Hooking students is a challenge in any classroom, but for students who don't necessarily excel in school, or even want to be in school, it can be a little more complicated. "Dear Amanda" is a hilarious collection of letters that Joey writes to his ex-girlfriend.
When I teach the text, I teach it as a read aloud. Students fold their paper to create two columns, one column is labeled "Summary", the other "Prediction." After each letter, I ask students to summarize what just happened in Joey's letter. Answers range from the most concrete summaries to in depth analyses of Joey's mental state. Then students get to predict what will come next. Most predict a response from Amanda that never seems to come.
The letters usually bring a lot of laughs to the classroom, but the biggest laugh comes with the final writing assignment. After completing all of the letters, I ask students to write one more. They can write as Joey, Amanda, or even this elusive Francisco who is mentioned in the text. I encourage students to use only school appropriate language. After the lesson, nearly every hand is raised to read their work to the class.
This is one of my all-time favorite mini-lessons that reviews summaries, predictions, and gives me further formative writing assessments. Students can go back and revise their letters for grammar and structure to add writing skills into the lesson as well. If you think you're students can handle this hilarious text, you'll definitely get some interest and writing from even the most reluctant writer.
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