Voices and Visions: Advanced Literacy and Communication · 6th Year

Active learning ideas

Show, Don't Tell

Active learning works because 'Show, Don't Tell' requires students to practice transforming abstract ideas into concrete experiences, which sticks better through doing than explaining. Students need to feel the difference between vague and vivid writing, and these activities give them structured ways to test, compare, and refine their choices.

• NCCA Curriculum Specifications
• NCCA: Primary - Exploring and Using
• NCCA: Primary - Understanding

• 20–40 min
• Pairs → Whole Class
• 4 activities

Activity 01

• Chalk Talk
• 25 min · Pairs

Pairs: Telling-to-Showing Rewrite

Distribute cards with telling sentences about emotions or settings. Pairs collaborate to expand each into a showing paragraph using at least three senses. Pairs read aloud; class votes on the most vivid revision.

Explain how showing a character's actions is more impactful than telling their emotion.

Facilitation Tip

In the Telling-to-Showing Rewrite pairs, circulate and listen for pairs debating why one version evokes stronger feelings, then pause the class to share their best examples aloud for the whole group to hear.

What to look for

Provide students with a 'telling' sentence, e.g., 'Sarah was angry.' Ask them to write a short paragraph (3-5 sentences) that 'shows' Sarah's anger through her actions, dialogue, or physical reactions. Collect and review for use of descriptive language and specific actions.

• Understand
• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Self-Awareness
• Self-Management

Activity 02

• Chalk Talk
• 35 min · Small Groups

Small Groups: Emotion Scene Stations

Set up stations for four emotions (anger, joy, fear, sadness). Groups rotate, acting out the emotion silently then writing a showing description. Compile group scenes into a class anthology for review.

Transform a 'telling' sentence into a 'showing' paragraph.

Facilitation Tip

At Emotion Scene Stations, place a timer on each station so groups feel the pressure to focus on precise details rather than over-explaining emotions.

What to look for

Students exchange short writing samples (approx. 150 words) that focus on describing a character's emotion. Partners use a checklist to identify: 1) At least two sensory details used, 2) One example of showing emotion through action or dialogue, 3) One sentence that 'tells' the emotion. Partners provide one suggestion for improvement.

• Understand
• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Self-Awareness
• Self-Management

Activity 03

• Chalk Talk
• 40 min · Whole Class

Whole Class: Expert Text Critique

Project paired telling and showing excerpts from Irish authors. Class annotates showing techniques on shared document. Students then apply one technique to their own draft paragraph.

Critique a piece of writing for its use of 'showing' techniques.

Facilitation Tip

During Expert Text Critique, assign each student a colored marker to highlight telling vs. showing in the shared excerpt, then have them justify their colors in a quick group vote.

What to look for

Present students with two short paragraphs describing the same emotion, one 'telling' and one 'showing.' Ask students to vote or raise hands for which paragraph was more effective and to briefly state why, focusing on the use of descriptive details and actions.

• Understand
• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Self-Awareness
• Self-Management

Activity 04

• Chalk Talk
• 20 min · Individual

Individual: Narrative Revision Sprint

Students select a previous draft paragraph. They revise two telling spots into showing using a checklist of senses and actions. Self-assess impact on reader immersion before sharing one revision.

Explain how showing a character's actions is more impactful than telling their emotion.

Facilitation Tip

For the Narrative Revision Sprint, provide a word-count goal on the board and have students mark their changes in the margins to track how conciseness improves vividness.

What to look for

Provide students with a 'telling' sentence, e.g., 'Sarah was angry.' Ask them to write a short paragraph (3-5 sentences) that 'shows' Sarah's anger through her actions, dialogue, or physical reactions. Collect and review for use of descriptive language and specific actions.

• Understand
• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Self-Awareness
• Self-Management

A few notes on teaching this unit

Teachers should model the process first by showing how a simple ‘telling’ sentence like ‘He was tired’ can become ‘His eyelids drooped, and he stumbled over his own feet, catching the doorframe to steady himself.’ Avoid over-teaching rules; instead, let students experiment and compare results. Research shows that students learn this skill best when they see the gap between weak and strong writing, so use mentor texts that clearly demonstrate the difference.

Successful learning looks like students confidently replacing telling statements with specific actions, sensory details, or dialogue that creates images in the reader’s mind. By the end of the unit, they should be able to identify and revise weak writing and explain why the stronger version works.

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Watch Out for These Misconceptions

• During the Telling-to-Showing Rewrite pairs, students may think showing means adding many adjectives and adverbs.

  During the Telling-to-Showing Rewrite pairs, provide a side-by-side comparison sheet with two versions: one packed with adjectives like 'the very scary room' and another with precise actions like 'the door creaked open, revealing jagged cracks that split the walls like lightning.' Have pairs vote on which version creates a clearer image and discuss why the action-driven version works better.

• During the Expert Text Critique, students may believe telling is always wrong and showing must replace it everywhere.

  During the Expert Text Critique, bring in an excerpt that mixes telling and showing, such as a paragraph where the author quickly tells the reader a character is nervous before showing them fidgeting with their sleeves. Ask students to highlight both types and debate where each choice works best, then vote as a class on which balance feels most effective.

• During the Narrative Revision Sprint, students may assume showing always results in longer, wordier writing.

  During the Narrative Revision Sprint, give each student a telling sentence and challenge them to rewrite it in 3–5 words or fewer while keeping the vivid detail, such as changing 'He was so angry he slammed the door' to 'The door cracked against the wall.' Time them and have them read their revisions aloud to prove conciseness can pack a punch.

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Methods used in this brief

• Chalk Talk