LESSON 4.9
Finding the Subject of
the Old Section

Grades 1-3

The Old Section

The Old Section of an essay is what we call the background. It’s like watching a movie and learning about the main characters’ lives before the movie’s story begins.

Barbell of Communications

The What Statement

The What Statement tells what the story or essay is about. We can transfer the Barbell of Communication above to a What Statement chart:

If I could be any wild animal,

WHAT STATEMENT
Left-hand Idea Verb Phrase Right-hand Idea
I would be an aye-aye lemur
OLD NEW

Review: Old vs. New

Formula:  O + O = poor

If both ends of the barbell are Old, then it’s a poor subject. Don’t waste your time!

TROUT SHOUT!

If at least one variable is New, then the subject is probably a good one.

O + N = good
N + O = good

TROUT SHOUT!

Communications Barbell

In a nonfiction with narrator essay, the background is about you.  But we cannot tell everything about our lives. We only want to tell about that part of our lives that affects the New idea.

Where Do I Get Ideas for the Old Part?

What should you write about in the Old Part?

You borrow an idea from the New part.

Task 4.9.1 – Individual

Let’s say you have this What Statement:

I would be a goblin shark.

What two ideas are in goblin shark?

Task 4.9.2 – Tandem

What parts make up the following right-hand (RH) ideas?  The number of ideas is in parenthesis. ( )

  1. I like elephant sea lions (2)
  2. If I could be a wild animal, I would be a Wyoming black-footed ferret. (2)
  3. I love Mekong River porpoises. (2)

Right-Hand Ideas with Only One Idea

Often, the words of the right-hand idea don’t give two ideas right away.  For example, “aye-aye lemur”

seems to have two ideas:

aye-ayes

lemurs

However, aye-ayes is your New idea. You can’t talk about it in the right-hand slot. But if you will

look up on Wikipedia or an encyclopedia, then you will find lots of ideas:

(Nosy means “island,” or “Mangabé Island”)

Let’s say you decide to move Madagascar to the left-hand barbell-end.

Write the First Sentence

You now can write the first sentence.

Just add I + how you feel + the subject you brought rom the right-hand end. For example:

I love Madagascar.
    -OR-
I have always dreamed of going to Madagascar.

APPLICATION

Fill out the following barbell.

1. Enter your animal in the right hand end.

2. Name at least two parts of the right-hand end.

A.
B.

3. Move one of those parts to the left-hand end. Fill in the blank next to the “I.”

4. Write a short sentence that tells how you feel about the underlined part in the left-hand side of the barbell.