Writing Assignment: Gratitude

This lesson uses a beautiful and moving video by time-lapse film-maker Louis Schwartzberg and encompasses the themes of gratitude, beauty and nature. Students will write sentences about gratitude, speak about what they are grateful for, watch a video, and write a short composition.

Original Lesson found on Film English and modified for use in Mrs. White's Classes

Downloadable original lesson materials: gratitude lesson instructions from Film English

Step 1

Look at the word written on the board.

GRATEFUL

What does the word mean. 

Now, write a sentence or two, which shows the meaning or feeling of the word.

HERE is an example sentence:

I’m really grateful for having a loving family.

NOTE:  Your sentence(s) should show or help the reader feel THANKS. In other words, try to elicit the meaning (feeling or showing thanks).

Step 2

Think about what you have to be grateful for and write 10 sentences.  Each sentence should start: 

I'm grateful for...

Sample Sentence:

I’m grateful for the friends I have.

I’m grateful for having a job I like.

Step 3

Share your sentences with your group and compare the things you are grateful for. 

Step 4

Groups will share the items that were similar on everyone's list and ones that were different. 

Are there any common themes we see in all the groups?  Are the things you are grateful generally big ideas/concepts or small.

Step 5

Watch the video entitled Gratitude.

Review:  Gratitude is an abstract noun from grateful. 

Note: The person who presents the video is the film-maker Louis Schwartzberg.

After viewing the film answer the following questions:

How does Louis describe his films?

What is time-lapse photography?

What does Louis say we can learn from nature?

What does Louis say we should be grateful for?

What’s the girl’s perspective of nature?

Do you like the young girl’s perspective and do you think it is a typical perspective of a young child.

What does the elderly man say we should be grateful for?

 
What does the elderly man say we should open how hearts to?

OPITIONAL: Watch and pause to answer the questions as they are  presented.

Step 6

Share answers.

Step 7

Use the following quotations from the video:

“When we see ourselves in nature, it connects us to every one of us, because it's clear it's all connected in one.”

“You think it’s just another day. It’s not just another day. It’s the one day that’s given to you today. It’s given to you; it’s a gift.”

Which of the two quotes speaks to you?  Why? 

 Composition TIME:

Title:  "What I’m grateful for"

Introductory Sentences:

     Gratitude can be defined as the act of being thankful, and in the video "Gratitude" by Louis Schwartzberg an elderly man has this to say on the subject, “You think it’s just another day. It’s not just another day. It’s the one day that’s given to you today. It’s given to you; it’s a gift.”   Through this simple statement the man reminds each of us that we are given so many "gifts", but sometimes we take these gifts for granted, and  in so doing, don't show our gratitude.  Sadly, there have been times in my own life that I have not shown gratitude for the gifts I have been given.

NOTE:  You have the option of developing your own opening sentences, but they must include the quote.

Make sure to use transitions to start each example (see list below):

Use three examples of "gifts" you sometimes take for granted:

Example  One: two to three sentences to explain

Example  Two: two to three sentences to explain

Example  Three: two to three sentences to explain

Note:  You can use more than three examples.

Concluding Sentence:

Option One:

Unfortunately, as the writer,  Cynthia Ozick states, “We often take for granted the very things that most deserve our gratitude,” but hopefully by recognizing that these are "gifts", and should be appreciated each and every day, we can thereby avoid taking them for granted, and instead, show our gratitude for having them in our lives.

 or

Option Two:

Hopefully, by recognizing that our lives are filled with so many "gifts" we can be like Piglet from Winnie-the-Pooh when he “....noticed that even though he had a Very Small Heart, it could hold a rather large amount of Gratitude.” ― A.A. Milne, Winnie-the-Pooh

Transition Words

Words that can be used to show location:

above	behind	by	near	throughout
across	below	down	off	to the right
against	beneath	in back of	onto	under
along	beside	in front of	on top of
among	between	inside	outside
around	beyond	into	over

Words that can be used to show time:

while	first	meanwhile	soon	then
after	second	today	later	next
at	third	tomorrow	afterward	as soon as
before	now	next week	about	when suddenly
during	until	yesterday	finally

Word that can be used to compare two things:

likewise	also	while	in the same way
like	as	similarly

Words that can be used to contrast two things:

but	still	although	on the other hand
however	yet	otherwise	even though

Words that can be used to emphasize a point:

again	truly	especially	for this reason
to repeat	in fact	to emphasize

Words that can be used to conclude or summarize:

finally	as a result	to sum up	in conclusion
lastly	therefore	all in all	because

Words that can be used to add information:

again	another	for instance	for example
also	and	moreover	additionally
as well	besides	along with	other
next	finally	in addition

Words that can be used to clarify:

that is

for instance

in other words

Other list of Transition Words:

Grammar Your Dictionary

Multiple Paragraph List of Transition Words

OWL Online Writing Lab

Interesting Article about Gratitude:  Click Here

Opening Statement from Article:

In the season of thanks, I recently had my Harvard freshman seminar class take inventory of all they're grateful for. The responses were fairly predictable: family, friends, significant others, pets, jobs, opportunities. There were a few endearing surprises, including one student who was appreciative of his comforter, another her fuzzy hat. I had to smile at those ones.-Huffington Post

Now, Start Scribbling!
Happy Writing!

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