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...

You will never forget that moment. Scholars read a model narrative and analyze the moment a character became visible again. They compare the narrative to Okubo in Unbroken. Readers also assess the narrative essay according to a rubric...

What is it that makes people keep going when they face challenges in life? Ask your class to consider this question in relation to their own experiences and as they read material from The New York Times. Using personal experiences...

Narrative essay writing is the focus of a series of exercises that model for learners how to not only read a narrative, but how to also examine the techniques fiction writers use to create a setting, develop their characters, represent...

Nine lessons over three weeks explore the human body through read-alouds. Third graders listen to and discuss a reading followed by extension activities, including word work and comprehension practice. Learners draft a narrative essay.

Class members take a break from discussing The Autobiography of Malcolm X to focus on their personal narrative essays. Before working on their drafts, they review what they have learned from their study of Haley's narrative about...

Three options offer young writers the opportunity to read a short story, answer questions, and write a response. A handy language arts resource focuses on reading comprehension and analyziing the story's lesson: look before you leap. 

This St. Patrick's Day, young writers imagine they found a pot of gold at the end of a rainbow. After a class discussion and brainstorming, scholars compose a narrative essay making sure they incorporate transitions and at least three...

It's all in the technique. Scholars revisit the model narrative they covered in lesson four to analyze the author's writing techniques. Readers compare techniques they spot in the narrative to those in the essay rubric. They then work to...

When life brings you lemons .. write about it! Scholars work with partners to complete graphic organizers analyzing two narratives. Next, they develop an outline for their narrative writing assignment about a personal experience with...

Scholars read two texts about Miné Okubo’s life. In Riverside’s Miné Okubo and Miné Okubo, readers gather information to write narrative essays describing how Okubo became visible again. The essay serves as part of a performance task.

What does is take to be a role model? Through grand conversation, and the use of books and a graphic organizer, scholars find out and apply the requirements to identify a role model within their family. They then journey through the...

High school readers examine George Orwell's essay "Shooting an Elephant" for examples of symbolism, metaphor, connotation, and irony. They analyze how these literary tools convey the writer's main point and contribute to the persuasive...

The final lesson plan in this narrative writing unit asks class members to craft a multi-paragraph essay reflecting on the structural elements Leslie Marmon Silko employs in her "Yellow Woman and a Beauty of the Spirit."

Scholars examine the first Thanksgiving through books and interviews while they complete a KWL chart. Pretending they are part of the feast, learners craft a scrapbook page that features images related to their experience. Pupils reflect...

Personal narratives are powerful things. Whether told from the first-person or third-person point of view, whether in the form of an essay, a short story, novel, or video, whether fiction or fact, they capture readers and give them...

As a mid-unit assessment, individuals craft an in-class, formal essay response to a prompt that asks them to use textual evidence to identify Haley's purpose, as well as analyze how the structure, style, and content contribute to the...

Today's discussion of The Autobiography of Malcolm X focuses on the precise words, the telling phrases, and the sensory details Haley uses to enliven his story. Writers then work to incorporate these same techniques in the draft of their...

Integration versus separation. Readers of chapter 14 of The Autobiography of Malcolm X examine Malcolm X's views on other Civil Rights leaders and their integration ideas. Class members also return to the narrative essay strand of the...

In this first activity of the unit, class members continue to work on their draft of a narrative essay response to a prompt found on the college Common Application.

A read-aloud anthology explores our solar system and beyond. Informational texts about astronomy invite pupils to discuss readings. Extension activities examine vocabulary, sayings, and phrases. Scholars work through the writing process...

Fourth graders are taught how to outline a fictional narrative essay. They review the definition and structure of narrative essays. Students use the activity to brainstorm specific ideas for narrative essays. They are given a...

Should primary graders have their own computers? Should animals be kept in captivity? Young writers learn how to develop and support a claim in this short unit on persuasive writing.

Celebrate Black History Month with this instructional activity, in which middle schoolers create an essay about a famous African-American. Writers conduct research online, take notes to write an essay in proper format, and use ideas,...