Lesson ten in this unit for the book Bullfrogs at Magnolia Circle, prepares third graders to begin writing an informational paragraph about the adaptations of bullfrogs. First, young writers work either independently or in pairs to...

Introduce expository writing to your elementary learners. Young authors write a three-paragraph informational paper using the steps of the writing process. They follow guided lessons to experience each of five steps. Included are tons of...

When your class members have completed the novel Esperanza Rising, they will be ready to write an expository essay on how Esperanza responds to events and what this says about her character. Set your pupils up for success by...

Come up with a list of requirements for this expository essay on Esperanza's character in Esperanza Rising as a class and use the list to guide class writing. Here, learners will complete the first paragraph, discuss their notes for the...

Create to learn! Your class can create posters of transitional words and phrases to help them compose an explanatory text. They work in groups and focus on one type of transition (time, place, importance, etc.). They also create a poster...

Fourth graders who are studying life in colonial America engage in an instructional activity that has them create a "Help Wanted" ad that would have been written by a master craftsperson from back in the day. They utilize a graphic...

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.

Does your language arts class have a hard time with writing transitions? Use this organizational writing lesson to create three effective transition sentences that middle schoolers will use in their research of renewable resources.

If you are interested in having a basic framework for teaching expository, narrative, persuasive, and descriptive writing, this resource may help; however, you will have to find information on the different forms of writing to share with...

Gather some information, print it onto sentence strips, and then have your class physically shuffle the cards to better understand the importance of organizational patterns in writing. Middle school learners examine information for a...

In instructional activity 13 of this unit on colonial trade, young researchers learn about apprentices as they prepare to write help-wanted ads for the specific trade they have been researching. To begin, the class listens closely as the...

The world is full of possibilities for your ELLs. Help them explore their career options with a instructional activity that incorporates Internet research and expository writing. Not only will they learn more about their careers of...

Explore expository writing and using precise language in this descriptive paragraph writing lesson. Learners brainstorm prior knowledge about the changing seasons in Ohio. They describe seasonal items, view seasonal pictures from...

Transitions are the glue that link paragraphs together. Pupils listen to a mini lesson plan on sentence structure and transitions and use what they learned to revise their informative consumer guides. Next, they self-assess their writing...

Eighth graders study persuasive writing. They analzye an editorial for introductory,body, and concluding sentences. They develop arguments for and against various topics in small groups.

Time to revise! Using a writing evaluation rubric, scholars participate in a peer editing process to provide feedback on each others' informative essays. Next, pupils begin revising their drafts based on the feedback they receive. 

Learners read Arthur's Pet Business and  complete a pre-writing worksheet for expository writing.  In this paragraph writing lesson, students gather and organize material for a paragraph about pets.

First and last impressions are important. Using the helpful resource, scholars draft the introductory and concluding paragraphs of their literary analysis essays. Next, they use a writing evaluation rubric to self-assess their work. 

Use this lesson to focus on a compare and contrast writing structure in your middle school language arts class. Here, young writers compare and contrast two texts using graphic organizers. They use a double bubble format for their...

Students write on a variety of topics, maximize creative and expository writing skills, develop focused writing, organize ideas, incorporate detail in writing, and exhibit varied and precise word choice.

While the focus of this lesson is on writing about tornadoes, any topic could be substituted. The lesson provides a well-thought out overview of the writing process. Learners come up with a thesis statement, supporting  details, and...

A final assessment marks the end of a unit that takes a close look at a variety of informational texts all about frogs. A graphic organizer aides scholars in planning an accordion paragraph using their recorder forms from previous...

Class members dig into the expectations for the end-of-unit assessment for A Mighty Long Way by studying the rubric. The Rubric Criteria strips help pairs of readers look more closely at specific rubric points. They share ideas with the...

Spice up your writing! Your amateur writers will benefit from concentrating on understanding and improving verb use in writing. An introductory activity addresses weak verbs. A second exercise helps them see the importance of strong...