Here is a resource intended for a social studies class, but great no matter the subject. It's a complete outline for an essay. It includes space to write ideas related to the thesis, supporting details, transition sentences and words,...

What are the characteristics of a good purpose statement for a speech? Of a thesis statement? After considering the characteristics of good and bad opening statements, viewers identify the best example in a series of models.

Using a "Hamburger" essay outline and actual hamburger buns, you will demonstrate the role a thesis plays in a persuasive essay. This is a simplistic visual representation of how an argumentative paper should be composed and not an...

Prepare your soon-to-be graduates to take the Writing Proficiency Examination given at Cal Poly. These slides cover everything from the various types of questions to writing thesis statements. This is more like an overview than a...

How is an essay like a hamburger? Detailing the "meaty" parts of a well-written essay, this presentation takes students through the process of using a strong thesis statement to write a thorough and engaging response to a Document Based...

Help young writers with the daunting prospect of a five-paragraph essay. Using William Golding's Lord of the Flies, learners work through a short process to shore up their brainstorming and prepare to write a longer essay.

Strengthen your high schoolers' writing with a series of steps for writing successfully. With sections on organizing an essay, choosing a topic, crafting a thesis statement, and revising a draft, the lesson encourages your class to...

Are you looking for a basic checklist your writers can use as they edit a peer's compare/contrast essay? Reviewers simply check yes or no for each of the criteria listed in three categories, and then use the space at the bottom...

Students discover methods for writing strong thesis statements. In this writing skills lesson, students follow the steps their instructor outlines to review the strengths and weaknesses of their sociology thesis statements.

Pupils brainstorm ideas for a teacher selected writing topic. They demonstrate seven steps for writing an academic essay. They jot down words or phrases using different colored pens. They write a thesis statement and create an outline...

Have the class listen to a lecture on persuasive speeches. They practice outlining and detailing the components of a persuasive speech. The lecture outline also includes suggestions for researching a topic or thesis, organizing the...

Inspire essay organization with this handout and exercise about outlining. Writers read through a brief outline model and then practice writing their own outline by completing a second model. Scholars not only complete the outline, they...

Investigate and report on three issues related to a current election. Elementary aged learners research information about specific issues, develop an opinion, and write a persuasive essay using supporting details and evidence to support...

After researching an issue introduced in Tyson Miller's Dream of a Nation: Inspiring Ideas for a Better America, writers develop an original thesis statement and craft an analytic essay using evidence collected in their research.

Organization is key in essay writing. The two organizational charts included in this resource model the block approach and the point-by-point approach to organizing a compare and contrast style essay. After examining the...

A lot of writers don't like creating an outline before writing the first draft of their paper. Introduce them to what an effective and organized outline looks like with this presentation. Designed for higher education, you could easily...

Support your learners during the speech-writing process with a five-page graphic organizer. Pupils have plenty of space to write in their evidence and arguments on this resource. The organizer provides some prompts for each section to...

There are some historical events that may warrant greater reflection and more in-depth analysis, and the decision to intern Japanese-Americans in the United States during World War II, as well as to drop the atomic bomb on Hiroshima and...

Introducing your class to essay writing? The gentle tone, concise explanations, and clear examples provided by a 17-slide presentation introduces young writers to the expository essay format. All that's missing is a complete essay with...

The components of a five-paragraph essay are outlined on these slides. Not much explanation is given, but you can use this as you lecture and help your learners write. Follow the outline for what each paragraph should contain, and...

Fourth graders investigate how outlining can aid in comprehending text. In this reading comprehension lesson, 4th graders outline an article they read in groups of two. Students take turns reading the article, identifying the main idea,...

Originally designed for a physical education classroom, this lesson plan asks learners to argue for their school to keep their PE class during budget cuts. Whether your school is facing this challenge or not, it does pose a great...

Students develop a topic to conduct research. They formulate questions about it and use a graphic organizer for categorizing information. Students use the information to generate a thesis to narrow the focus of the paper. They write a...

Poor organization often destroys an otherwise good paper. After writing a first draft, individuals consider the organization of ideas, a topic discussed in the 16th handout in the 24-part Writing the Paper series. The resource covers...