Curated OER
The Use of Language in "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings"
Readers of I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings are asked to craft an essay in which they compare how Maya Angelou uses figurative language to depict herself and Mrs. Flowers.
Curated OER
Five Paragraph Essay
Students create a standard outline, using a word processing tool, while they are learning about the basic writing device of the 5 paragraph essay.
Curated OER
Descriptive Essay
Students review previously written essays, draw pictures of shapes, and write descriptive essays.
Curated OER
Learning About Hurricanes
Students write a research paper on hurricanes. In this weather lesson, students use a science text book to write down facts about hurricanes on note cards and then outline their essay. Students use the outline to create an organized essay.
Southern Nevada Regional Professional Development Program
Using Maps to Inspire Personal Narratives
A solid description of one way to teach narrative writing, this resource outlines the writing process from concept to completion. Class members create concept maps of moments in their lives and follow the writing process to publish their...
Curated OER
Writing - Combining Ideas to Write Descriptive Paragraphs
Students develop a strategy for combining various ideas into well formed sentences which then combine to produce effective descriptive paragraphs.
Curated OER
Zoo's Clues!
Students determine the difference between major and minor details after researching animals and completing graphic organizers. They write descriptive paragraphs for classmates to guess what animal is being described.
Curated OER
Writing an Essay- The Circulatory System
Fifth graders write an essay. In this writing lesson, 5th graders research the circulatory system and organize their notes into an outline. Students write an informational essay on the circulatory system.
University of Chicago
Using Artifacts for Clues About Identity
Learn about the ancient Near East through a close examination of ancient artifacts. Lead your class into analysis by first observing an artifact as a class. Pupils can then work in pairs to analyze the other artifacts and compile a list...
Curated OER
Making a Treasure Your Own: Lesson Two
Students write an essay describing the Curtis Center and what they learned there. In this descriptive writing essay, students discuss the five paragraph essay and review sensory discoveries from their trip. Students draft an outline and...
Curated OER
What Does Christmas Mean to Me?
Students write an essay entitled "What Does Christmas Mean to Me?" In this writing lesson, students express their feelings about Christmas in an essay. Students discuss ways they have given to others during the Christmas season, then...
Curated OER
Narrative Writing Outline
Students explore the elements of a narrative for its purpose, type of audience, mood, main character, minor characters, setting, and conflicts in the story. A story outline is developed and a five paragraph essay composed in this lesson.
Curated OER
Contemporary Civic-life Issue Research Based Essay
Seventh graders write a five paragraph persuasive essay on a contemporary civic-life issue.
Curated OER
Don't Forget to Say Thanks
Students practice descriptive writing in a thank-you note format. In this descriptive writing lesson, students read the example letter and analyze the corrections in the letter. Students read the example thank you notes and focus on the...
Alabama Learning Exchange
The Big Bang Theory: An Evidence-Based Argument
What evidence supports the big bang theory? Individuals analyze scholarly resources about the the theory and develop arguments backed by evidence. They brainstorm, share ideas, watch a video, and read articles to complete a graphic...
Curated OER
How Close Can We Get?
Fourth graders guide themselves through the traditional outline structure by reassembling papers, which have been cut into separate sentences. They see how close they've come to the original paper and evaluate their achievement.
Curated OER
If I Were the Wind
Eighth graders are introduced to authors in the conservation community. As a class, they describe a personal experience they have had with nature. They identify examples of an author's descriptive writing techniques and answer questions...
Curated OER
"How To" Speeches Using iMovie
Challenge your pupils with this innovative how-to activity. Instead of simply having learners write an essay describing how to do a particular activity, this activity has them create an iMovie describing a process.
Curated OER
Relating to Franklin's Age of Reason
Fourth graders read a selection describing 13 virtues from "The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin." They keep track of their behavior and whether or not they can keep up with 5 chosen virtues. They write a 5 paragraph essay on their...
Curated OER
Elements and the Periocic Table
Eighth graders draw the structure of an atom. They construct atomic models, list parts/locations of an atom, organize parts of the periodic table and write a descriptive report about an element.
Curated OER
Was the Wolf Really Guilty?
Students read plays, short stories, or novels which revolve around trials, and write essays explaining or defending the assigned role in a mock fairy tale trial.
Curated OER
The Rise of Christianity in the Roman Empire
Ninth graders investigate the growth of Christianity in Rome. In this Roman Empire lesson, 9th graders listen to a SMART Board lecture about the Jesus, Christianity, and the empire prior to composing thematic essays about the spread of...
Curated OER
American Revolution
While just an outline for an exploration of the American Revolution, this lesson could be augmented to provide a richer experience. The activity calls for learners to discuss the Declaration of Independence, study Paul Revere's midnight...
Curated OER
Could You Elaborate on That?
Fourth graders engage in a lesson which teaches the parts of an expository essay and how to organize and write an expository piece from a given topic. After a lecture/demo, 4th graders utilize a worksheet imbedded in this plan which...