Need help with doing a descriptive paper or personal narrative? Need a writing lesson plan? Meet Virginia Hamilton and follow her step-by-step guide to writing. When done, you are eligible for a certificate signed by this author.

This page gives students specific guidelines & tips for a descriptive writing assignment. Students can publish descriptive writing here, as well. A thorough teacher's guide to descriptive writing is also provided.

An encyclopedia article from Wikipedia on the diary discusses the transition from the first diaries being used strictly for business to diaries being used for personal use. Also gives details on diary (or journal) writing during the 21st...

This workshop helps students increase their skills in descriptive writing by following tips and suggestions from writer Virginia Hamilton. After reading about Hamilton, students write their descriptive pieces and publish them online. A...

This site includes examples of diaries, journals, and notebooks in the Collection at Richard Hugo House and The Diary Library of Corralitos, California. Focuses upon the genre of diaries and journals within the practice of writing....

Excellent site geared towards student writers interesting in learning how to journal. Follow Virginia Hamilton, an author, and learn her techniques from examples. Very comprehensive learning site.

Learners research an animal or other living creature and create a life-span diary similar to the one they read about in the book Diary of a Worm by Doreen Cronin. PowerPoint presentations are made for students to use while sharing their...

A summary and full text of A Diary from Dixie, an account of life as a woman in the South during the Civil War, by Mary Chesnut.

Contains plans for four lessons that use the book "Diary of a Worm" by Doreen Cronin to teach about worms. In addition to objectives and standards, this instructional plan contains links to PDF handouts and sites used in the lessons as...

Collection of poetry and writing encompasses several centuries of Canadian literary production. Many of the writers are well-known historical figures, including explorers, such as Samuel Hearne, whose travel diaries are excerpted here....

Smithsonian in the Classroom presents "Introduction to the Nature Journal." Teachers can download this comprehensive teaching package in which students will practice and develop their skills of writing observations and making hypotheses....

Smithsonian in the Classroom presents "Introduction to the Nature Journal." Teachers can download this comprehensive teaching package in which students will practice and develop their skills of writing observations and making hypotheses....

This lesson is an introduction to contemporary nonfiction including the definition, types of nonfiction: biographies, autobiographies, memoirs, essays, speeches, and diaries, examples of authors and types, key terms, essential questions,...

As part of a revision and close reading section of BBC Bitesize, this site presents information on personal writing with six key features listed. The information is included as part of a brief series on the autobiography.

This lesson plan will ask students to review sections of A Seat at the Drum and Spiral of Fire where the many issues of tribal sovereignty are evident. Students will be asked to research the sovereignty issues facing a tribe that resides...

In this lesson, students will create a school survival guide that follows the model of Sleeping Freshmen Never Lie by David Lubar. This survival guide will serve as a "how to" instructional manual for other incoming freshman students...

A collection of games for students to work on forming sentences. These games give students strategies for sentence formation.

[Free Registration/Login Required] This resource offers active ways to learn facts about Shakespeare's life and works such as moving about the room collecting facts about Shakespeare and then creating a group collage with them and...

This slideshow focuses on epistolary narration, revealing a story through letters, documents, or diaries. It defines the term, explains what to look for to identify them, gives the two perspectives, and offers literary examples: C.S....

An excellent resource on V.S. Naipaul, a Carribean writer, this website provides articles on his status as a "rootless wanderer," his major works, and the key themes and ideas conveyed in Naipaul's writing.

From the diaries of his daughter, learn about the later years of the life of Mark Twain.

An informational site on Mary Chesnut. Includes general information about her life, works, and writings, including A Diary from Dixie. Also includes links to other sites.

Here at this site from the University of North Carolina, read the full text to Mary Chesnut's (1823-1886 CE) "A Diary from Dixie." This website include biographical information and illustration from the original book, published in 1905.

Fletcher Pomeroy was a cavalryman and quartermaster sergeant in the 7th Kanasas. This portion of his daily diary is transcribed here by his descendants.