Horoscope Activity
Clip some horoscopes from a newspaper. Or go to this website to get horoscopes for any day and any sign: http://astrology.yahoo.com/astrology/ Of course all horoscopes are intentionally vague. Revise a couple to make them ridiculously specific. Let the students work on this activity individually as an exercise in using specific language, or together in small groups as a collaborative warm-up exercise. Here’s an example.
Situations which hemmed you in will be somewhat alleviated today. On a modest basis you will be able to lessen pressures and call your own shots.
When your VW doesn’t respond to your prayers this morning and you miss
the 7:45, your boss will to inform you that Harvey, his son-in-law, has been
promoted to your position as Assistant Vice President in Charge of
Interplanetary Diplomacy. Despair not! Aunt Bertha Mae has fallen
into the gin vat and distillery in Critter Creek.
And another:
Don't let your assumptions hold you
back from what could be. Think big.
You may think that your son is
smoking something and therefore you don’t want to go on that trip to
Bermuda over Columbus Day weekend for fear that he will have that big party at
your place. Don’t sweat it. Buy a
hotel in
As an alternate activity, have students make up horoscopes for their sign based on their real life experiences. Or give them a horoscope for the day before for their sign and have them write the specifics of their day to fit the predictions. You could group students by sign for this activity and have them collaborate, combining all of their experiences.
Adapted from: True Stories: Guidelines for Writing From
Your Life by Rebecca Rule and Susan Wheeler