Phoenix Prints
To Cite or Not to Cite
A detailed overview of plagiarism and citations. This 33-slide presentation is broken into three sections: a discussion of plagiarism, various examples of in-text and work cited citations, and a short, interactive quiz. Although the...
Curated OER
Creatively Creating Expository Essays
Students, after reading Fahrenheit 451, brainstorm inventions that could have been in the novel. They present their invention to the class and writing an expository essay about their creation.
Perkins School for the Blind
Daily Journal
Keeping a daily journal is fun. It builds strong writing skills and provides an expressive outlet. For children with visual impairments, it's even more important. It provides a way for them to connect written word with real events, which...
Curated OER
Persuasive Speech Assignment
Practice using concrete evidence from various sources to back up an argument. The lesson emphasizes the use of support in a persuasive speech, as well as the importance of appealing to an audience's logic and emotions. You could modify...
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The Scoop Through Desktop Publication
Drafting, revising, and editing is all apart of the publishing process. Using a series of documents as inspiration, young journalists compose a class Newspaper. They work independently and in groups to publish their own articles.
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Multimedia Storytelling
Experiment with multimedia storytelling. After watching a segment of American Family, first, middle and high schoolers tell a story about their families, clarifying the setting, characters, and script. They work on setting their story in...
Worksheet Web
Language – Debating
Having a debate doesn't mean you're fighting. Introduce middle schoolers to debate with a resource which distinguishes between an quarrel and a debate, describes the debate process and format, and presents some possible debate topics.
Curated OER
Magazine Project
Groups of students create magazines that contain stories and images of one aspect of the ocean, and ocean life. The expectations for the final products are quite high, so this lesson will require some effort to properly implement. A...
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Writing Away For Information
Students review the format used to write a friendly letter which they will use to write an e-mail. They use questioning techniques as they write a letter of inquiry using a number of drafts. Using a word processing program they develop...
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Proofreading Lesson 6
Explore proofreading strategies with this instructional activity. Eighth graders practice finding errors in punctuation, capitalization, and formatting. Then, they write about a given topic and then proofread their compositions, looking...
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A Day In The Life: The Story of a Child Worker in Agriculture."
Young scholars watch a Flash presentation on students working in agriculture in this lesson which is part of a unit. They compare and contrast the experience to their own. Unit links are on this lesson page.
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Editorial Writing
Use your class's knowledge of pollution and water treatment to write an editorial to town citizens. They apply prior knowledge in order to compose a letter intended for newspaper publication, focusing on writing to an appropriate audience.
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Do Heroes Have to Wear a Cape?
Young writers choose a person from American history, their community, or their family to use as the subject of a persuasive essay. The process begins with a discussion of the characteristics of a hero, the completion of a prewriting web,...
Virginia Department of Education
Writing Effective Dialogue
Spend a productive hour in the classroom with this tutorial where junior high writers discover how to create snappy dialogue. The learning begins with an analysis of sample writing and discussion on the effectiveness of each piece. The...
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Ways Twitter Makes You a Better Writer
Practice being concise. Exercise your vocabulary. Improve your editing skills. The contention in this lesson is that by imposing a 140 character limit, the Twitter format actually helps improve writing skills. And of course class tweets...
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Teacher of the Year
Now is the time to identify the great teachers in your school! Discuss the characteristics of persuasive writing and analyze an example. Then, each pupil chooses a teacher who they feel should be named teacher of the year. They plan and...
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Peer Editing Checklist
A handout to guide peer editors, this checklist delineates common problems with paragraph structure and specific proofreading items to check. It also provides encouragement about the collaborative part of the writing process. Formats...
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Effective Writing is More Than a Five Paragraph Essay
Groups become experts in one aspect of the six traits of writing, prepare a PowerPoint presentation, jigsaw, and teach others about their trait. Writers then focus on these traits as they compose a persuasive essay about a person they...
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The Purpose and Power of Persuasion
Examine the power of persuasion and have learners consider how it influences events in their own lives. After reading and analyzing informational texts to understand the author's purpose, class members take a written test and craft a...
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Imagine That! Analyzing Imagery
Poems by O. Henry, Marion Dane Bauer, Monty Roberts, and Langston Hughes provide the text for a study of symbolism, hyperbole, and imagery. Employing the “think-pair-share” strategy learners generate definitions of these terms and locate...
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Global Warming and Climate Change
Students explore the environment by writing a persuasive letter. In this global warming lesson plan, students identify the key problems with our energy consumption in the United States. Students complete worksheets and write a letter...
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Virtual Field Trip: Lesson Ten - Publishing
Class members publish a letter describing their Virtual Field Trip incorporating data from previously developed charts, graphs, and data tables. The final activity in a series devoted to collecting information and publishing data.
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Sidewalks to Success in Middle School
Students write a brochure that educates incoming middle school students on how to succeed.
Channel Islands Film
Arlington Springs Man: Lesson Plan 2
West of the West's documentary Arlington Springs Man and a two-page scientific article about the same topic provide the text for a reading comprehension exercise that asks individuals to craft a one page summary of information gathered...