讲述写一篇关于我们国家几十年变化的小短文。由于都是热门话题,容易引发学生的写作兴趣。
教师还可以利用小学生喜闻乐见的动画人物和故事,激发学生写作的动力。例如,六年级下册Unit 7 Summer Holiday Plans写作课中,教师可以根据本单元Cartoon Time中Bobby和Sam将要去环球旅行的情节,设计本节课的旅行路线:
旅行第一站——英国,通过Watch and Answer、Look and Say、Watch and Tick等活动,逐步呈现where、how、what、who、when、how long这几个旅行计划的重要信息,并介绍如何利用思维导图制定旅行计划。
旅行第二站——美国,用听的方式完成Sam的思维导图并呈现旅行计划,让学生认真观察,找一找Sam旅行计划的亮点,总结写作方法。
旅行第三站——澳大利亚,鼓励学生帮助Bobby和Sam完成旅行计划。
旅行第四站——中国,结合当前疫情的实际情况,建议学生选择国内游,并通过视频展现中国的大好河山,完成旅行计划即本节课的写作。
童趣化的教学情境为学生营造了优化的学习环境,使学生在愉快的心境中自然习得、学会思考,并能引导学生积极探究,提升思维能力、语言组织能力和写作能力。
3. 情境与写作技巧有机穿插,相辅相成
写作课的情境创设是为了让写作技巧的教学更自然和有趣,那么应如何有效地将情境创设与写作教学相结合呢?例如,六年级上册Unit 3 Holiday Fun写作课中,教师在简要回顾课文后,创设The Brown's Memory的情境,以老布朗夫妇在中国几个城市的旅游回忆为主线,将情境、写作技巧和写作形式相结合。
片段1:出示1989年老布朗夫妇在北京天安门拍的全家福照片。之后,通过呈现思维导图,并利用课件,以老式打字机的形式打出了1989年他们在北京旅游的日记。(Tip 1: Writing is fun with the help of a mind map.)
片段2:出示1996年老布朗夫妇在杭州西湖拍的全家福照片。之后,通过给出关键词语让学生写明信片的方式实现语言输出。(Tip 2: Writing is fun with the help of key words.)
片段3:出示2001年老布朗夫妇在泰山拍的全家福照片。之后,通过给出图片,以让学生写电子邮件的形式进行输出。(Tip 3: Writing is fun with the help of pictures.)
片段4:出示2018年老布朗夫妇在苏州过春节时拍的全家福照片。之后,通过给出关键问题,让学生以微信对话的形式进行输出。(Tip 4: Writing is fun with the help of questions.)
教师在创设情境时要做到集知识性和趣味性于一体,只有把学习内容置于完整且有意义的情境中,写作技巧的指导才能水到渠成。
三、加强思维训练,完善写作语言
写作能力的培养过程也是思维训练的过程,思维的高低决定了书写的逻辑性、条理性,写作的速度反映思维的速度。写作能力与语言能力、思维能力既相互促进,又相互制约。
1. 引导观察,诱发想象
小学生在英语写作的起步阶段通常以写实物为主,如描写动物、人物。教师应引导学生仔细观察动物与人物的特征。随着年级的升高,会涉及节日、活动类写作,教师应引导学生联系生活实际,写出个性化作文。对于话题比较抽象的写作,教师应引导学生展开想象。例如,六年级下册 Unit 8 My Dream的写作课上,教师可以如此引导学生进行写作:Your dreams are very beautiful! Dreams are like stars. They are very bright! 同时,教师向学生传授用like进行比喻的写作方法。学生根据教师给出的图片完成如下填空练习:
Dreams are like rainbows. They are very bright.
Dreams are like flowers. They are very beautiful.
Dreams are like lollipops. They are very sweet.
在教师的鼓励和图片支架的帮助下,学生敢想敢说,在作文中加入了诗歌的韵味,美感不言而喻。
2. 理清思路,加强逻辑
小学生写作时往往想到哪里写到哪里,思维比较凌乱,缺乏逻辑性。教师在此方面应加强指导。例如,四年级上册Unit 1 I Like Dogs的写作话题为Animals I Like。在开展写作指导前,学生根据所学课文写了如下习作:
I have a cat. It is black. It likes fish. It is big.
It can run. It has two small eyes.
I like my cat.
该篇习作写出了小猫的部分特征,但描述缺乏逻辑性。教师应指导学生首先根据写作话题确定写什么,鼓励学生画出思维导图(如下图)或者列出提纲,并确定先描写什么,后描写什么。如针对宠物,一般先描写外貌特征,再描写喜好、能力等。
经过指导,学生的写作在逻辑性上有很大的进步。以下是一位学生的习作:
I have a cat. It has two small eyes. It is black. It is big. It can run fast. It likes fish. It can eat lots of fish every day. How cute! I like my cat.
3. 积累词汇,丰富语言
(1)加强词汇积累
词汇量少往往会影响思维的表达。教师应鼓励学生通过课外阅读、生词摘抄等方式加强词汇积累,并在写作指导课上针对特定话题进行词汇扩充。例如,四年级下册 Unit 5 Seasons 的写作指导课上,教师可以帮助学生扩充如下一些词汇:
气候类:cold, chilly, nice and cool, burning hot
食物类:have hot pot in winter, have crabs in autumn, have watermelons in summer
活动类:go hiking, have fun at the beach, collect shells, sail boats
(2)丰富写作语言
小学生写作语言一般比较简单,往往缺乏细节描写,因此指导学生学会细节描写尤为重要。教师在课堂上可以出示两篇习作,让学生作比较,找出哪些是细节描写;也可以在课堂上适时进行细节追问。
例如,六年级上册Unit 4 Then and Now的课文中有 “Six years ago, Mike could read and draw, but he could not write. Now he can do many things.”这样的句子, 教师针对此句话提问学生:Can you guess what things he can do now? 学生回答:For example, he can run fast. He can swim fast. He can play basketball well. He can help his parents and do housework. He is very helpful. 教师的追问让学生深入思考,补充细节描写,习作灵动自然。
又如,关于My Friend的写作话题,一位学生的习作如下:
This is my friend. His name is Cong Cong. He is tall and thin. He can sing. He has a dog. He likes to play with me.
教师应启发学生使用形容词、副词或描述性语句来描写细节。教师可以提问:Is he handsome? Can he sing very well? What is his dog like? What does he often do with you? 通过提问,学生加入了如下一些细节描写:
This is my good friend. His name is Cong Cong. He is tall and thin. And he is a handsome boy. He can sing very well. He has a small and white dog. It often says “Woof! Woof!” He likes to play with me. And we often do homework together.
通过教师追问,学生发挥想象,思维能力提升的同时写作能力也在潜移默化中提高。
(3)增强篇章完整性
很多学生的习作缺乏开头与结尾,教师可以采用比较的方法,让学生切身体会开头与结尾的重要性。例如,在六年级上册Unit 7 Protect the Earth的写作指导课上,教师呈现了两篇学生的习作,引导学生思考哪篇作品好,好在哪里。
[习作A]
Protect the Earth
The Earth is our home. We should protect the Earth. What should we do to protect it?
We should save water. And we should reuse water, too. We shouldn't cut down too many trees. Trees help keep the air clean. We should save energy. We can take the bus and the subway to school. We can also walk to school.
The Earth is so beautiful. Let us protect our homeland together.
[习作B]
Protect the Earth
We should not waste water. We should reuse and save it. We should not drive too much, because cars use a lot of energy. We shouldn't cut down too many trees, because trees help keep the air clean.
学生普遍认为A篇比较好,因为A篇不仅篇幅长,而且有完整的结构(beginning、 body、ending)。教师再继续指导学生如何写开头和结尾,即开头作介绍,结尾作总结;并给出一些常用句型,如:This is .../I have a .../How ... it is!/What a ...!
四、用好评价手段,进行写后指导
写后指导即根据学生写的情况,针对作文中具体的方面,如文章结构、文章内容、词组搭配、句型结构和单词拼写等,进行更有针对性的讲评。在讲评时要注意以下几点:
1. 基于共性问题而讲评。学生写作文时会运用到所学的知识点,其中的重难点知识在被迁移运用到作文中时容易出现共性错误,教师应针对共性错误进行集体讲评。
2. 基于个性问题而讲评。不同水平的学生,作文的质量不同,出错点不同。教师的点评也应该关注学生的个性问题,使学生能得到有针对性的指导;教师的评价要深入到学生的本质问题,如:I know you had a happy summer holiday. Can you share more happy moments with us? 引导学生加入更多细节描写。
3. 鼓励学生自评、互评。教师不仅要指导学生根据评价标准找出彼此的问题,还要鼓励学生找出好词佳句以及清晰的框架结构,互相分享学习。
写作能力的培养需要教师积极引导,帮助学生树立信心,消除畏难情绪;教师还应创设丰富的课堂情境,引导学生仔细观察事物,启发学生思考,阐述自己的观点,以便在写作中有话可写;将听、说、读、写四种练习相互结合,进行多元化练习,把写的能力的培养融入教学的各个环节中,使各项能力相互影响、相互渗透,从而提升学生的综合语言运用能力。
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参考文献
倪海棠. 2016. 创设英语课堂教学情境的问题与对策[J]. 中小学外语教学(小学篇),(4):35-40.
倪红娟. 2020. 依托教材提升小学高年级学生的英语写作能力[J]. 中小学外语教学(小学篇),(4):6-13.
译林出版社. 2012. 义务教育教科书·英语(三年级起点) 四年级下册、五年级上册、六年级上册、六年级下册[T]. 南京:译林出版社.
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注:本文为苏州市“十三五”规划2019年度立项课题“小学英语写作教学的实践研究”(批准号:192011394)的阶段研究成果。
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附作者信息:张磊 江苏省苏州国际外语学校