On Hand: Two samples of your own writing, one that lacks fluency and one that sings. (Write each sentence on a separate line so beginnings can be compared.)

Mini-Lesson: Project the writing sample that lacks fluency. Here is my example:

I have two little dogs.

They are named Kenzie and Hattie.

They are fun to walk.

They like to eat treats.

            Tell students that this first attempt at writing chugs along like a slow-moving train-one that's about to break down. Have students bend their arms at the elbow and, moving them simultaneously, imitate that old nearly broken-down train: "Chug . . . chug . . . chug . . ." Show them that this writing "chugs" because almost every sentence begins with the same word and all of the sentences are the same length. (Have students count the words in the sentence with you.)

            Now project your second piece of writing. Here is mine:

I have two little dogs name Kenzie and Hattie.

They're fun to walk in the park.

After they've zipped around, saying hello to all the  other dogs, they bounce back to me for a treat.

Ask students, "Which of these pieces sounds better to the ear?" Guide them to understand that the varied beginnings and sentence lengths help to make the second piece more pleasant sounding. When writing is fluent, tell them, it sounds like a steady moving train. Have them imitate the melodious sounds of a smooth running train: "Clickerty, clickerty, clack, clickerkty, clickerty. clack . . . " or even, "Cha-ch-sh, Cha-ch-sh, Cha-ch-sh . . ."

            Suggest they try to write sentences that flow like a sweet sounding train.