Activity
Other

Guide to Writing a Basic Essay: Sample Essay

For Students 9th - 10th Standards
This is an example of a basic five-paragraph essay on cats. The thesis of the essay is in bold, topic sentences are in italics, and each main idea is underlined.
Handout
Other

Oakland Writes: Student Exemplars: Sixth Grade: Expository Essay [Pdf]

For Students 6th - 8th Standards
An expository essay written by a sixth-grader with notes calling attention to important writing concepts evident in the essay including a well-written title, opening sentence, thesis, main ideas, supporting details, and more.
Handout
Other

Gallaudet University: English Works: Guide to Different Types of Essays

For Students 6th - 8th Standards
English Works site has suggestions on how to write an essay to convey helpful information. This site offers examples of eight different types of essays and graphic organizers.
Rubric
ReadWriteThink

Read Write Think: Compare and Contrast Rubric

For Students 9th - 10th Standards
Students and teachers can assess their own writing with this compare and contrast rubric.
Handout
University of Victoria (Canada)

The U Vic Writer's Guide: Writing Essays: Structure of an Introduction

For Students 9th - 10th Standards
A general overview of what goes into the introduction of an essay. CCSS.ELA-Literacy.WHST.6-8.2
Handout
Sophia Learning

Sophia: Cause and Effect Papers: Lesson 2

For Students 9th - 10th Standards
This lesson introduces cause and effect papers. It is 2 of 2 in the series titled "Cause and Effect Papers."
Handout
Sophia Learning

Sophia: Compare and Contrast Papers

For Students 9th - 10th Standards
This lesson introduces comparison/contrast papers.
Handout
Other

Book Rags: Articles: How to Write a Compare/contrast Essay

For Students 9th - 10th Standards
Learn about two different ways to organize a compare and contrast essay and how each way looks in a paragraph breakdown.
Unit Plan
TES Global

Blendspace: Thesis Statement

For Students 9th - 10th Standards
A six-part learning module with links to images, texts, and a quiz to use while learning how to write a strong thesis statement.
Unit Plan
TES Global

Blendspace: Expository Essay

For Students 3rd - 8th Standards
A six-part learning module with links to videos, websites, and texts on writing expository essays.
Whiteboard
ClassFlow

Class Flow: Brainstorming

For Teachers 3rd - 6th Standards
[Free Registration/Login Required] Several different examples of brainstorming: cluster/web, listing, circle graph, jot-chart/table. Has introduction, examples, and whole class brainstorming examples.
Whiteboard
ClassFlow

Class Flow: Graphic Organizer Compare Contrast

For Teachers Pre-K - 1st Standards
[Free Registration/Login Required] This graphic organizer flipchart creates a template to help students compare and contrast ideas and objects. It can be used in many different subject areas.
Whiteboard
ClassFlow

Class Flow: Graphic Organizer Compare Matrix

For Teachers Pre-K - 1st Standards
[Free Registration/Login Required] This graphic organizer uses a matrix to help students compare items or events. It is useful for helping students understand and analyze reading passages, historical events, and scientific experiments.
Unit Plan
Sophia Learning

Sophia: Headings and Subheadings

For Students 9th - 10th Standards
This tutorial uses two short videos and a PDF handout to explain how and when to use headings and subheadings. Video 1 explains the purpose of headings and subheadings and why and when to use them; video 2 discusses how to format and...
PPT
Sophia Learning

Sophia: Writing Effective Topic Sentences

For Students 9th - 10th Standards
This lesson goes over tips an techniques for writing an effective topic sentence. This tutorial lesson shares a short slideshow with the lesson's content.
Handout
British Library

British Library: Virtual Reference Library

For Teachers 9th - 10th Standards
This site provides links to several on-line dictionaries. Students may desire to consult a few dictionary definitions of their focus term prior to beginning a definition essay.
Activity
BBC

Bbc Bitesize: Introducing a Discursive Essay

For Students 9th - 10th Standards
As part of a revision and writing section of BBC Bitesize, this site goes over several tips relating to writing the introduction of a discursive essay. Five separate methods are described, including provocative, balanced, illustration,...
Website
BBC

Bbc Bitesize Revision: Discursive Essay

For Students 6th - 8th Standards
As part of a revision and writing section of BBC Bitesize, this site provides an example of a discursive essay and includes five questions and answers related to the essay.
Activity
Quizlet

Quizlet: Types of Details: Learn

For Students 5th - 8th Standards
In this interactive focusing on learning types of details, students type in the word to match the definition given.
Activity
Quizlet

Quizlet: Types of Details: Flashcards

For Students 5th - 8th Standards
This is a set of interactive flashcards defining words that have to do with details in writing: supporting details, facts, opinion, examples, anecdotes, and statistics.
Activity
Quizlet

Quizlet: Flashcards 8th Grade Evidence/inference

For Students 6th - 9th Standards
This set of interactive flashcards focuses on terms having to do with evidence and inference-related definitions. These terms include the following: evidence, analysis, inferences, explicit, and imply.
Primary
Other

Academic Help: Writing Samples: Expository Essay Samples

For Students 9th - 10th Standards
Links to several examples of expository essays in order to better understand the process and end result of a well written expository essay.
Website
Other

English 100: Persuasive Essay

For Students 9th - 10th Standards
This tutorial provides writing instructions and ideas to help the student in preparing a persuasive essay.