Imagine using narrative essays to encourage change. This multi-week unit plan does just that. After reading a series of articles from Tyson Miller's Dream of a Nation: Inspiring Ideas for a Better America, class members examine the...

A comprehensive and immersive series of lessons that examines various aspects of story development leads learners into writing a narrative of their own. Writers develop an understanding of the writing process as they use the learning...

What is the difference between a news story and a personal narrative? This plan has learners write a personal narrative using the topic of service projects in their community. Consider completing a cross-curricular extension by bringing...

After making predictions about Janell Cannon's story Verdi, middle schoolers read through the book and make a new list of descriptions, personality traits, etc. They select an animal and write a narrative story about the animal, paying...

Junior ecologists examine Arizona's biotic communities and research an animal or plant that is found in this community. In this activity, learnerss write a narrative essay about their assigned animal or plant. They research online and in...

Think about a moment, frozen in time. Now take a critical look at the painting, Better, Homes, Better Gardens. This painting works to provide learners the opportunity to analyze art, critique artist's choices, and write a story inspired...

Review the narrative writing process with your emerging story writers. They read a sample narrative and identify five vague verbs that could be replaced with a more exact, exciting verb. Then they write a personal narrative making sure...

Examine stories with a moral in a character development instructional activity. The class reads a short story written by Benjamin Franklin in which he pays too much for a toy whistle. Individuals then make text-to-self connections and...

A creative spin occurs when one pupil acts as author Ann M. Martin. Using a Q & A at the back of her book A Dog's Life, other classmates ask the "author" questions. They discuss the reasons why they know the book is from a...

Middle schoolers write descriptions, narratives, and dialogues based on objects of art and time periods in a museum. They base several writing assignments on art objects and paintings, including a literal description and an emotional...

Here is a great way to explore narrative writing! Learners review a previously constructed story map and identify the characters, setting, and main events in the book Anansi and the Moss-Covered Rock retold by Eric A. Kimmel. They...

Fifth graders analyze William Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream, paying close attention to character development, plot, and dialogue. With daily reading and thoughtful discussion, scholars take pen to paper to respond to journal...

After writing a personal narrative, learners edit their work and that of their classmates. Using the imbedded link, pupils edit their paper. They form small groups and check each other's papers for spelling, grammar usage, sentence...

Women were in the workplace long before Rosie the Riveter pushed up her sleeve. Learn about the working options available to women during the Industrial Revolution, the Progressive Era, and the Great Depression with a lesson that...

A three-part writing assessment challenges scholars to think critically about schools of the past and present. Learners read informative texts, answer questions to prepare for a discussion, research in small groups, complete a Venn...

After identifying the parts of a persuasive piece of writing, young writers explore different prewriting activities for the persuasive essay. They have the option to write a news article, personal narrative, or persuasive essay to...

Sixth graders read the short story "Eleven". They write a narrative composition focusing on the use of voice. Students use a computer to create a pre-writing graphic organizer and type their final draft.

Fourth graders act out and write original narratives. In this theater meets writing lesson plan, 4th graders work in groups to create original narratives; after students act out their story, they write it down as a narrative.

Young scholars write a scene.  In this creative writing lesson, students read The Lightning Thief and discuss the sentence fluency and word choice in the writing.  Young scholars complete a writing assignment where they create...

The subject doesn't sound to interesting, but with a child's imagination even a trip to the store can be an adventure. The class writes a narrative story about a trip to the store. They organize their stories to include an introductory...

In the Enemy's Country is a painting that depicts several Native Americans dressed and ready for war. Youngsters analyze the artistic and storytelling elements the artist used to convey his idea. They then write a creative piece from the...

Are you working on an autobiographical or narrative writing unit? Bring this instructional activity to your class, as it takes young writers through the process of drafting and sequencing an autobiography. After observing and...

What is dialogue? What must it contain? Use this plan to discuss dialogue with your emerging writers. They write a dialogue in script form to dramatize a conversation. Dialogue examples are included. 

Dig in deeper with Robert Frost's, "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening." Learners will read and discuss poems by Robert Frost and learn the meaning of terms such as narrative and personal. They journal, collaborate, and present poetry...