Curated OER
Daily Writing Prompts April
A great resource that can be used every year during the month of April. This handout includes over 30 writing prompts, one or two for every day in the month of April. Each writing prompt is tailored to its specific day, as they are...
EngageNY
Writing an Argumentative Essay: Introducing the Writing Prompt and Model Essay
Pupils begin the writing process in preparation for an end-of-unit essay based on Katherine Paterson's Lyddie. To get started, they read and discuss a model essay and learn about the similarities and differences between argumentative and...
McGraw Hill
Writing Prompts, Student Rubrics, and Sample Responses
Whether you are teaching mainstream, advanced, or intervention language arts classes, you will find something helpful in a thorough writing packet. It includes prompts, rubrics, responses, helpful hints, graphic organizers, and many...
K12 Reader
Historical Perspective: Two People in History
Open-ended and intriguing, a writing prompt about two people from history is sure to get your young scholars thinking. Have them choose two historical figures, and after brainstorming their similarities and differences, successes and...
Virginia Department of Education
Grade 5 Writing Prompts
Looking for something to write about? Try out one of the prompts from three and a half pages of ideas. The list includes a variety of different topics that you can pick and choose from when planning a writing assignment or unit.
Curriculum Corner
April Writing Ideas
There are so many things to celebrate in the month of April, like April Fool's Day, Earth Day, and spring! Use these fun prompts to get young writers writing during the month of April.
Curated OER
Writing an Explanation
Bananas are an important part of a healthy diet - but where do they come from? Third graders write an explanatory text about the origins of bananas. The bottom part of the paper includes necessary information about bananas, as well as a...
Fluence Learning
Writing About Literary Text: Wise or Foolish?
A three-part assessment promotes reading comprehension skills. Class members read literary texts and take notes to discuss their findings, answer comprehension questions, write summaries, and complete charts.
EngageNY
Writing an Argument Essay: Introducing the Writing Prompt and Model Essay
Scholars take a look at the difference between explanatory and argumentative essays by completing graphic organizers. They then determine how this difference applies to the Pygmalion writing prompt. Learners keep track of their writing...
K12 Reader
My Favorite Book
A simple question can spark such a range of responses and creative thought. Use this writing prompt to get your youngsters talking about the thrills and adventures of reading, as they detail their favorite books, what they are about, and...
Trinity University
Explain Yourself: An Expository Writing Unit for High School
Introduce expository writing with a unit that asks writers to craft an essay to explain a belief, value, or priority that is important to them. Mini-lessons within the unit focus on crafting thesis statements and conclusions, selecting...
Fluence Learning
Writing About Informational Text: Beyond the Beyond—Galaxies
Everyone has a different point of view, even when it comes to the enormity of the universe. Two separate text passages explain the scope of a galaxy, prompting young readers to write an essay about each author's argument and how the...
Teach It Primary
What Letter Will You Write?
After reading "The Pied Piper of Hamelin," scholars discuss the emotions the events provoked in its characters. In pairs, writers compose a letter depending on the topic and style of their choice then reply to their own or a peer's...
EngageNY
Mid-Unit 2 Assessment: On-Demand Informational Writing
Lesson 7 focuses on building academic vocabulary and writing an explanatory letter with supported textual evidence. For the first five minutes of the instructional activity, the educator reminds the class of how to read and refer to the...
Curated OER
Writing a Newspaper Article
The perfect resource for a beginning journalism teacher or someone designing a journalism unit, this activity prompts students to write a newspaper article. It covers all aspects of the writing process, such as a guided warm-up...
K20 LEARN
Introduction to Expository Writing
Move beyond the five-paragraph essay with a lesson introducing young writers to various forms of expository writing. Class members examine description, cause and effect, problem solution, sequence, and comparison forms. They create an...
Lakeshorelearning
Read and Write about It
Reading informational text is a skill that transcends subjects and grade levels. Practice reading about different topics in various formats with a language arts lesson that includes opportunities for writing and research as well.
Fluence Learning
Writing About Informational Text: The Dred Scott Decision
Looking for a performance assessment that asks individuals to demonstrate their competency in writing about informational text? Use Frederick Douglass' essay "On the Dred Scott Decision," and an excerpt from Abraham Lincoln's 1857 speech...
California Education Partners
Vincent Van Gogh
Living in someone's shadow would be difficult for anyone, including one of the most talented artists of the modern age. Middle schoolers read an excerpt from Vincent Van Gogh: Portrait of an Artist by Jan Greenberg and Sandra Jordan...
K12 Reader
Something I'd Like to Learn
It's no secret, writing is a lot more enjoyable when it's about something we care about. This simple exercise engages children in producing original writing, while allowing them to share their personal interest with others.
Fluence Learning
Writing About Literature: Exploring Themes About Conformity
Feeling the pressure to confirm is something any adolescent can relate to. Explore an essential theme with a response to literature assessment that prompts learners to identify main ideas with evidence and supporting details.
Birmingham City Schools
Stick to the Point: Getting It Right with Constructed Responses
Practice writing constructed responses with a 26-slide presentation. Developed to guide scholars through the appropriate steps, the resource assists them in providing a well-considered answer.
California Education Partners
Covers by Nikki Giovanni
Over three days, scholars listen to and read the poem, "Covers" by Nikki Giovanni. Learners complete a graphic organizer by sketching their visualizations from each stanza then discuss their pictures with a peer. Pupils answer...
California Education Partners
Follow the Water by Arthur Dorros
Assess scholars' reading and writing capabilities with an exam that challenges learners to respond to an informative text. Through note-taking and peer discussion, pupils analyze a passage from the story, Follow the Water from Brook to...