Untitled

Grade 1
Writing Curriculum:
Grade 1 Writing Curriculum: Week-by-Week Lessons © Carden & Godley-Sugrue, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Week-by-Week Lessons
BY K ATHLEEN A. CARDEN AND MARY GODLEY-SUGRUE
NEW YORK • TORONTO • LONDON • AUCKLAND • SYDNEY

MEXICO CITY • NEW DELHI • HONG KONG • BUENOS AIRES
Dedication:
Dedicated to my husband Tom, and my children, Tommy, Meghan, Patrick, William, and Jack for
giving me the love, support, and countless hours necessary to make this book a reality. —K.C.
To my children Anne Marie and Jimmy, who are just beginning to blossom as writers, and to
developing writers everywhere. May they always cherish the creativity and self-expression
achieved through writing. —M.S.
Acknowledgments:
Special thanks to my parents, Jack and Dorothy Whalen for making sacrifices to ensure quality
education throughout my life; to my friend and mentor, Margo Turner, who shared her work ethic
and taught me how to teach; to my co-author, Mary Sugrue, for sharing her knowledge and ideas
with me; and to my editor, Joanna Davis-Swing for her gentle guidance throughout this writing
process. —K.C.
Many thanks to all who helped to make these books come alive with their ongoing encouragement
and babysitting: the grandparents—Brigid and Richard Godley, Mary and Bartholomew Sugrue,
my husband Jim, my former colleagues at Goudy School and principal Mr. Durkin, and our editor
Joanna Davis-Swing. —M.S.
Scholastic Inc. grants teachers permission to photocopy the reproducible pages in this book for classroom
use. No other part of this publication may be reproduced in whole or in part, or stored in a retrieval
system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or
otherwise, without written permission of the publisher. For information regarding permission, write to
Scholastic Inc., 557 Broadway, New York, NY 10012.
Cover design by Maria Lilja

Interior design by Holly Grundon
Interior illustrations by Milk and Cookies
ISBN: 0-439-52982-4
Copyright © 2005 by Kathleen A. Carden and Mary Godley-Sugrue

All rights reserved. Published by Scholastic Inc.
Printed in the U.S.A.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 23 11 10 09 08 07 06 05
Contents
Introduction ................................................................................................................... 5
Chapter 1: First-Grade Writers: A Developmental Portrait ...................... 7
Developmental Stages of Beginning Writers ................................................................ 7
Chapter 2: First-Grade Writers: A Curriculum............................................ 13

Skill Chart ................................................................................................................. 14
Daily Journal Writing .................................................................................................. 16

Weekly Writing Instruction ........................................................................................ 20
Sample Weekly Writing Lesson and Schedule ........................................................... 22
The Writing Curriculum and the Writing Process ..................................................... 26
Assessment ................................................................................................................... 32
Meeting the Needs of Various Writers ........................................................................ 33
Chapter 3: September Writing Lessons ............................................................ 37

Daily Journal Prompts ............................................................................................ 37
Weekly Writing Instruction .................................................................................. 42
Week 1 Lesson: Classroom Rules ........................................................................... 42
Week 2 Lesson: A Summer Memory...................................................................... 44
Week 3 Lesson: Getting to Know You, Part I ........................................................ 46
Week 4 Lesson: Getting to Know You, Part II....................................................... 48
Week 5 Lesson: Surprise Bag ................................................................................. 50
Chapter 4: October Writing Lessons ................................................................. 52

Week 6 Lesson: Special Me .................................................................................... 56
Week 7 Lesson: The Best Game............................................................................. 58
Week 8 Lesson: Halloween Costumes.................................................................... 60
Week 9 Lesson: A Hobby of Mine ......................................................................... 62
Chapter 5: November Writing Lessons ............................................................. 64

Week 10 Lesson: Lunchtime................................................................................... 68
Week 11 Lesson: I Am Thankful ........................................................................... 70
Week 12 Lesson: Making a Turkey......................................................................... 72
Week 13 Lesson: You’ll Never Believe What Came Alive! .................................. 74
Chapter 6: December Writing Lessons ............................................................. 76

Weekly Writing Instruction ...................................................................................79
Week 14 Lesson: How to Build a Snowman ...........................................................79
Week 15 Lesson: My Favorite Place........................................................................81
Week 16 Lesson: To Have or Not to Have . . . Cable T.V. ...................................83
Chapter 7: January Writing Lessons ................................................................. 85
Week 17 Lesson: Winter Vacation ..........................................................................88
Week 18 Lesson: My Good Friend ..........................................................................91
Week 19 Lesson: Thank You, Thank You!..............................................................94
Chapter 8: February Writing Lessons ............................................................... 96

Weekly Writing Instruction ................................................................................ 100
Week 20 Lesson: Dear Visitor................................................................................100
Week 21 Lesson: My Invention.............................................................................102

Week 22 Lesson: School Fun.................................................................................104
Week 23 Lesson: Something I Do Well ................................................................106
Chapter 9: March Writing Lessons.................................................................. 108

Daily Journal Prompts .......................................................................................... 108
Week 24 Lesson: Dear Teacher..............................................................................112
Week 25 Lesson: My Favorite Toy.........................................................................114
Week 26 Lesson: The Best Day of My Life ...........................................................116
Week 27 Lesson: Following the Rainbow .............................................................118
Chapter 10: April Writing Lessons .................................................................. 120

Week 28 Lesson: Indoor vs. Outdoor Recess ........................................................123
Week 29 Lesson: Rainy-Day Fun...........................................................................125
Week 30 Lesson: Who Let the Dog Out?..............................................................127
Chapter 11: May Writing Lessons.................................................................... 129

Week 31 Lesson: Taking Care of a Pet..................................................................133
Week 32 Lesson: When I Was a Baby...................................................................135
Week 33 Lesson: Earning a Privilege.....................................................................138
Week 34 Lesson: A New Take on an Old Story ...................................................140
Chapter 12: June Writing Lessons ................................................................... 142

Week 35 Lesson: Acrostic Poem ...........................................................................145
Week 36 Lesson: Name Poem ...............................................................................148
Week 37 Lesson: Cinquain ....................................................................................151
Appendices
Appendix A: Letter Template ............................................................................. 154
Appendix B: Story Template .............................................................................. 155
Appendix C: Time-Order Transitions .............................................................. 156
Appendix D: START/STOP ............................................................................. 157
Appendix E: Writing Checklist: Sentences ................................................... 158
Appendix F: Writing Checklist: Paragraphs .................................................. 159
Recommended Reading .......................................................................................
Introduction
T his book is written for all teachers, administrators, and parents who
would like to see their students become confident, capable writers.
We know how vital this is for success in the academic world and
beyond, yet too often we fail students by not providing the direct instruction
and guided practice they need to develop as writers. Low test scores and poor
performance are the all-too-common result: 42% of Illinois third graders
tested did not meet the writing standards (Chicago Tribune, 15 Nov. 2001, sec.
1:28). In 2002 the bad news continued, with the headlines reading: “Poor
Scores for Writing Alarms State” (Chicago Tribune, 4 Aug. 2002, sec. 1:1).
This tale is also true of New York third graders. “Despite last minute infusion
of $8 million to prepare students for tests, 11,700 of city public school
system’s 80,000 third graders scored in the lowest of four categories . . .
putting them below cutoff for promotion and in danger of being held back”
(New York Times, 4 June 2004, sec. A). Across the country in California, we
find the same concerns: “ . . . Writing Skill Lagging in Grade 4, 8; A national
test puts California in the bottom third of states, with just 23% of youngsters
in those grades rating proficient or advanced” (Los Angeles Times, 11 July
2003, sec. B:8). These writing woes are spread from coast to coast and have
serious implications for our nation as a whole.
The National Writing Commission has addressed this issue in their April
2003 report, “The Neglected ‘R’: The Need for a Writing Revolution.” The
report notes that “American education will never realize its potential as an
engine of opportunity and economic growth until a writing revolution puts
language and communication in their proper place in the classroom.” We
agree. As educators with 25 years of experience between us, we have seen
firsthand the need for a comprehensive writing curriculum to address this
problem. The writing curriculum should include direct instruction, teacher
modeling, guided practice, conferring, and the use of consistent terminology
across grade levels. In addition, there needs to be continuity among the grade
I NTRODUCTION 5
levels so that the skill of writing sentences is mastered before paragraph
formation, and paragraph formation is mastered before essay writing.
This is book one of a three-book series in which writing skills are
sequentially taught. Book one (typically for first graders) works on sentence
writing and builds up to paragraph writing. Book two (typically for second
graders) reinforces paragraph writing and moves on to simple essay writing
with introductions and conclusions. Book three (typically for third graders)
works on multiple-paragraph essays and prepares students for taking the state
writing exams.
Writing is about communicating. It is the art of expressing feelings,

emotions, ideas, and information on paper. As first-grade teachers, you want
to create an enthusiasm for writing that will be nurtured and developed
throughout your students’ schooling experience. You want your students to
feel comfortable, confident, and secure enough to want to express their
thoughts on paper. What’s more you want to provide them with lots of
opportunities to be successful. Instead of drills, you can use mini-lessons to
teach and to reinforce skills. These quick lessons can be followed by plenty
of practice. It is the love of writing that will be almost impossible to instill if
too much “skill and drill” bogs students down in the early years.
We have walked in your shoes, hunting and pecking through a multitude of
writing books in search of the perfect writing lessons. We hope that you find
our collection of journal prompts, weekly lessons, and reproducible planning
pages helpful. Use the ones that work for you and adapt the others to your
needs. By following our program of Daily Journal Prompts and Weekly
Writing Instruction, your students will be on their way to writing proficiently.
6
CHAPTER 1
First-Grade Writers
A Developmental
Portrait
G ather a group of first graders and ask them: “When did you learn
how to ride a two-wheeler?” You may get one or two students who
tell you that they learned at the age of three. A few more will
proudly state that they learned at age four. Still others will say five was the
magic age. In addition, a couple of brave souls will admit that they are still
trying to master this developmental milestone.
The writing development of your first graders, in many respects, parallels the
bike-riding experience. You can expect to see a wide span of experience and
abilities. A handful of your students will have been writing stories and filling up
notebook pages with near-perfect spelling since kindergarten. Others will barely
be writing their names. The reason for this broad range of ability is the varying
amounts of exposure to writing across kindergarten curriculums, as well as
varying student development levels at this age. This chapter provides an
overview of the typical developmental stages most first graders go through. Then
we share the curriculum we developed in response to first graders’ needs and the
standards they are expected to meet by the end of the year.
Developmental Stages of
Beginning Writers
hen looking at first-grade writing in September and again in June, you
W will see that the growth span is unbelievable. But to get where they are
CHAPTER 1 7
in June, students have to start somewhere. And “somewhere” includes
learning to spell, learning conventions of print (including spatial awareness
and punctuation), and learning to organize thoughts.
S TAG E S OF S P E LLI NG D EVE LOP M E NT

pelling is a challenge to first-grade writers. We encourage students to use
S invented spelling when they write so they don’t spend all of their writing
time worrying about how to spell words correctly. Invented spelling is valuable
for many reasons. It reinforces phonics skills by encouraging students to match

sounds to letters. As they get used to doing this, they begin to focus on letters
and print found elsewhere—in the classroom and in books. Hence, students
make the connection between reading and writing early, and their gains in one
area transfer to the other. Invented spelling also takes the emphasis away from
perfection, allowing students to take risks and focus on the purpose of their
writing. Students who are not encouraged to use invented spelling often simplify
their ideas to include only words that they are confident they can spell.
In addition, it is important to understand how children learn to spell.
Spelling is a developmental process, with students passing through predictable
stages as their spelling develops. Every student is different, and therefore will
pass through each stage at different rates. Within a first-grade classroom, you
are more than likely going to have students functioning at all
stages of development. Following are descriptions of the stages
often seen in first-grade classrooms, as defined by J. Richard
Gentry and Jean Wallace Gillet (1993).
Prephonetic Stage
The first stage of spelling development is the prephonetic
stage. At this point, students do not have the knowledge of
phonics and therefore do not know that letters represent
sounds. They may be excited to write, however, and may busy
themselves by filling up pages with random strings of letters,
pictures, or numbers. They may even try to copy written
language around them, such as signs and posters in the
classroom. Most students generally pass through this stage in
kindergarten, but you may see some students entering first
grade at this stage.
Sample of student writing in the prephonetic stage.
8
Semiphonetic Stage
The next stage, the semiphonetic stage, begins with students using
single letters to represent words. For example, students at this
stage may draw a picture of a dog and a cat, and then write D and K
under it.
Phonetic Stage
As they broaden their knowledge of phonetics, students enter the
phonetic stage. Here they begin to spell words according to the way
they sound. Beginning and ending consonant sounds become more
accurate, but students confuse vowels and vowel patterns. Spellings
are becoming decodable due to the accuracy of consonant sounds.
Students in the phonetic stage, probably the majority of your class Sample of student writing in the
at the beginning of the year, will enjoy writing messages and creating semiphonetic stage
lists, signs, sentences, and simple stories. As you create a
print-rich environment in your classroom, allow students to
label items, write lists, and make signs (No Boys Allowed/No
Girls Allowed are two popular ones that you’ll have to veto
right away!). By encouraging these activities throughout the
day, you are creating purpose and enthusiasm for writing.
Transitional Stage
Next, students pass through the transitional stage, a bridge
from phonetic to conventional spelling. At this stage, Sample of student writing in the transitional stage
students begin to spell words as

they “look” rather than as they
“sound.” Students’ spellings begin
to look very close to actual, or
conventional, spelling.
Through reading, transitional
spellers also learn conventions of
the English language, such as
vowel patterns and digraphs, and
they begin to try them out in
their own spellings. You may
want to post a list of commonly
misspelled words, which students
Sample of student writing in the Sample of student writing in the

phonetic stage transitional stage
CHAPTER 1 9
can refer to, especially in this stage. By the end of first grade, most of your
students will be in this stage.
Conventional Stage
Finally, students enter the conventional stage of spelling. It
is in this stage that students will tell you they can “spell like
adults.” Their spellings are correct, and they will use a
dictionary to find the spellings of any unknown words. Just
as with the first stage, you can only expect to see a couple of
first-grade writers spelling at this stage.
Where Does My Spelling

Program Fit In?
Your school or district will most likely have a spelling
Sample of student writing in the conventional stage
program in place that you will be required to use. While
spelling programs provide practice and instruction, we
believe that students will ultimately learn to spell from
engaging in meaningful writing activities.
To make the most of a spelling series, we recommend
Name:____________________________ giving a pretest to determine which words students know
Weekly Spelling List at the beginning of the week. Then, to personalize spelling
Unit ____________ instruction, have students copy only the words they did
not know how to spell onto their weekly list. Supplement
1._________________________________
the list with unknown words from a high-frequency list
2._________________________________
(such as the Dolch list) as well as their journal entries and
3._________________________________
weekly writing assignments. You can make a form similar
4._________________________________ to the one at left.
5._________________________________ Encouraging invented spelling and providing purposeful
6._________________________________ writing (which you will find plenty of in this book) are
7._________________________________ the keys to teaching students to spell. Do not be afraid to
8._________________________________ print the word yourself above a word written by a phonetic
9._________________________________ writer to make it easier to read, or to send a transitional
writer to a dictionary if he or she is at your desk
10.________________________________
continuously because a word doesn’t “look right.”
Sample form for weekly spelling words. After a

pretest of the book list, students copy only the words that
they misspelled. They then find (with your help) additional
words from their journal and writing projects to complete
the weekly list.
10
P R I NT C ONVE NTION S
uring shared reading, guided reading, and other instructional activities,
D first graders discover that there are certain rules, or conventions,
required to make print “work.” They have learned that letters must be
arranged in a certain order to form words. Now they will become aware that
spaces separate words and periods separate sentences. As students acquire
these concepts about print, we help them apply them to their own writing.
Spatial Awareness
One convention that first graders will learn is that spaces separate words. As
students develop this spatial awareness of print, some will take it upon
themselves to use large lines or dots, rather than spaces, between each word.
For example, I/went/to/Disney/World/over/the/summer/and/I/saw/Mickey/
Mouse; I*like*to*play*school.
This spacing technique will pass quickly. You can help by calling attention
to proper spacing as you model writing conventions and pointing out spacing
in books while reading. Also, use the finger-space rule: one finger space
between words and two finger spaces between sentences.
tip
Punctuation
llow
Another convention that first graders need to master is ending punctuation.
Just as spaces separate words, periods separate sentences. Periods are the stop
A students to
self-correct spelling
signs that tell us to stop reading because an idea is over. Without them the tests, or point out a
writing will not make sense to the reader. Read some sample sentences misspelled high-
without pausing to illustrate the importance of ending punctuation. frequency word
during a conference,
and have students
correct it so they
G E N E R ATI NG AN D O RGAN IZI NG I DEAS
can visualize their
hen first graders are asked to write a story, many of them shy away. It
W seems to be a risk that many are reluctant to take. They may ask,
error.
“What should I write about?” or “What if my story doesn’t make sense?”

Young writers need a great deal of help generating and organizing their
thoughts at first. At the beginning, students will be more comfortable drawing
a picture and labeling it. Next, they will move on to drawing a picture and
writing a simple sentence. Finally, with the help of your modeling and
conferring, they advance to writing a group of sentences to explain their idea.
Since many students will need assistance generating and organizing ideas,
this book provides templates to assist with organizing thoughts. In addition,
CHAPTER 1 11
we suggest lots of brainstorming and teacher modeling. Initially, students will
brainstorm pictorially and then use their illustrations as a springboard for
their written work. Later, most students will move on to a written brainstorm.
Each assignment provides a planning page with ample brainstorming space to
generate and organize ideas.
You will find that writing assignments in this book follow a process
approach to teaching writing, and that even your most reluctant writers will
be more apt to give writing a try with the support of a structured, predictable
framework. The consistent use of the writing process (analyzing the audience,
setting the purpose, brainstorming, drafting, conferring, editing, revising,

and sharing) will allow students to feel in control at each step along the way.
tip Your modeling of the writing process paired with our sequenced assignments
will give young writers the tools they need to generate and organize their own
f a student is ideas, and to build their confidence to become independent writers by the
I having a hard
time remembering
end of the year.
to use ending
punctuation, have
the student first
say, then write,
and finally stop the
sentence by using
a red marker or a
red star sticker to
symbolize a stop
sign. Continue
with this visual
approach until
the student has
internalized the
rule.
12
CHAPTER 2
First-Grade Writers
A Curriculum
tip
T o become competent writers, students must have ample time to

practice writing every day, coupled with direct instruction on
specific skills and conventions. With time and teaching, first
graders will progress as writers along the developmental continuum described
in the last chapter. This chapter describes the curriculum we have developed
A
should be
ll of the
writing
assignments
completed in
over the years to teach first-grade writers. class to ensure
Our curriculum has two main components: daily journal writing and a weekly student-generated
writing lesson, which consists of direct instruction, guided practice, independent work. If these
work, conferring, and sharing. The journal prompts and writing lessons are assignments are
arranged according to the academic calendar. The writing lessons cover narrative, homework,
expository, and persuasive genres, as well as letter, short story, and poetry writing. parents may inter-
It is our goal to provide clear descriptions and consistent terminology, so that all vene. By keeping
the assignments
teachers and students will feel comfortable with the writing process.
in class, you are
At times, the writing instruction may seem highly directive, but remember
also ensuring
that children need training wheels to get the basic form prior to riding a two-
weekly student
wheeler on their own. Students will pass through the developmental stages of
writing. Remember
spelling and develop their knowledge of print conventions at different rates, that ultimately the
just as they will take off their training wheels at different times. It is students learn to
important to know that, just as in riding a two-wheeler, they will all get to the write by writing,
same point eventually. Our open-ended topics allow students to respond not by listening
creatively at their own level of development. The reproducible pages guide about how to
students through the weekly lesson, yet allow them to respond in their own write.
voice, avoiding the recipe-like, contrived writing of which the scorers of
many state writing exams have been critical. The weekly writing instruction
pages include the genre, skill, standard, assignment, focus, model, and a
conferring tip for each assignment; see the overview of assignments and skills
on pages 14–15. The rest of this chapter describes our writing curriculum
in detail.
CHAPTER 2 13
14
Assignment Genre Skill(s) Standard(s)
Classroom Rules (p. 42) Expository sentences Capitalizing the beginning Use correct grammar, spelling, punctuation, capitalization, and structure.
of sentences
A Summer Memory (p. 44) Narrative sentences Using ending punctuation: period Use correct grammar, spelling, punctuation, capitalization, and structure.
Getting to Know You, Interrogatory sentences Using ending punctuation: Use correct grammar, spelling, punctuation, capitalization, and structure.
Part I (p. 46) question mark
Getting to Know You, Descriptive sentences Writing answers to questions; Apply acquired information to communicate in a variety of formats.
Part II (p. 48) presenting information Speak effectively using appropriate language.
Surprise Bag (p. 50) Descriptive sentences Using descriptive language Present brief oral reports, using language and vocabulary appropriate to the
message and audience.
Special Me (p. 56) Descriptive sentences Avoiding redundancy Compose well-organized and coherent writing.
The Best Game (p. 58) Persuasive sentences Persuading the audience Communicate ideas in writing to accomplish a variety of
purposes.
Halloween Costumes (p. 60) Descriptive sentences Using descriptive language Compose well-organized and coherent writing for specific purposes and
audiences.
A Hobby of Mine (p. 62) Expository sentences Using time-order transitions Use correct grammar, spelling, punctuation, capitalization, and structure.
Lunchtime (p. 68) Lists Arranging items in order Communicate ideas in writing to accomplish a variety of purposes.
I Am Thankful (p. 70) Friendly letter Using correct capitalization and Communicate ideas in writing to accomplish a variety of purposes.
punctuation in greetings and Use correct grammar, spelling, punctuation, capitalization, and structure.
closings
Making a Turkey (p. 72) Expository sentences Writing directions Write for a variety of purposes, including description, information,
explanation, persuasion, and narration.
You’ll Never Believe What Narrative sentences Sequencing events in a story Use prewriting strategies to generate and organize ideas (e.g., focus on one topic;
Came Alive! (p. 74) organize writing to include a beginning, middle, and end; use descriptive words when
writing about people, places, things, events), and write for a variety of purposes.
How to Build a Snowman (p. 79) Expository sentences Using time-order transitions Write for a variety of purposes, including description, information,
explanation, persuasion, and narration.
My Favorite Place (p. 81) Descriptive sentences Using sensory language Use prewriting strategies to generate and organize ideas (e.g., focus on
one topic; organize writing to include a beginning, middle, and end; use
descriptive words when writing about people, places, things, and events).
To Have or Not to Have . . . Persuasive sentences Persuading the audience Write for a variety of purposes, including persuasion.
Cable TV (p. 83)
Winter Vacation (p. 88) Narrative paragraph Writing paragraphs Communicate ideas in writing to accomplish a variety of purposes.
Assignment Genre Skill(s) Standard(s)
CHAPTER 2
My Good Friend (p. 91) Descriptive paragraph Using START to expand Use prewriting strategies to generate and organize ideas (e.g., focus on one
brainstorm ideas and write topic; organize writing to include a beginning, middle, and end; use descrip-
a paragraph tive words when writing about people, places, things, and events).
Thank You, Thank You! (p. 94) Thank-you letter Using parts of a letter—greeting, Communicate ideas in writing to accomplish a variety of purposes.
body, and closing Use correct grammar, spelling, punctuation, capitalization, and structure.
Dear Visitor (p. 100) Formal letter Using parts of a letter—greeting, Write letters, reports, and stories based on acquired information. Compose
body, and closing well-organized and coherent writing for specific purposes and audiences.
My Invention (p. 102) Expository paragraph Using elaboration Demonstrate focus, organization, elaboration, and integration in written com-
positions.
School Fun (p. 104) Narrative paragraph Writing paragraphs—purpose, Communicate ideas in writing to accomplish a variety of purposes.
supporting sentences, and Demonstrate focus, organization, and elaboration in writing.
sentences of elaboration
Something I Do Well Use correct grammar, spelling, punctuation, and capitalization.

(p. 106) Narrative paragraph Writing compound sentences
Dear Teacher (p. 112) Persuasive letter Writing supporting sentences Write letters, reports, and stories based on acquired information.
My Favorite Toy (p. 114) Descriptive paragraph Using descriptive language (similes) Communicate ideas in writing to accomplish a variety of purposes.
The Best Day of My Life Narrative paragraph Sequencing and using time-order Relate character, setting, and plot to real-life situations.
(p. 116) transitions
Following the Rainbow (p. 118) Fiction Sequencing—beginning, middle, Use prewriting strategies to generate and organize ideas (e.g., focus on one
and end topic; organize writing to include a beginning, middle, and end; use descrip-
tive words when writing about people, places, things, and events).
Indoor vs. Outdoor Recess Persuasive paragraph Writing supporting sentences Demonstrate focus, organization, and elaboration in writing. Write for a variety of
(p. 123) purposes.
Rainy-Day Fun (p. 125) Expository paragraph Using time-order transitions Communicate ideas in writing to accomplish a variety of purposes.
Who Let the Dog Out? (p. 127) Fiction Using rich vocabulary Relate character, setting, and plot to real-life situations.
Taking Care of a Pet (p. 133) Expository paragraph Editing/revising Use correct grammar, spelling, punctuation, capitalization, and structure.
When I Was a Baby (p. 135) Narrative paragraph Understanding subject-verb Use correct grammar, spelling, punctuation, capitalization, and structure.
agreement and past-tense verb
formation
Earning a Privilege (p. 138) Persuasive paragraph Choosing titles Communicate ideas in writing to accomplish a variety of purposes.
A New Take on an Old Fiction Using dialogue Identify how author and illustrators express their ideas.
Story (p. 140)
Acrostic Poem (p. 145) Poetry Using descriptive language Describe differences between prose and poetry.
Name Poem (p. 148) Poetry Rhyming words Communicate ideas in writing to accomplish a variety of purposes.
Cinquain (p. 151) Poetry Using descriptive language Communicate ideas in writing to accomplish a variety of purposes.
15
Daily Journal Writing
aily journal time should be a fun free-writing experience that helps
D students enjoy writing as they practice generating and expressing ideas.
We provide you with daily journal prompts that relate to the season as well
as topics of interest to first graders. Remember that these are just suggestions.
Allow students the opportunity to make their journals meaningful by writing
on topics of their own choice. You may also wish to substitute prompts that
are specific to related curriculum.
In addition to daily journals, many teachers use math, science, and/or

literature response journals as a tool for students to demonstrate their
knowledge of subject matter, as well as to practice their writing skills. Writing
across the curriculum ensures that students not only get more practice but
also see the importance of writing in their daily lives—that they are writing
for a wide variety of purposes. The more students have the opportunity to
write, the better they will become at it, so never pass up an opportunity for
students to use written language.
E STAB LI S H I NG TH E R OUTI N E AN D S ET TI NG E XP EC TATION S

or journaling to be the most effective, you’ll need to establish a regular
F time for it each day. Students should write in their journals for about ten
minutes every day (including illustrating time). Many teachers prefer to use
the first ten minutes of the morning. Others like to get students started and
then use it as independent work while they meet with small groups of
students. Still others prefer to journal right after the lunch and recess break,
as a way of calming and focusing the students for the afternoon. We
recommend that you write along with the students and share your responses
with them. This is a wonderful way for students to get to know you on a
personal level. The hardest thing initially is finding the time. Once you
achieve that, you will see how quickly it becomes a routine that students look
forward to each day.
You’ll also need to establish your expectations for the journal and
journaling time so everyone is clear on what to do. Decide on your criteria
and then teach them to students. You may need to model the process and
illustrate your expectations more than once. We find the following supplies
essential and require all students to have them ready at the beginning of
journal time:
A journal notebook: Spiral notebooks are the easiest to use, but the lines
may be intimidating to some beginning writers. Primary journals (lots of
16
picture space and primary printing lines) can be
purchased through school supply stores, but can be
costly. You may choose to make your own journals by
stapling sheets of 8 1/2-by-11-inch paper with a few
writing lines and a lot of picture space in between two
pieces of colored construction paper. As students gain
confidence, you can add more printing lines and thus
decrease the amount of picture space. When students
appear ready, they can transition to a spiral notebook.
Pencils and erasers: All writing should be done in

pencil so that students can easily make changes during
the writing process. Rewriting an entire piece not only
creates unnecessary frustration, but also destroys
enthusiasm for the project. Standard erasers often
break off the pencil tops, so we recommend using cap
Primary paper with space for illustrations
erasers that can be slipped on.
Once students have their supplies ready, the next step
is to date the page. The journal is an important tool that
shows growth over the course of the school year, and
students should be encouraged to look back at their work periodically. The date
can be written by the student, or stamped by the student using a rubber date
stamp. Next, students should focus their attention on you as you introduce the
prompt. You can write it on the chalkboard, chart paper, or overhead projector.
It is important to read through the daily prompt and then discuss and elaborate
to ensure that all students understand and are able to respond.
The prompt generally ends with a question for the students to answer.
Often students have a hard time incorporating the prompt question into their
response. To help students develop this ability, we include
sentence starters with the prompts (see the examples below).
This will help students begin their writing with a purpose, or
main idea, a skill necessary for success on future writing exams.
What would you like to be when

you grow up and why?
When I grow up, I’d like to be a
_________________________. Sample journal entry written by a first grader
CHAPTER 2 17
After you’ve introduced and discussed the prompt, students
then copy the sentence starter into their journals and begin to
write.
Each journal entry should be a minimum of one to two
sentences at the beginning of the year, working up to five by the
end of the year. This count includes the sentence starter. Five
sentences may seem like a lot, but it is always better to have high
expectations so that the students will aim high. Even if they fall
short of their goal, their results will still be impressive. For
struggling or beginning writers, you may need to adjust your

expectations. Perhaps drawing a picture and labeling it, or
writing one sentence, is more reasonable for a struggling writer.
On the other hand, a more advanced writer might be expected to
elaborate more and thus write more sentences.
You may have to walk around the room to ensure that students
Sample journal entry from a beginning writer are complying with the length requirement. They often confuse
three, four, or five sentences with three, four, or five lines.
E NCOU R AG I NG R E S PON S E
llow students time to illustrate their journal entries with
A crayons, markers, or colored pencils. These illustrations will
help develop descriptive language as the year progresses. It may
be easier for some students to illustrate their response to a
prompt and then use words to tell about it. Students are apt to
describe things more vividly with words when they are also
planning their illustrations. The illustrations also help beginning
writers develop confidence, as they too can feel proud about
having something on their page.
Another way to motivate writers is to let them use the
computer. If your school is like many, the computer time and
number of computers is limited. However, journals are a great
writing assignment for the computer because they are short, so
Sample journal entry from a more advanced writer students can practice with computer-generated writing and
related components, such as typing, spell check, and the
thesaurus. You may wish to post a schedule so that students
can see when they will be able to use the computer for their
journal time.
18
M ANAG I NG AN D A S S E S S I NG J OU R NALS
hen you are finished journaling, and as the students are
W still writing, walk around the room to monitor their
progress and offer individualized help. Aim to work with about
one-fifth of the class each day. This will save you from having
to collect the entire set of journals at the end of the week.
Always write a comment or a question, as students love to
read teacher feedback. Keep this feedback informal and
positive during the free-writing journal activity.

Allow a few student volunteers to share their journal entries
with the class at the end of journal time. Never force students
to read an entry if they are not yet comfortable doing so, but
we’ve found that first graders are usually eager to share. There
may be a few who are reluctant, but once they see the positive
feedback that the presenter receives, they too will soon be
eager to share their work. Once everyone is eager to share Sample journal entry with teacher comments
and/or when the writing gets longer, you may wish to make a
schedule to ensure that all students have an equal opportunity
to present their work. Sit near the writer in case he or she needs assistance
reading. You may need to rewrite a word or two above younger writers’ words
so that it can be reread easily.
Ask students to accept three questions or comments from the audience.
Make sure that, beginning with the first sharing session, you model your
questions or comments first. Always start with a positive comment and/or tip
question such as the following:
se a
I like how you gave examples of your favorite
gym games. I was wondering how you play
U checklist to
make sure that
Dr. Dodgeball. you have read
something from
I like how you shared that your favorite animal each student each
was the polar bear. I was wondering what it is week, and to
that you liked so much about him. record any words
that you think
At the end of every month, invite students to choose one entry that they students should
think shows their best work. This will allow the students some responsibility add to their
for self-assessment, as well as keeping you from having to read all of the personalized
journals every day. The grading should be holistic, evaluating length, spelling lists.
creativity, and effort. Do not get caught up in grammar and style—just write a
comment about your overall impression. Try to avoid marking up young
CHAPTER 2 19
writers’ “masterpieces” with a lot of red marks. This can deflate their
confidence, and, as a result, can turn them off writing. Use positive comments
to reward them for their successes, and offer gentle suggestions to guide them
through their obstacles. Remember—the nature of journaling is free writing.
Weekly Writing Instruction

e have developed a five-day lesson that teaches an important writing
W
skill and gives students the opportunity to practice using the skill as
they take a piece through the writing process. Here is an overview of our
lesson sequence.
Day 1: Teach Skill/Assign Topic/Prewriting

Students:
¶ analyze audience
¶ set purpose
¶ brainstorm ideas
Day 2: Drafting
Students:
¶ talk with peer: two-minute chat
¶ complete planning page
¶ begin drafting
Day 3: Drafting/Revising/Conferring
Students:
¶ complete drafting
¶ begin revising
¶ confer with teacher
Day 4: Revising/Editing/Conferring
Students:
¶ finish revising
¶ edit work
¶ confer with teacher
Day 5: Sharing
Students:
¶ prepare work for sharing
¶ share
20
The weekly writing lessons allow students the opportunity to practice many
types of writing under your direction. It is here that the steps of the writing
process, as well as individual skills, are taught. You will need to set aside 20 to
30 minutes per day to work on the lesson. The lessons address genre, skills,
and standards, and they invite you to model, using the planning page and
conferring tips. (For a detailed walk-through of a weekly lesson, see pages
22–25.)
We encourage you to write along with the students. This writing can take
place during journal time, weekly mini-lessons, drafting, or conferring. You
may wish to model on the overhead projector because it is easy to view, and it
provides ample space for writing and editing. Other places for you to model tip
writing include chart paper and the chalkboard. Do not fear crossing out,
hen
changing, adding, and so on because this is all part of the writing process, and
it is good for the students to see that even adult writers have to work to make
W children
read or listen to
the writing flow.
their favorite book,
they do not
realize all of the
T OOLS N E E DE D FOR W E E KLY W R ITI NG L E S SON S revisions that the
ach student needs to have a working folder in his or her desk for “work in author has made
E progress.” This working folder should have a list of commonly misspelled to the story. If
your school or
words and/or high-frequency writing words, a planning page for the current
PTA/PTO arranges
assignment (which we include with each lesson), and START and STOP
visits from local
reminder sheets after these tools have been taught (see pages 28–29). Once
authors as part of
paragraph writing is introduced in January, a list of transitional words should
students’ enrich-
also be placed in this folder. ment, be sure to
Each student should also have a permanent writing folder, which can be ask the author(s)
part of an assessment portfolio. This folder is a great resource to track student to share their writ-
growth. All prewriting and draft work can be saved and stapled under the ing experiences
final product. This permanent file should be kept in the your file cabinet. with the students.
Take the folders out periodically and share them with students so they can (Many authors will
look back and see their growth. Make sure that the students know it is normal tell students that
to see some “silly” things from the beginning of the year and that they should by the time their
be proud of how much they’ve grown. Without this reassurance, many first book was finished,
graders will look back at their work and erase errors because they now “know they could not
recognize their
better.”
original idea(s).)
CHAPTER 2 21
Sample Weekly Writing
Lesson and Schedule
W E E K 1 L E S SON : C L AS S ROOM R U LE S
D AY 1 . . .
On the first day, you’ll introduce the assignment, building students’ interest in the topic and
motivating them to write. You’ll walk students through the first steps on the planning page, a
reproducible student page used to generate and organize ideas. For Lesson 1, you might begin like
this:
Teacher: Today we’re going to talk about rules. It seems like there are lots and lots of rules we
have to follow, both at home and at school, and other places, too. Who can tell us
some rules they have to follow?
Student: I always have to wash my hands before dinner.
Student: I have to do my homework before I watch TV.
Student: I’m not allowed to hit my little brother.
Teacher: Well, those do sound like good rules to me. Would the rest of you agree? (Students
nod their heads.)
Students: I have to do those things too.
Student: Yeah, without the rule about homework before TV, I might not finish it.
Teacher: So rules help us do things we have to do, things that are good for us. They are
important, even though we might not like them sometimes.
Today we’re going to think about rules that would help us work together in the
classroom. Then we’re going to write about our rule and why we think it’s
important.
At this point, distribute the planning page that goes with the lesson. Discuss who the audience
is—in this case, you and students’ peers. Then help students set their purpose. This requires
choosing a rule, so invite discussion about possible rules and record them on chart paper, the
overhead, or the chalkboard. After you’ve collected many examples, model how you turn the
brainstormed ideas into sentences, being sure to point out that you capitalize the first word of each
sentence—this is the writing convention being taught in this lesson. You might say:
Teacher: William suggested that we should not run in the classroom because someone could
fall and hit his head. That’s a very important rule. I will need to start my sentence
with a capital letter, so I’ll make a capital D and write: “Do not run in the classroom.”
22
Model several sentences in this fashion, reminding
students that a sentence always begins with a capital
letter. At the end of this part of the lesson, ask a
student volunteer to highlight or underline all of the
beginning capital letters in your sentences. Reread the
examples as a group, making sure that all students are
watching so that they can make a visual connection to
this capitalization rule. Also, emphasize the importance
of capitalization as a signal to the audience or reader

that a new sentence is beginning.
After your demonstration, invite students to choose
a rule they think is important and write it in the
purpose statement on the planning page. The next step
is to brainstorm support for the purpose statement. In
this case, students are asked to illustrate the rule. As
students gain more experience, they may begin to
brainstorm in words, but at first, drawings help them Sample planning page
capture their ideas more effectively. When they finish
drawing, ask them to write three words about their idea
in the space provided. You can provide support as needed.
D AY 2 . . .
Review the work done the previous day and have students read over their planning pages.
Two-Minute Chat: Now students have a chance to discuss their ideas with a partner. Have each
partner present his or her purpose statement, drawing, and words. Encourage partners to ask
questions. You will have to model this skill many times. For instance, for the planning page above,
you might say:
Teacher: Hmm, I see that Meg is concerned about the gerbil and microscope, but I’m not
sure how this connects to the rule of no running. Why did you mention the gerbil
and the microscope?
Meg: Well, if you run you might trip and fall and break something. The microscope
might smash into pieces, and then we couldn’t use it anymore.
Teacher: “Smash into pieces” really helps me picture what might happen if someone were to
run in the classroom. Those are very descriptive words.
CHAPTER 2 23
This step helps students focus their ideas and generate
more words to describe them. It is important because the
verbal skills of first graders are often more sophisticated
than their written skills; they will often elaborate on their
brainstorm when given the opportunity to verbalize their
thoughts.
Drafting: After the two-minute chat, call students
together and tell them it’s time to begin writing. For the
first few lessons, you will want to model how you use the
keywords to write sentences from your own planning page.
After some brief modeling, invite students to begin by
writing their purpose statement on a sheet of loose-leaf or
lined printing paper. Encourage them to use their key
words in their writing and to remember what they
discussed with their partner.
Sample draft from an advanced first-grade writer
You should expect and encourage invented spelling.
You may ask students to read their sentences to you while
you print the word above any words that cannot be easily decoded so you (and the student!) can
read it again later. Most students will probably begin each sentence with the same word, as in the
example above. You will work on this later when you teach paragraph writing. Remember that for
now you are trying to instill an enthusiasm for writing; enthusiastically accept all students’ efforts.
tip
t the
A beginning
of the year you
may need to take
dictation from
“younger” writers.
Sample draft from a developing first-grade writer Sample draft from a beginning first-grade writer
24
Conferring: As students finish drafting their sentences, you’ll want to confer with them. You
can do this one-on-one or in small groups of no more than three students. Each lesson has a
conferring tip. In this lesson, the focus is on capitalizing the first word of a sentence, so you may
want to address this skill in conference if students are having a hard time with it. (See page 31 for
more ideas on conferring.)
D AY 3 . . .
Have students review their planning pages and drafting from the previous day and ask them to
continue drafting if necessary, or to begin editing and revising once they’ve met with you.
Editing/Revising: Later in the year, students will use STOP (see page 29) to edit and revise their
work independently. For now, review the beginning capitalization that you discussed on Day 1.
Students should be looking to see that they began their sentence(s) with a capital letter. Continue
conferring with students.
Those who have finished drafting and are waiting for a conference can illustrate their piece, read
it to a friend who is also finished, or help a classmate who is still drafting.
D AY 4 . . .
Finish editing/revising/conferring.
D AY 5 . . .
Sharing: Allow students the chance to sit in the “Author” chair and present their work to the class.
(See a detailed description of sharing, beginning on page 30.) You will probably be able to finish all
of the pieces in one sitting, as they are not very lengthy at this point.
At the end of class, collect all work, date it and label it as the first assignment, and store it in
students’ portfolios.
CHAPTER 2 25
The Writing Curriculum and the
Writing Process
riting is a process, much like cooking. While the goal of each process is
W something tangible prepared for an audience—an editorial, perhaps, or
a birthday cake—the processes themselves differ in an important way. A chef
must follow the steps in a recipe sequentially, or the end result may not be
edible. But the writing process is cyclical. If the piece is not flowing or making
sense, writers can go back and redo steps, and, if necessary, start over. The
steps to the writing process consist of the following:
1 P R EWR ITI NG
Analyzing the audience, setting the purpose, and
brainstorming. The prewriting steps are listed
for the students on the reproducible planning
pages within each chapter.
2 D R AF TI NG
Writing a meaningful message. First-grade
students will begin writing sentences and
build up to writing coherent paragraphs.
(Keep in mind some students will begin with
illustrations and labels.)
3 R EVI S I NG /E DITI NG
Making sure the writing conveys its intended
meaning. This step includes conferring with
the teacher.
4 S HAR I NG
Reading aloud or publishing the writing for peers,
teachers, parents, or another audience.
This section discusses each of these steps in depth and demonstrates how
the weekly writing instruction fits into the writing process framework.
26
1 P R EWR ITI NG
Prewriting helps writers generate and focus ideas. Each of our
lessons breaks down prewriting into three parts, described below.
Analyzing the Audience

The audience is whom the writer is writing for, the readers. It could include
teachers, classmates, the principal, another class, or family members. Before

writing, students should think about these people and put themselves in their
shoes. Has the audience ever experienced what the writer is writing about?
Audience awareness can be difficult for first graders because they generally assume
the audience knows every person, place, and thing that they know. For example,
if students are writing about a family picnic they can be less specific when
mentioning the details if the audience is their family. However, if the audience is
you, the teacher, they will need to be more specific because you did not go on the
picnic with them and experience the things that they are writing about.
Setting the Purpose

The purpose, or main idea, controls the piece of writing. It is the message the
writer wants to convey to the audience, or what the reader will ideally
remember after reading the piece. The purpose is defined at the beginning of
the writing to give the audience a map for the piece, and again at the
conclusion to ensure the audience remembers the message. Emphasize for
students that everything we do—beginning with waking up, eating breakfast,
brushing our teeth, and packing our backpacks—has a purpose, and writing is
no different. When we write, our purpose is often to share knowledge, to
convey information, or to entertain. The purpose statement is scripted on the
student planning pages to support students.
Brainstorming
Brainstorming means “storming,” or searching the writer’s brain, for ideas to
support the purpose. This step helps students generate the main ingredients for
the piece. To help focus the students on their purpose, allow them the
opportunity to do a two-minute chat with a partner. First, young writers should
color a picture to illustrate their main idea. Next, put students into groups of
two and time them as they each talk for two minutes about their illustration.
This will help streamline their thoughts before they begin to draft. Partners
should be encouraged to ask questions if anything is unclear or confusing.
CHAPTER 2 27
Immediately following the two-minute chat,
students should go back to their planning pages and
START: write supportive words or phrases (for the purpose) in
S Show colors, textures,

tastes, and smells.
the brainstorming section of their planning page.
(“Ideas” will be used with the narrative and expository
prompts, and “reasons” will be used with the persuasive
T Totally describe people,

places, feelings, and
emotions.
prompts.) Encourage students to come up with three
ideas or reasons. They need only write single words or
short phrases, as opposed to complete sentences, at
A Audience awareness:
Does my audience
understand my ideas?
this brainstorming stage.
Students can then apply the START acronym to
their initial brainstorm and add adjectives to the
ideas or reasons on their planning pages. Teachers of
R Reasons: Are there at least

three “ideas” or “reasons”
to explain my purpose?
younger writers will need to read this acronym to
them and give examples of how to expand brainstorm
ideas. Make a poster-size copy of START (Appendix
D, page 157) and hang it where students will be able
T Tell specific details, such as
numbers (size, dates, ages,
time) and seasons.
to see it. With lots of repetition, examples, and
practice, young writers will automatically include
these important elements into their writing.
tip 2 D R AF TI NG
Drafting is when students begin to write about their idea in
ake a list of
M two-minute
chat partners and
sentences and paragraphs. Using the planning page as a map, or
guide, students will begin to draft their piece. Use any loose-leaf
or lined printing paper that your students are comfortable with for
display it in the
this step. Following are more specific drafting steps for the
classroom. Keep
different levels of writing. In terms of skill progression, first-grade
groups consistent,
so students feel
students will begin writing sentences and build up to writing a
comfortable with coherent paragraph. Below you will find explanations of both
their partner. sentence and paragraph drafting.
Rearrange only as
necessary (i.e., to Sentence Drafting
control behavior,
Most first graders will be drafting sentences from September to December. The
encourage discus-
first sentence that the students will write is their purpose statement. They will
sion, and so on).
then use their brainstorm ideas or reasons to draft more sentences to further
enhance or explain their purpose. Although these sentences may naturally flow
28
together like a paragraph, be careful not to call the writing a
paragraph at this point. Later, you will explain that a paragraph is
a group of sentences about the same topic, and students will move Carlos played on a baseball
into paragraph writing, but for now, being asked to indent and to team this summer. The name
avoid irrelevant ideas will only confuse them. It is at this stage of his team was the Tampa
that we, as teachers, need to instill confidence and enthusiasm in Bay Devil Rays. He played first
writers and not bog them down with too much terminology. It is base and catcher. Carlos hit
only when students feel comfortable with writing sentences that five home runs for his team.
we can move on to the next step, drafting paragraphs. He also likes soccer. His team
won the championship and

Paragraph Drafting Carlos got a big trophy. Carlos
loved playing baseball this
Most first graders will begin to draft paragraphs in January. The
summer!
purpose statement is written as the first sentence of the paragraph.
Supporting sentences are then formed from the three brainstorm
ideas or reasons in order to develop the idea and ensure reader
Sample paragraph with an irrelevant detail
comprehension. Encourage writers to use their words to “paint a
picture” in the readers’ minds. The last sentence of the paragraph,
referred to as the closing sentence, should end,
or close, the paragraph. It should be powerful
and it should restate the purpose.
Until all students grasp the concept of STOP:
purpose statements and supporting details,
put sample paragraphs (student samples or
teacher-generated examples) on the
S Spelling: Did I spell the words as
best I can by sounding them out
and using word banks and word
overhead or chalkboard and insert a sentence walls? Did I use the dictionary?
that does not support the purpose. Writers
will enjoy locating this irrelevant sentence,
and they will be more conscientious about
T Tells the purpose: Does my first
sentence communicate the purpose
of my writing?
choosing only relevant sentences in their
own paragraph writing.
O Organization and Out loud: How
does my paragraph sound when I
read it aloud? Are there any parts
3 R EVI S I NG /E DITI NG that do not make sense, do not flow,
or just sound funny? If so, could this
For first graders, revising is most be a grammar or punctuation error?
successful when directed by the
teacher, who can help with
stylistic and grammatical elements,
as well as fine-tuning using the
P Punctuation and capitalization: Did
I use proper punctuation and
capitalization?
acronym STOP (see right).
CHAPTER 2 29
Students can use STOP as a self-editing tool. Minor changes should be
erased and corrected. If a lot of revisions are made, students should be
encouraged to rewrite the paragraph. Use your discretion here. It is very
difficult for students to rewrite everything, due to their developing fine-motor
skills. We don’t want to overburden them by having them rewrite every
paragraph, but emphasizing neatness early on is essential to future performance.
If you have computers available in your classroom, allow students the
opportunity to computer-publish their final work from time to time.
4 S HAR I NG
Sharing is when writers read aloud or give their work to the
intended audience. It gives the writing assignment a purpose and
makes the process meaningful. In book three of the series, we
discuss how to help students give and accept feedback while
sharing during the editing phase of their work. In first grade,
however, we emphasize sharing of the finished product.
Students should always be allowed to share their finished work in some
way. Some teachers have a special “Author” chair that is painted or decorated
with the title “Author.” This chair is only used when a young “author” is
presenting his or her work. Students cannot wait to sit in the chair and reap
the benefits of their hard work, entertaining, informing, or persuading the
audience with their written masterpiece.
Even without a specific chair, whole-group sharing should be done whenever
time allows. Young students benefit from the insight of their peers as they strive
to develop their own personal style. Whole-group sharing also gives students a
sense of real accomplishment. Occasionally, you will come upon a child who is
too shy to read to the class. He or she can choose a friend or the teacher to read
the work to the class. Chances are this student still desires the recognition, but
is just not yet comfortable reading in front of the whole group.
Allow the student author to call on three peers with questions or comments
after sharing his or her piece. As the teacher, model appropriate comments or
questions and guide students to focus on the grammatical and stylistic elements
that you want to work on. You can compliment specific strengths—for example,
“I really liked how you described your juice as ‘cool and refreshing’.” You can
also ask questions that encourage students to include specific details, such as
“Did you mean that you went swimming in a pool or at the beach?”
Do not try to share all of the pieces in one sitting, but rather, a few at a
time. Transition times or snack time is a good time to share some pieces.
30
C ON F E R R I NG
onferring can take place during any stage of the writing process
C to help students get “unstuck.” It is very helpful to confer after
students have completed a draft, and we recommend conferring with
students at this time. Students benefit immeasurably from one-on-one
teaching; conferring is essential to any writing curriculum.
tip
Create a comfortable area to hold conferences. Some teachers like

to conference at their desks; however, others choose not to use this
reate a
area because it is too stimulating. Find a quiet spot in your room
where the students will not be distracted, such as the back of the
C writing
center in your room.
room, or an area sectioned off by a bookshelf or easel. You will need a
Use cardboard
table and chairs as well. shelving units to
Invite students to read their piece aloud. When they finish, first store paper, pencils,
provide positive feedback on the effort, praising progress made, word erasers, a dictionary,
choice, use of a new convention, and so on. This will help build and a thesaurus. If
students’ confidence. You may then offer one or two specific possible, set up this
suggestions for revision. center near a com-
Use this time to reinforce skills such as punctuation, capitalization, puter, so that the
specific detail, or other topics that have been taught through the students can utilize
weekly mini-lessons. You can also use this time to address individual the computer during
concerns with writing, or make suggestions to enrich or modify the the writing process.
Set up a few chairs
writing for each student. Be sure students leave the conference with a
so that children can
specific idea about what to do next.
work together during
After the students are more comfortable, conferences can be more
free time and so you
informal with the teacher just walking around the room and looking
can hold conferences
over each student’s shoulder to observe his or her writing. This is also with individuals and
valuable to help students who may be getting off to a rough start. small groups.
Be sure to read the conferring tips in each lesson.
Reward students periodically with a chance to share their work with the
kindergartners, other first-grade rooms, or perhaps even the principal.
One way to manage sharing when the finished products become lengthier is to
collect one piece from each student at the end of the month. The student can
select the piece that he or she would like to share. These works can be placed in a
decorated “Author” box and, whenever time allows, one or two can be presented.
CHAPTER 2 31
Assessment
he biggest task in creating a class of first-grade writers is to get them
T writing. All learning, including writing, involves taking risks. Many first
graders arrive reluctant to take these risks. A supportive, nurturing classroom
environment will help these students begin to feel comfortable putting their
thoughts into written words. With this in mind, we encourage you to examine
your class, as well as your school or district grading policies, and proceed with
an assessment plan that will work for you and your students.
Since the goal is to help students become confident, competent writers, we

discourage the use of the red pen. Seeing their hard work marked up in red is
disheartening and will not motivate young writers to take risks. Your mini-
lessons, modeling, and individualized teaching during conferences are times to
instruct and correct. Save the pen for supportive comments and gentle
suggestions that will spur students to want to write again.
Many first-grade teachers set the goal of getting students comfortable with
the writing process prior to winter break. Then, after the break, when most
students are writing comfortably, they begin to formally assess.
Although assessment is vital to teaching writing, not everything that
students write needs to be assessed—and not every error has to be corrected.
Neither students nor teachers need to become overwhelmed during this
learning process. There are several options for assessing final products. Four of
the most useful ones are described here.
Focus on one problem at a time. Identify a recurring error—
such as capitalization, punctuation, or incomplete sentences—
then teach it in a mini-lesson, and show students how to edit
tip for it. Allow time to practice. Then tell students that you will
be checking their current work for that one error.
ords from
W the high-
frequency chart as
Assess select examples. Don’t assess every single journal
entry or writing assignment; instead, ask students to choose
well as the word one piece that represents their best work.
wall can be copied
into the personal Encourage self-assessment. Give students a copy of the
word dictionaries writing checklists (see page 33 and Appendices E and F, pages
(see page 34 for a 158 and 159) and have them assess themselves on specific
description). criteria by checking “yes” or “no.” Then quickly review their
assessment. If your school uses letter grades, you can correlate
the results of the checklist to a letter grade. You’ll find copies
of both checklists in the appendix.
32
Collect writing samples in student
assessment portfolios. Periodic writing Stu de nt Pa
ge
samples—either originals or Da te:

Na me :
photocopies—can be placed in the ra gr ap hs
ec kl is t: Pa
Wri tin g Ch
student writing folders. (Our program 5 sentences
?
Do I have Stude nt Page
advocates using student writing ye s no
Nam e:
Date :
folders/portfolios to collect all student sta tem ent?
wi th my purpose Wri ting Che ckl ist: Sen
Did I begin ten ces
writing, including planning pages,
ye s no Did I begin with my purp
throughout the year. In addition, a yes no
ose statement?
g se nte nc es
l by ma kin
student assessment portfolio may be used tai
Did I add de y words?
out of my
ke
ye s no
to collect examples of work from all yes no
Did I add detail by mak
out of my key words?
ing sentences
curricular areas.) The portfolio is a great oper pu nc tua

Did I use pr in my sentences?
tio n an d
n
capitalizatio
way to show a student’s growth over time. ye s no
Did I use proper punc
tuati
yes no capitalization in my sent on and
159 ences?
During a conference with parents, teachers, Appendix
F
or administrators, these samples can

Does my writing mak
e sense?
highlight areas of growth, as well as areas of yes no
difficulty. Many schools set up assessment 158

Appendix E
portfolios that begin in first grade and

travel with students throughout the grades.
The contents of these portfolios can also
If your school does not have letter grades, you might make each of the
prove instrumental in detecting learning
above categories worth 5 points, for a total of 30 points. If you do use letter
difficulties in young children. grades, you can calculate percentages to determine the letter grade.
There are many ways to assess writing in
young children, and it’s a vital task: assessment identifies areas of strength
and weakness in students and helps you focus your instruction on their
specific needs. You may find that your school or district requires you to
follow a certain assessment plan, or that you are free to use your own.
Whichever the case, find a plan that works for you and your students.
Meeting the Needs of

Various Writers
here is no greater range in writing abilities than in a first-grade classroom,
T and, consequently, you will need to make accommodations for your
students. All students develop at different rates, and the lessons in this book
will be easy for some and challenging for others. However, the consistent
format and use of the writing process throughout this program will facilitate
comfort and ease with writing, as will the one-to-one weekly conferring
between teacher and student. Conferences are tailored to individual writers’
CHAPTER 2 33
strengths and weaknesses. For your guidance, conferring tips will accompany
each writing prompt. Be assured, however, that the writing abilities of all
students will grow tremendously throughout the year.
How to Help Students Struggling With Word Formation

Be sure to let the students know that, unlike on a spelling test, during writing
they will be allowed to use “invented” or “first-grade spelling” to spell words
the way they sound. Begin a list of high-frequency words for writers to use.
Display the list so that it is visible in the classroom, and add a few
new words each week. These words, which will be used throughout
the year, will be referred to as the word wall.
Also, use a word bank to display words that are pertinent to the
lesson. The word bank is a collection of words that students will
want to use when writing a specific assignment. For example, after
introducing and discussing the lesson, ask your students if there are
any words that they think they might need to know how to spell.
If so, list them clearly on chart paper or on the chalkboard.
Students should be encouraged to use this word bank when
drafting. Discuss with the students whether they think any words
from the word bank should be added to the high-frequency list on
Sample personal dictionary page the word wall.
Allow students to keep a personal word dictionary (see sample
above). Here they can write the conventional spelling of words that
they can’t (or won’t) use invented spelling for. To make a personal word
dictionary in a spiral notebook, students will write the letter A on the top of the
first page, and proceed all the way to the letter Z, so that it is alphabetized like
a dictionary. For example, if a student asks you to spell the word Florida, you can
tip write it on a small sticky note and have the student copy it into his or her
personal word dictionary. This way you will not disturb the thought process of
ncourage
E students to
draw pictures next
other writers by spelling words all day.
How to Help Students Struggling

to the words in
With Generating Ideas
their personal
word dictionaries An integral component of this writing program is brainstorming.
so that the words Brainstorming helps students generate and organize ideas prior to writing.
can be more easi- At the beginning of each writing assignment, you and the students will
ly deciphered in brainstorm together in order to create a list of ideas that can be used when
the future. writing. Be sure to clearly display the whole-group brainstorm so that it is
visible to all students.
34
Students will have more opportunities to generate and enhance ideas through
the two-minute chat. During this time, students will meet with a peer to discuss
their thoughts prior to drafting. Students struggling with generating ideas might
need more than two minutes to talk with their partner about their illustration
during the brainstorm phase (two-minute chat). You should also pair these
students with higher-achieving writers who will be able to ask questions that
generate more thought. For example: “You said that you like school, but what do
you like about it? Is it something about our teacher or classmates, or is it a special
project that you like best?” Students will learn to initiate these questions as the
tip
year goes on, through practice and much teacher modeling. epending
As you model, use a struggling student’s brainstorming ideas. That way, he
or she will be able to communicate the ideas with teacher assistance, while
D upon the
reading levels of
you are modeling for the whole class. your students, you
may need to draw
How to Help the Student Struggling With Fine Motor Skills simple picture
clues next to each
When young writers struggle with fine motor skills, a way to ensure that this
idea on the
does not interfere with the process of generating and organizing ideas is to
whole-group
take dictation from the student. You can take dictation yourself, or enlist the brainstorm, so
help of parent volunteers. that all students
Another way to address students struggling with fine motor skills is by will be able to
allowing them to use a classroom computer or a laptop, if one is available. find what they are
These students can brainstorm and then go to the computer to draft their looking for when
pieces. Here they will be less inhibited by the laborious task of forming each they do their own
letter, and they can concentrate on getting their thoughts out. brainstorming.
How to Help the Struggling Writer Draft a Paragraph

By January, you will find that most of your students have had ample practice
writing sentences. The focus then turns to paragraph writing. The emphasis will
also shift to written, as opposed to pictorial, brainstorming. It will be necessary
for you to model the new kinds of writing for your students.
Most of your class will be ready to move on to paragraph writing, but you’ll
also find a handful of students who appear far from ready. Rest assured that no
matter how you accommodate these students, they are still gaining a lot by
watching you model paragraphs. Certain students may require one-on-one
conferring, in which you walk them through the assignment. Others may find
success in a one-to-three (teacher to students) conference to ensure that they are
on the right track.
Be prepared to differentiate or alter your expectations for students who are
having learning difficulties. The “very young” writer should be allowed to
CHAPTER 2 35
continue illustrating during the brainstorm phase and writing sentences
during the drafting phase. Again, he or she will still be gaining a lot of ground
watching you model paragraph writing.
Other beginning writers can be expected to develop a purpose statement;
support it with one, as opposed to three, sentences; and end with a concluding
sentence. When their fine motor skills and/or thought processes further
develop, you can begin to expect three supporting sentences.
Use any accommodations that previously worked with these students: word
walls, personal word dictionaries, extended two-minute chats, modeling,
teacher conferencing, dictation, and laptop usage.
How to Help Early Finishers

Many writers, most likely the more able ones, will finish early. These writers
can publish their writing on the computer, illustrate their work, or turn the
writing into a book (complete with illustrations). They can also journal,
reread past work, assist peers who are still working, write a creative story, or
read for pleasure.
If a student is consistently finishing early, you may need to assess the
reason. Is he or she ready to be taught to add more detail and support to his or
her ideas? Do you need to ask for more sentences from this student? These are
things that you can work on during conferencing.
How to Help Late Finishers

Some students, including those who require little or no accommodations, may
consistently finish late. If you do not feel that these students need the
sentence requirements modified, try to pace them throughout the assignment
by giving verbal reminders that they should be moving on.
W e wish you luck as you embark on your journey of teaching

writing to first graders. Your enthusiasm for the process will
motivate them. The instruction and practice you provide will
give them the tools they need to express themselves on paper. By the end of
the year, your students will be well on their way to writing proficiently.
Your job is an important one. You are laying the groundwork for what is to
come. With this solid foundation, we will see many new generations of highly
competent writers.
36
CHAPTER 3
September Writing Lessons

Daily Journal Prompts
How do you get ready for the school year?

To get ready for the school year, I .
Imagine you are a feisty hornet. Describe your day.
As a feisty hornet, I begin my day by .
Imagine you are playing soccer. Describe a good game.
A good soccer game is when .
Imagine sitting around a bonfire and it is your turn to tell the story.
Describe your story.
My bonfire story would begin with .
What would you like to be when you grow up. Why?
When I grow up, I’d like to be a
37
It is fun to spend time with our families. Different families have different
things that they enjoy doing together. Describe something that your
family does together.
My family likes to .
What is your favorite time of day? Why? How do you feel at that time?
My favorite time of day is
Tell about something that you are good at. How did you become good at
it? How do you feel about being good at it?
Something that I am good at is .
Tell about a time when you felt happy. When was it? Who was with you?
What were you doing?
I felt happy when .
Describe an exciting or interesting activity that you recently did. How did
you feel during the event or activity?
One thing that I did recently was .
38
Describe your best day. Be sure to use lots of words that will “paint a
picture” of this great day. Tell how you felt on this day.
The best day of my life was .

Describe your worst day. Be sure to use lots of words that will “paint a
picture” of this horrible day. Tell how you felt on this day.
The worst day of my life was .
What is your favorite food? Write about it using words that tell how it
looks, feels, smells, and tastes.
My favorite food is .
Write about a good or bad dream that you’ve had. Be sure to tell how you
felt about this dream.
A good/bad dream that I’ve had was about .
Draw a picture of a robot that you might invent. Write about some of the
things that it would do for you.
If I built a robot, it would be able to .
39
Parents often tell us stories of things that we did when we were little.
Describe something that you did when you were little.
When I was little, I .

Every year in school we learn to do new things. Write about something

that you hope to do this year. Why do you want to do this?
This year in school I want to .
Help a new student identify your best friend in a crowd of people.

Draw a picture of your best friend and write sentences that describe how
he/she looks.
Help me find my best friend. Here is how he/she looks: .
Some people think that the weekends should be longer, and others think
that they should stay the same. How do you feel and why?
I feel that the weekends should be the same/longer because
Some children look forward to sleeping late on Saturdays, and others look
forward to waking up early to attend special classes or go on special
adventures with their family. Describe your typical Saturday.
On Saturdays I like to .
40
As summer comes to an end, we look forward to cooler days and leaves
changing colors. What is something that you like about fall and why?
One thing that I like about fall is .

Sometimes we have relaxing weekends, and sometimes we have busy

weekends. Describe one thing that you did over the weekend. Be sure to
use details to “paint a picture” in the readers’ minds and make them feel
like they were there with you. Include feelings.
Last weekend I .
What is your favorite animal? Use words to describe the sight, sound,
smell, and feel of your favorite animal. Why is it your favorite?
My favorite animal is .
Many families depend on cars to get them from place to place. What if
there were no cars? Describe what your life would be like.
If there were no cars, .
What is your favorite book? Does it teach you something, entertain you, or
both? Describe this favorite book and tell how it teaches or entertains you.
Why is it your favorite?
My favorite book is .
41
week 1
Lesson
Classroom Rules
GENRE: Expository sentences
SKILL: Capitalizing the beginning of sentences
STANDARD: Use correct grammar, spelling, punctuation, capitalization

and structure.
ASSIGNMENT: Students will write about the importance of a particular rule in
the classroom.
FOCUS: Discuss with your students the importance of rules in the classroom, at
home, in our community, and in our world. What might our world be like if
CONFERRING there were no rules?
tip MODEL: Ask students to offer some examples of rules that should be followed in
your classroom. Record these examples on chart paper, the overhead, or the chalk-
hen a student
W has written a
sentence or sentences
board. Be sure to make note of beginning capitalization as you write each example.
William suggested that we should not run in the classroom
because someone could fall and hit his head. That’s a very
and the spelling is
important rule. I will need to start my sentence with a capital
not readable, ask the
letter, So I’ll make a capital “D” and write.
student to read to you
and then write the Do not run in the classroom.
correct spelling above
Model several sentences in this fashion, constantly reminding students
the unreadable ones.
that a sentence always begins with a capital letter. At the end of this lesson, ask
Do not make students
a student volunteer to highlight or underline all of the beginning capital letters.
rewrite——the corrections
If a student is struggling with this rule while writing, suggest that he or she use
are only put there so
this highlighting technique on his or her draft. Go back and reread all of the
that the child can later
examples as a group. Make sure that all students are watching so that they can
reread his or her
make a visual connection to this capitalization rule.
thoughts.
For a student who PLANNING PAGE: Distribute the Classroom Rules Planning Page. Read and
cannot write a sentence discuss the following steps: Analyzing the Audience, Setting the Purpose,
at all, use this confer- Brainstorming, and Drafting. After each step, model and then pause to allow
ence time to write students to complete that step.
the sentence(s) that
the student dictates to
you based on his or her
picture.
42
Planning Page
Expository Sentences
Name:
Classroom Rules
1 Analyzing the Audience: The audience is your teacher and class-
mates. Do they know the same things that you know about how
the classroom should be set up and run?
2 Setting the Purpose: It is important to/not to __________________

in the classroom.
3 Brainstorming: Draw a picture to show someone following a

rule in your classroom.
4 Write three ideas (key words) that explain your purpose.
____________________ ____________________ ____________________
5 My Two-Minute Chat Partner Is: _______________________________
6 Drafting: Using printing paper, copy your purpose sentence

and write one or more supporting sentences using the ideas
(key words) above.
43
week 2
Lesson
A Summer Memor y
GENRE: Narrative sentences
SKILL: Using ending punctuation: period
STANDARD: Use correct grammar, spelling, punctuation, capitalization,

and structure.
ASSIGNMENT: Students will get to know each other by sharing summer
memories.
FOCUS: Ask students to take a minute and think of all the exciting
things they did over summer vacation. Which was their favorite? Also, reem-
phasize the significance of capitalization as a clue for the reader. Explain that we
CONFERRING put a period at the end of a telling sentence to work like a stop sign, telling the
reader that a complete thought is over. Read several sentences without
tip pausing to illustrate the importance of ending punctuation.
f a student is MODEL: As students share their memories, record them on chart paper, the
I struggling with
ending punctuation
overhead, or the chalkboard. Be sure to make note of ending punctuation.
Katelyn’s favorite thing about summer was going to Disney
while writing, suggest
World. I am finished writing my complete thought about
that he or she place
Katelyn’s favorite summer memory, and I am going to put a
a red mark or sticker
period, so that when we read it back we will remember to
at the end of each
stop and take a breath before reading another sentence.
sentence in his or her
draft. Also, emphasize
Model several sentences in this fashion, constantly reminding students that
the importance of this
a telling sentence ends with a period. Also, reinforce the use of capital letters.
rule in ensuring that the
At the end of this lesson, ask a student volunteer to trace each period with a
audience comprehends
red marker, or put a red star sticker over it. Go back and reread all of the
the student’s writing.
examples as a group, making sure to exaggerate the “stop” at the end of the
sentence. Make sure that all students are watching so that they can make a
visual connection to this punctuation rule.
PLANNING PAGE: Distribute A Summer Memory Planning Page. Read and
discuss the following steps: Analyzing the Audience, Setting the Purpose,
Brainstorming, and Drafting. After each step, model and then pause to allow
students to complete that step.
44
Planning Page
Narrative Sentences
Name:
A Summer Memor y
mates. Did they experience the same special event?
2 Setting the Purpose: Something special that I did over the

summer was _______________________________________________.
3 Brainstorming: Draw a picture of the special event.
4 Write three ideas (key words) that explain your purpose.
____________________ ____________________ ____________________
6 Drafting: Using printing paper, copy your purpose sentence and

write one or more supporting sentences using the ideas from the
ideas (key words) above.
45
week 3
Lesson
Getting to Know You Part I
GENRE: Interrogatory sentences

SKILL: Using ending punctuation: question mark
STANDARD: Use correct grammar, spelling, punctuation, capitalization

and structure.
ASSIGNMENT: Students will write questions to gather information about
a classmate.
FOCUS: Tell students that in an interview we gather facts and information about
a person by asking questions. Invite students to share some questions that they
would like to ask a new friend while getting to know him or her.
CONFERRING MODEL: As students offer examples, record them on chart paper, the overhead,
tip or the chalkboard. Be sure to make note of question marks at the end of each
question.
f a student has a
I hard time using
question marks, suggest
Connor would like to know if his partner has brothers and
sisters. He can write the question . . .
that he or she highlight Do you have any brothers or sisters?

the end of each sen- We remember that sentences begin with capital letters.
tence to show that he Questions, or asking sentences, end with a question mark. It
or she has checked if is also like a stop sign at the end of the sentence, but it
the sentence asks a reminds us that a question has just been asked. Let’s all try
question. to read Connor’s example.
Model several questions in this fashion, reminding students to put a question
mark at the end of each question. At the same time, reinforce the use of capital
letters at the beginning of the sentence. At the end of this lesson, ask a student
volunteer to trace, with a marker, all of the question marks. Go back and reread
all of the examples as a group, making sure to elevate your voice and exaggerate
the question mark. Make sure that all of the students are watching so that they
can see and internalize this rule.
PLANNING PAGE: Distribute the Getting to Know You (Part I) Planning Page.
Read and discuss the following steps: Analyzing the Audience, Setting the
Purpose, Brainstorming, and Drafting. After each step, model and then pause to
allow students to complete that step.
46
Planning Page
Interrogatory Sentences
Name:
Getting to Know You Part I

1 Analyzing the Audience: The audience is your teacher and

classmates. They want to learn some interesting things about
their new class, too.
2 Setting the Purpose: Here are some things that I want to learn
about _____________________________________________________.
3 Brainstorming: Draw a picture of your partner while you are

thinking about some questions to ask him or her.
4 Write three questions that you’d like to ask your partner.
1. ______________________________________________________________
2. ______________________________________________________________
3. ______________________________________________________________
47
week 4
Lesson
Getting to Know You Part II
GENRE: Descriptive sentences

SKILL: Writing answers to questions; presenting information
STANDARD: Apply acquired information, to communicate in a variety of

formats. Speak effectively using appropriate language.
ASSIGNMENT: Students will record and present their interview data.
FOCUS: Students will now ask the questions they’ve prepared.
MODEL: Have students take out the planning page from last week and reread
their questions. Tell students they can ask follow-up questions to get more
details; give them an example, such as the following:
CONFERRING
Question: Do you have brothers and sisters?
tip Answer: I have one brother and one sister.
f a student has a Follow-up: How old are they? What are their names?
I hard time writing
the answers, you or the
Answer: My brother is two; his name is Juan. Angela, my
sister, is ten.
partner can record them.
Sentence: Carlos has one two-year-old brother named Juan
and one ten-year-old sister named Angela.
Then demonstrate how to record key words from the answers and turn
them into sentences. You may want to have students practice by asking you
questions and writing your answers. When students are ready, they can begin
their interviews.
Once students have asked their questions and recorded their answers on
the planning page, prepare them to present their information and introduce
their partner. Discuss voice volume and speed. Give examples as you speak
too loud, too soft, too fast, and too slow. Ask students to evaluate your
examples. Finish by giving an example with a comfortable speed and volume.
Discuss the importance of making eye contact with the audience. This is a
hard skill for young children, but the more it is reinforced, the easier it will
become. If you have access to a video recorder, you may wish to videotape
so the students can self-evaluate their presentations. If you plan on more
student presentations throughout the year, make a checklist to evaluate clarity
of information, speed, volume, and eye contact.
Allow each student the opportunity to introduce his or her partner to the
class. Be sure to thank the interviewer for sharing with the class some important
48 things about the interviewee.
Planning Page
Descriptive Sentences
Name:
Getting to Know You Part II

mates. Do they already know the things that you learned about
your partner?
2 Setting the Purpose: Here are some things that I learned about
my partner.
3 Brainstorming: Draw a picture to show what you learned about

your new friend.
4 Write the answers to the questions that you asked your partner.
1. ______________________________________________________________
2. ______________________________________________________________
3. ______________________________________________________________

write one or more supporting sentences using the ideas from the
answers you wrote above.
49
week 5
Lesson
Surprise Bag
SKILL: Using descriptive language
STANDARD: Present brief oral reports, using language and vocabulary

appropriate to the message and audience.
ASSIGNMENT: Students will describe an object they’ve selected for show
and tell.
FOCUS: A few days before the lesson, ask students to bring in an object for show
and tell, something that will fit inside a brown lunch bag. Tell them it’s a
secret—they need to keep the object in the bag until the lesson is over.
CONFERRING MODEL: On the day of the lesson, hold up your own bag with an object inside.
tip Describe the object with specific sensory details until students guess what it is.
Discuss how descriptive details helped students guess the item. Tell them that
f necessary, help the this week they’ll get to write descriptive sentences about their show and tell
I student to develop
clues by using START.
object. Then they’ll read their writing aloud to see if the class can guess what it is.
PLANNING PAGE: Distribute the Surprise Bag Planning Page. Read and
See description of START
on page 28.
Brainstorming, and Drafting. After each step, model it and then pause to allow
students to complete that step. When students are finished, have them read
their sentences and invite the class to guess the object.
50
Planning Page
Name:
Surprise Bag
classmates. They do not know what is inside your bag.
2 Setting the Purpose: I have something special in my bag.
3 Brainstorming: Draw a picture of the surprise in your bag.
4 Write three clue words about your surprise.
____________________ ____________________ ____________________

and write one or more supporting sentences using the ideas
(clue words) above.
51
CHAPTER 4
October Writing Lessons

We all look forward to going on field trips. If you could choose one field
trip for your class, where would you go? What can you learn there?
I would like to take my class on a field trip to .
Everyone gets angry sometimes. Tell about a time when you felt angry.
What happened? What did you do? Would you do anything differently if it
happened again?
I felt angry when .
As we get older, we can do more things. We learn new things, such as how
to ride a bicycle or read. We also earn special privileges, such as staying
up later. Write about something that you can do now that you couldn’t do
when you were little.
Now that I am old enough, I can .
There are so many things that we can do when we grow up. Think about
some things that you would like to do when you grow up.
When I grow up, I’d like to .
52
Do you have a favorite movie or TV show? What is it about? What is so
special about it that makes it your favorite?
My favorite movie/TV show is .

Being sick is not fun. Your parents take special care to help you rest and
feel better when you’re sick. What are some things that you can do if you
have to stay home from school because you are sick?
When I am sick .
We have five senses. They are sight, sound, smell, touch, and taste. Which
do you think is the most important and why?
The most important of my five senses is .
Taking care of a pet is a big job. Sometimes we have to ask a friend or

relative to watch our pet while we go on vacation. What would you tell
someone who is watching your pet? If you do not have a pet, you can
pretend.
Here is what you will need to know to take care of my pet .
Sometimes we feel embarrassed. It is not a very good feeling. Tell about a

time that you felt embarrassed. What happened? What did you do? Would
you do anything differently if the embarrassing situation happened again?
I was embarrassed when .
53
Everyone can think of some good friends and some “not-so-good” friends.
Think about one of your good friends. What makes this person a good friend?
A good friend is someone who .
Describe how you would feel arriving in a new land. What is the first thing
you would do?
If I were to arrive in a new land, I would .
Being a parent is a lot of work. Write about one thing that you can do to
help your parents at home.
I can help my parents by .
Children enjoy playing at the playground. Write about the thing that you
enjoy doing the most at the playground.
My favorite thing to do at the playground is .
Parents are proud of their children when they do good things. Think about
a time when you made your parents proud. Write about what you did and
how you felt.
A time that I made my parents proud was when .
Some people say that laughter is the best medicine. Laughing make us
feel happy. Write about a time that you laughed so hard that your sides hurt.
I laughed so hard when .
54
During the month of October, we begin to get excited about Halloween.
Think about the costume that you would like to wear this year. Describe it,
telling about the color and texture. If you don’t know what you are going
to be this year, write about something that you were in the past.
My Halloween costume .
Some things that we do are easy. Other things that we do are hard. Write
about the hardest thing you’ve ever done. What made it seem so hard?
How long did it take you to do it? How did you feel when you were trying?
The hardest thing that I’ve ever done is .
Families have different routines that they follow for different times of the
day. Think about how your family spends their evenings. Write about your
typical evening with your family. Try to think about what comes first,
second, and third. Write your details in order.
On a typical evening in my home .
What if television stations stopped broadcasting for one week. What would
you do instead of watching television?
If I could not watch television for a week, I would .
Invent a new toy. What would it look like? What would it do? Who would
be interested in buying it?
If I were a toy inventor, I’d invent .
55
week 6
Lesson
Special Me
SKILL: Avoiding redundancy
STANDARD: Compose well-organized and coherent writing.

ASSIGNMENT: Students describe their special qualities.
FOCUS: Write the word unique on the chalkboard and explain that it means
“one of a kind.” Ask students to think of some things that set them apart from
their classmates. Record their responses. Guide students to be specific; if some-
one says, “I am nice,” ask them for examples, such as:
Madelyn helps grandmas and grandpas at the nursing home.
CONFERRING
Robert reads to his younger sister and her friends.
tip Reread the examples with the class, pointing out proper capitalization
ometimes and punctuation.
S students have
trouble recognizing
MODEL: Explain that this week students will write about how they are unique.
Begin by sharing a few sentences about yourself. Be sure to write three to four
why they are special. sentences that all begin with the same word, such as:
Some questions to elicit
I can play the piano. I have been playing since I was five
responses include:
years old. I like to play Christmas songs. I play for my family
What is one thing that and friends. I love playing the piano.
you do very well?
Read the sentences aloud and ask, “Did you notice anything that sounded
What is something that strange? Did you hear a word I used too much? Listen as I read it again.” Reread
is easy for you to do? the sentences and help students notice the repetition of the first word, I. Say,
“This can sound boring to readers. I’m going to rewrite my sentences so they all
start with different words.”
Demonstrate how you can rearrange the words in the sentences so that you
do not change the meaning, but begin each sentence with a different word.
I can play the piano. When I was just five years old, I began
taking lessons. Christmas songs are my favorite to play. My
family and friends listen to me play. Playing the piano is some-
thing that I love to do!
Tell students, “Now you will have a chance to write about yourself.
Remember to start your sentences with different words!”
PLANNING PAGE: Distribute and discuss the Special Me Planning Page. After
56 each step, model it, and then pause to allow students to complete that step.
Planning Page
Name:
Special Me
classmates. They might not know all of the special qualities that
you have.
2 Setting the Purpose: Something special about me is that
_________________________________________________________________.
3 Brainstorming: Draw a picture to show something special

about you.
4 Write three ideas about your purpose statement.
____________________ ____________________ ____________________

write one or more supporting sentences using the ideas above.
57
week 7
Lesson
The Best Game

GENRE: Persuasive sentences
SKILL: Persuading the audience
STANDARD: Communicate ideas in writing to accomplish a variety

of purposes.
ASSIGNMENT: Students persuade classmates to play a favorite game.
FOCUS: Ask the students to think of a television commercial that they like.
What does it want to sell? Tell them that advertisers use television and radio
commercials, billboards, and ads in magazines and newspapers to try to
convince us to think the way they do. This technique is called persuasion.
CONFERRING Tell students that they will write persuasive sentences to convince their
classmates and you to play a particular game. Remind students that they must
tip choose words carefully to capture the audience’s attention, just as advertisers do
on commercials.
tudents may have
S trouble thinking of
reasons to persuade you
MODEL: To demonstrate effective word choice, share with the class samples of
prerecorded commercials or magazine ads. Make a list of the words that
that their game is the appealed to students. Encourage students to use some of these words as they
best because they have write their sentences.
never thought otherwise.
PLANNING PAGE: Distribute the Best Game Planning Page. Read and discuss the
To help them come up
following steps: Analyzing the Audience, Setting the Purpose, Brainstorming,
with reasons, play the
and Drafting. After each step, model it, and then pause to allow students to
devil’s advocate and
complete that step.
argue that another game,
such as Candyland,
Chutes and Ladders, or
Trouble is better. This will
help students come up
with reasons why their
game is the best.
58
Planning Page
Persuasive Sentences
Name:
The Best Game

classmates. Your favorite game might be unfamiliar to them or

may not be their favorite game.
2 Setting the Purpose: The best game to play is _________________.
3 Brainstorming: Draw a picture of your favorite game.
4 Write three reasons for your purpose statement.
____________________ ____________________
____________________
5
My Two-Minute Chat Partner Is: _______________________________
6
Drafting: Using printing paper, copy your purpose sentence and
write one or more supporting sentences using the reasons above.
59
week 8
Lesson
Halloween Costumes
STANDARD: Compose well-organized and coherent writing

for specific purposes and audiences.
ASSIGNMENT: Students will use vivid description to create a picture of their
costumes with their words.
FOCUS: Share some descriptions of toys or clothes from catalogs. Ask if students
can picture the items in their minds from the descriptions. What words helped
them to create the picture? Explain that word choice is very important when
CONFERRING describing something. Words that describe an object’s shape, size, color, texture,
and sound help readers create pictures in their minds. Tell students that they
tip will be describing their favorite Halloween costumes.
o help students MODEL: Generate a list of Halloween costumes with your students. Categorize
T describe their
costume with strong
them into groups (scary costumes, character costumes, funny costumes, and so
on) on the chalkboard.
descriptors, use START Ask students to think of their favorite costume. It may or may not be what
(see page 28). they will be wearing this year. As students offer examples of their favorite
costume, add them to the list in the appropriate category.
Then brainstorm a list of synonyms for the different categories. For instance,
for scary, students might come up with frightening, alarming, horrifying, and
terrifying. Show students how to describe something by comparing it to some-
thing else, such as as black as night, glowing like a campfire, or as shiny as a new
coin. Encourage students to use synonyms and similes in addition to sensory
words as they describe their costume.
PLANNING PAGE: Distribute the Halloween Costumes Planning Page. Read and
Brainstorming, and Drafting. After each step, model it, and then pause to allow
60
Planning Page
Name:
Halloween Costumes
classmates. They might never have seen your favorite costume.
2 Setting the Purpose: My favorite Halloween costume is
________________________________________________________________.
3 Brainstorming: Draw a picture of your favorite costume.
4 Write three ideas about your purpose statement.
____________________ ____________________
____________________
5
6
Drafting: Using printing paper, copy your purpose sentence and
61
week 9
Lesson
A Hobby of Mine
SKILL: Using time-order transitions

and structure.
ASSIGNMENT: Students will describe how they do a hobby using time-order
transitions (first, next, then, and last). (See Appendix C, page
156, for a list of more time-order transitions for future writing.)
FOCUS: Share with students some of the hobbies that you enjoy. Encourage
them to tell you some of their hobbies, and record them in a list. Tell them that
CONFERRING this week they’ll get to write about their favorite hobby.
tip MODEL: Distribute the A Hobby of Mine Planning Pages. Walk students
through analyzing the audience and setting the purpose. Then ask them to draw
f students are having a picture of themselves participating in their favorite hobby in the brainstorm
I a hard time using
transitions at this point,
box and to write three (or more) key words that tell about the steps required to
do the hobby. Then have them do a two-minute chat with their partner. Next,
introduce first, next, then, model how to write the steps sequentially using time-order transitions as you
and last. These are easy draft (see the model paragraph at
ones to start with. right). Finally, students will gener-
ate three (or more) complete sen-
My hobby is dancing.
tences using their key words and
the following time-order transi- I go to dance class
tions: first, next, then, and last. every Tuesday. First,
Remind students that transitions
I put on my dance
are followed by a comma.
After students finish drafting, clothes and shoes.
they will confer with you and Then, my mom or dad
revise and edit their work. On the
drives me to the dance
last day, invite students to share.
studio. Last, I stretch
my legs to warm up my
muscles and begin my
lesson.
Sample paragraph with time-order transitions

62
Planning Page
Name:
A Hobby of Mine
classmates. They may or may not have the same hobby.
2 Setting the Purpose: My hobby is __________________________.
3 Brainstorming: Draw a picture of yourself doing your hobby.
4 Write down the things you need do in order to participate in

your hobby. (If more room is needed, use the back.)
First, ___________________________________________________________
Next, ___________________________________________________________
Then, ___________________________________________________________
Last, ____________________________________________________________

write the steps in order, using transition words. Remember to put
a comma after each transition word.
63
CHAPTER 5
November Writing Lessons

Describe an exciting or interesting activity that you recently

experienced. Include how you felt during the event or activity.
One recent exciting event was .
Write about the best vacation that you’ve ever had. Give specific details
about what made it the best.
My best vacation was .
Write about the worst vacation that you’ve ever had. Give specific details
about what made it the worst.
My worst vacation was .
Pretend that you are a dragon. Describe your life. Include details about
your food and shelter.
If I were a dragon, my life would be .
64
Imagine that you are hiking in the woods. You can hardly believe your eyes
when you come across a treasure chest. What are you hoping to find in the
treasure chest?
When I open the treasure chest, I hope I find .

Many children like to play in sandboxes. Explain how to have fun in

a sandbox.
To have fun in a sandbox, you must .
Our veterans have fought for our country so that we

VETERANS DAY might have rights and privileges as United States
citizens. Imagine that you lived in a place where you could not go to
school. Describe what your life would be like.
If I did not have the right to go to school, .
Describe your favorite playground. Give details about the equipment

there.
My favorite playground is .
Invent a piece of equipment that you would like to see at your favorite
playground. What could children do with this new piece of equipment?
If I were to invent a piece of playground equipment, I’d invent
65
Sometimes you need to convince, or persuade, people to do something
for you. Convince your parents to take you to your favorite restaurant.
I’d like to go to eat at .
Thanksgiving is a time when we think about all that we are

THANKSGIVING thankful for. Describe one thing that you are thankful for.
One thing that I am thankful for is .
Holidays are a time for traditions. A tradition is something that we do over

and over again. Describe one tradition that your family keeps.
A tradition that my family keeps is .
Chores are important in teaching us responsibility. Make a list of chores

that you can do at home.
First, I can .
Second, I can .
Third, I can .
Then, I can .
Next, I can .
Finally, I can .
When you give instructions for something, you need to make sure your
thoughts are organized so that the instructions can be understood by
someone else. Give directions for brushing your teeth.
To brush your teeth, you must first .
66
You want to go to a carnival, but your parents are not so sure that they
want to take you. Choose words carefully and convince them to take you
to the carnival.
I think that you should take me to the carnival because .

Some children take swimming lessons and others do not. Convince all
parents to ensure that their children take swimming lessons.
All children should take swimming lessons because .
Write about a time when you felt scared. What was it that made you
scared? What made you feel better?
I felt scared when .
Write about a time when you felt sad. What was it that made you sad?
How did you begin to feel happy again?
I felt sad when .
There are many ways to get us from one place to another. If you were to
take a trip and you had a choice to either fly on an airplane or ride the
train, which would you choose and why?
If I were going on a trip, I’d like to .
67
week 10
Lesson
Lunchtime
GENRE: Lists
SKILL: Arranging items in order

of purposes.
ASSIGNMENT: Students will arrange items on a list in order of importance.
FOCUS: Ask students if they have ever made a list. Ask them what a list is and
why someone would make one. Explain that a list is a series of items, names,
numbers, and so on, often written in a particular order.
MODEL: Tell students that they are going to make a list for their parent(s) of
CONFERRING all the foods that they like to eat for lunch. A list like this can help parents
tip as they prepare lunches. Ask how they can arrange their lists (for example,
foods that they like best first and foods that they like least last; sandwiches
o enrich the more first, followed by drinks, fruits/veggies, and finally desserts; or foods listed in
T advanced writers,
consider asking them to
alphabetical order).
Explain that students can simply list their favorite lunch foods. They do not
think of other lists that need to write in a complete sentence, using capitalization or punctuation.
they can make and what
PLANNING PAGE: Distribute the Lunchtime Planning Page. Read and discuss the
purposes they would
following steps: Analyzing the Audience, Setting the Purpose, Brainstorming,
serve. Then have them
and Drafting. After each step, model it, and then pause to allow students time
follow through and make
to complete the step.
the lists (such as chores,
school subjects, people
on their block, class-
mates, wish lists, and
so on).
68
Planning Page
Lists
Name:
Lunchtime
1 Analyzing the Audience: The audience is your parents. Your
parents may or may not know the foods you like for lunch.
2 Setting the Purpose: The following is a list of foods that I like

in my lunch.
3 Brainstorming: Draw a picture of your favorite lunch in the space

below. Then, make a list of the
foods that are in your picture.
Arrange them in a way that is
meaningful to you. Be sure that
you can tell your partner how
and why you arranged your list
this way.
1. ____________________
2. ____________________
3. ____________________
4. ____________________
5. ____________________
(Continue list on the back if necessary.)
5 Drafting: Using printing paper, make a final copy of your list.
69
week 11
Lesson
I Am Thankful
GENRE: Friendly letter
SKILL: Using correct capitalization and punctuation in greetings and
closings
of purposes. Use correct grammar, spelling, punctuation,
capitalization, and structure.
ASSIGNMENT: Students will express their gratitude through a friendly letter.
FOCUS: As you discuss the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday, remind students
that they have a lot to be thankful for. This might be a good time to discuss
CONFERRING wants versus needs. Tell students that they will be writing a letter of thanks to
their parents or guardians. Remind them that parents and guardians know all
tip of the special things their children have, but they may not know just how
meaningful they are to the children.
f students are having
I trouble thinking about
something concrete to
MODEL: Make a class list of wants and needs. This is not always as easy as it
seems because many six- and seven-year-olds think that if they really want
be thankful for, have something, then they need it.
them think about Next, ask students to think about what they are most thankful to their
something that they parent(s) for. As students share their ideas, record them on chart paper, the
would not change. overhead, or the chalkboard, being sure to model and emphasize proper
capitalization and punctuation.
Then model writing your own thank-you letter. Discuss the important parts
of a letter, as well as proper capitalization and punctuation rules for these parts.
The date tells when the letter was written, the greeting addresses the recipient of
the letter, the body is the message, and the closing ends the letter and states who
it is from.
PLANNING PAGE: Distribute the I Am Thankful Planning Page. Read and
Brainstorming, and Drafting. After each step, model it, and then pause to
allow students to complete that step. Next, pass out the letter template
(Appendix A, page 154) and invite students to draft their letter. After students
have completed their draft, distribute stationery.
70
Planning Page
Friendly Letter
Name:
I Am Thankful
1 Analyzing the Audience: The audience is your parents/guardians.
They have given you many things, but they might not know just
how meaningful some of those things are to you.
2 Setting the Purpose: I am thankful to you for
________________________________________________________________.
3 Brainstorming: Draw a picture of something that you would

like to thank your parents/guardians for.
4 Write three reasons why you are thankful for this.
____________________ ____________________ ____________________
6 Drafting: Write on the letter template, and then transfer to a

sheet of stationery.
71
week 12
Lesson
Making a Turkey
SKILL: Writing directions
STANDARD: Write for a variety of purposes, including description,

information, explanation, persuasion, and narration.
ASSIGNMENT: Students will write a turkey recipe.
FOCUS: One of the things that we associate with Thanksgiving is turkey.
You can use the process of cooking a turkey to teach students how to write
directions. Students will write their own version of a turkey recipe. Remember,
a first grader’s idea of how to cook the bird is very different from ours. The goal
CONFERRING of this assignment is not to win the blue ribbon at the county fair cooking
contest, but rather to think logically and sequentially. As many of these recipes
tip turn out rather humorously, you might wish to copy them into a class “recipe
book” to be shared with the cooks at home.
ore advanced
M writers can be
instructed to use time-
MODEL: First, review how to make a list. Ask students to volunteer suggested
ingredients needed to make a turkey and make a list of them. (Be prepared for
order transitions such some unexpected ingredients!) This list will serve as a word bank when students
as first, second, third, write their recipes. Remind them that not all cooks use the same ingredients, so
and last. it is perfectly fine to choose the ones that they think are best.
Next, tell them that recipes are instructions for preparing and cooking food.
A recipe must first list the ingredients, so that the cook knows exactly what and
how much he or she needs. Recall that lists are written in a particular order and
ingredients are usually listed in the order in which they are used. After the
ingredients are listed, the directions are written in order. Point out that you
can’t stuff the turkey if you have already put it in the oven.
PLANNING PAGE: Distribute the Making a Turkey Planning Page. Have students
prepare their list of ingredients to complete the purpose statement. Then have
them draw a picture of themselves making a turkey on the back of the page.
Next, have them write down key words to describe each step. They can talk
with their two-minute chat partner to make sure the directions make sense;
then they are ready to write their draft.
72
Planning Page
Name:
Making a Turkey
1 Analyzing the Audience: The audience is your teacher, classmates,
and family. Be sure that you describe each step very carefully so
that the audience will be able to follow your directions.
2 Setting the Purpose: The things that you will need to cook a
turkey are:
____________________ ____________________ ____________________
____________________ ____________________ ____________________
3 Brainstorming: Draw a picture on the back of this sheet of yourself

making a turkey. Write the steps that the audience should follow if
they want to make a turkey. (Use the back if you need more room.)
1. ____________________________ 4. _____________________________
____________________________ _____________________________
2. ____________________________ 5. _____________________________
____________________________ _____________________________
3. ____________________________ 6. _____________________________
____________________________ _____________________________
5 Drafting: Write your recipe on printing paper.
73
week 13
Lesson
You’ll Never Believe

What Came Alive!
GENRE: Narrative sentences

SKILL: Sequencing events in a story
STANDARD: Use prewriting strategies to generate and organize ideas (e.g.,
focus on one topic; organize writing to include a beginning,
middle, and end; use descriptive words when writing about
people, places, things, events), and write for a variety of purposes.
ASSIGNMENT: Students will write a fictional story, containing a beginning,
CONFERRING middle, and end, about a toy that came alive.
FOCUS: Ask if any students have seen or read Toy Story. After briefly discussing
tip the premise of the story (the toys come alive when humans are not around; they
talk, have feelings, and can move independently), ask if this story could be real.
f a student is
I struggling with
putting his or her
Discuss that fictional stories are make-believe. They could never happen in real
life, but they are often written to entertain us. As a group, generate a list of
fictional and nonfictional stories that the class is familiar with. Tell students
imagination into words,
that this week, they’ll imagine that one of their toys came alive, and they’ll
allow the child to role
write a fictional story describing what happens.
play while you record his
or her ideas. MODEL: Distribute the You’ll Never Believe What Came Alive Planning Page
and go over Analyzing the Audience and Setting the Purpose. Give students a
few minutes to decide what toy to write about; you may want to have them talk
it over in pairs or small groups. To model the next step—brainstorming what
happens in the beginning, middle, and end—choose a familiar story or movie to
illustrate the sequence of events. Divide chart paper, the chalkboard, or an
overhead transparency into three sections. Write “Beginning,” “Middle,” and
“End” at the top of each section. Ask students to summarize each part of the
story, and write down on the chart what they say. As you write, reinforce the
use of proper punctuation and capitalization. Keep the model on display as
students brainstorm events for their own stories, drawing pictures and writing
words.
Once students have finished their brainstorm, they can meet with their
two-minute chat partner and then begin drafting. Consider modeling how to
draft the story from your sample planning page to demonstrate the process.
After conferring, revising, and editing, they can share their stories on the last
day of the lesson.
74
Planning Page
Narrative Sentences
Name:
You’ll Never Believe

What Came Alive!

classmates. They may or may not be familiar with the toy.
2 Setting the Purpose: I awoke in the middle of the night to find

out that my _______________________________________ came alive!
3 Brainstorming: Draw pictures to show what will happen in each

part of your story. Then write words to tell about each part.
Beginning Middle End
____________________ ____________________ ____________________
____________________ ____________________ ____________________
5 Drafting: Using printing paper, copy your purpose sentence and write
what happened in the beginning, middle, and end of your story.
75
CHAPTER 6
December Writing Lessons

There are lots of things that you can be when you grow up. Pretend that
you are an astronaut. Describe what your life would be like.
If I were an astronaut .
Describe what a good school day is like.
A good school day would be when .
Describe a good school lunch menu.
A good lunch menu has .
Persuade your friend to play your favorite game.
You should play ________ with me because .
Many parents value their children learning a musical instrument. Do you

think students should learn an instrument?
Students should/should not learn a musical instrument because .
76
Think about your favorite fairy tale. Retell it using as many details
as possible.
I would like to tell you the tale of .
Explain how to take good care of your teeth.

To take good care of my teeth, I need to .
Explain why it is important for you to help clean up at home or at school.
It is important for me to clean up at home/school because .
Write a detailed description of one exciting or interesting activity that you

recently did. Include how you felt during the event or activity.
One exciting thing that I did recently was .
The different seasons bring about different kinds of fun. Think about some
things that you can do only in the winter. What is your favorite winter activity?
My favorite winter activity is .
Winter holidays often include the giving and receiving of gifts. Think about
a time when you gave something to someone. Describe the gift and how
you felt after giving it.
Once I gave .
77
Playing in the snow is a popular winter activity. If you could build a snow
fort, how would you do it? List all the steps necessary to build your snow
creation.
Here is how I build a .

First, I .
Second, I .
Next, I .
Then, I .
Finally, I .
Write about one thing that you hope to do during your winter break from
school. What are you imagining it will be like?
Over winter break I hope to .
Everyone feels scared about different things. Think about a time when you
felt scared. Describe that time in detail so that the audience would feel
scared if they read your journal entry.
I felt scared when .
Some children go to school year-round. These children have many

small vacations throughout the year, instead of one big summer vacation.
Convince your principal that your school should or should not be
year-round.
Our school should/should not be year-round because .
78
week 14
Lesson
How to Build
a Snowman

STANDARD: Write for a variety of purposes, including description,
information, explanation, persuasion, and narration.
ASSIGNMENT: The students will practice sequencing as they write a
“how-to” piece.
FOCUS: Children always look forward to the first snow of the year. One of the
things that they enjoy doing is building snowmen. Ask students to recall a time CONFERRING
when they built a snowman. If they have never built one, ask them to imagine
how they would go about doing it.
tip
tudents may wish
MODEL: First, ask students to help you list some of the things that they would
need (snow, charcoal, scarf, broom, branches, buttons, hat, carrot, and so on.) S to act out building
a snowman to help
Record the list on chart paper, the chalkboard, or the overhead projector, and
keep it up throughout the week to serve as a word bank for students. them put the steps in
Explain that often things must be done in order. When we write steps for a order. Stop them after
reader, we must make sure the order is clear. Ask students to read the time-order each step, and have
transitions on their planning page; discuss how these words would help a reader them write down what
follow the steps of making a snowman. Next, ask them to think of the very first they just did.
thing that they must do in order to build a snowman, and then to record it on
their planning page. Have students continue to write the subsequent steps.
Remind them that if their directions are clear enough, someone who has never
made a snowman before should be able to follow the directions and successfully
build a snowman.
PLANNING PAGE: Distribute the How to Build a Snowman Planning Page. Read
and discuss the following steps: Analyzing the Audience, Setting the Purpose,
students time to complete the step.
79
Planning Page
Name:
How to Build a Snowman

classmates. Have they built a snowman before?
2 Setting the Purpose: Here is how to build a snowman.
3 Brainstorming: Draw a picture of yourself building a snowman.
4 List the steps that the audience would need to follow if they
wanted to build a snowman. Be sure to put the steps in the right
order.
First, ___________________________________________________________
Second, ________________________________________________________
Third, __________________________________________________________
Fourth, _________________________________________________________
And last, _________________________________________________________
5
6
Drafting: Using printing paper, copy your purpose sentence,
followed by the steps listed above.
80
week 15
Lesson
My Favorite Place
SKILL: Using sensory language
STANDARD: Use prewriting strategies to generate and organize ideas (e.g., focus
on one topic; organize writing to include a beginning, middle, and
end; use descriptive words when writing about people, places,
things, and events).
ASSIGNMENT: Students will use sensory language to describe their favorite
place.
FOCUS: We all have favorite places that we like to go to—for example, a
restaurant, a store, a park, a friend’s house, a relative’s house, or a place in our own CONFERRING
house. We have wonderful memories of these special places. Tell students that
they will describe one of their special places in their writing this week. tip
MODEL: Ask students to think about their favorite place. Generate a list of f students are having
favorite places so that you can model correct capitalization, punctuation, and
spelling. This list can also serve as a word bank when the students are writing.
I trouble with this
assignment, have them
close their eyes and
Meghan’s favorite place is Chuck E. Cheese.
describe their special
Tommy’s favorite place is his grandparents’ house. place to you or a partner.
Go back to the class list of favorite places. Ask each student to use sensory
language, words that describe the sights, sounds, and smells of the place. They
are then ready to begin their descriptive sentences.
Meghan’s favorite place is Chuck E. Cheese. The smell of hot
Chuck E. Cheese pizza makes my mouth water as I walk in.
Tommy’s favorite place is his grandparents’ house. My
grandpa lies on the floor like a big kid and lets me climb on him
as if he were a jungle gym.
Remind students that the reader should be able to hear, see, feel, taste, or
smell what they are describing. Readers should also know how the writer feels
about the place.
PLANNING PAGE: Distribute the My Favorite Place Planning Page. Read and
Brainstorming, and Drafting. After each step, model, and then pause to allow
students time to complete the step.
81
Planning Page
Name:
My Favorite Place
classmates. They may not have been to your favorite place.
2 Setting the Purpose: My favorite place is ______________________.
3 Brainstorming: Draw a picture of yourself in your favorite place.
4 Write three ideas (key words) that describe your favorite place.
____________________ ____________________ ____________________

write one or more supporting sentences using your ideas from
above.
82
week 16
Lesson
To Have or Not to
Have . . . Cable T.V.
GENRE: Persuasive sentences

SKILL: Persuading the audience
STANDARD: Write for a variety of purposes, including persuasion.
ASSIGNMENT: Students will write persuasive sentences to convince their
parents to either get cable or not to.
FOCUS: Discuss the meaning of cable and satellite television with your students.
As a group, make a list of the pros and cons of having the service—number of
channels, reliability of service, cost, and so on. Then ask students if they think CONFERRING
having cable or satellite is a good idea. Tell them that this week they’ll write
persuasive sentences to convince their parents to either get cable or not to. tip
MODEL: Distribute the To Have or Not to Have . . . Cable T.V. planning page. tudents who have
Ask students to draw pictures/symbols showing what they like, or would like, to
watch on T.V. and to write three key words that would help convince the reader
S trouble sticking
to one side of the
why they need, or do not need, cable or satellite T.V. They will then do a two- argument may need
minute chat with their partner before generating three complete sentences guidance in deleting
using these key words. sentences that mention
When students have finished planning, call them together and model the flip side and replacing
writing sentences in favor of cable or satellite television, and then write a them with sentences
group of sentences in favor of regular television. that support their side of
Finally, write a third group of sentences where the opinion wavers: the argument.
I like regular television because we don’t have to spend

extra money for cable. If I had cable, I would like to watch
Cartoon Network. Most of the shows I watch are on regular
television.
Ask students if they can tell by your writing what side you are on. Discuss
the importance of picking one side and sticking to it so that the writer knows
exactly how they feel. Tell students to keep this in mind as they draft their
sentences.
DRAFTING: After students write their sentences, ask them to reread their work
and make sure the sentences all stick to the same idea all the way through; this
will be the focus of most conferences as well. Students can share their writing
on the last day of the lesson.
83
Planning Page
Persuasive Sentences
Name:
To Have or Not to
Have . . . Cable T.V.
1 Analyzing the Audience: The audience is your parents. They may

or may not have the same ideas about the importance of T.V. and
the number of channels needed.
2 Setting the Purpose: Our family should/should not have cable

T.V. because ___________________________________________________.
3 Brainstorming: Draw a
picture of some things that
you like, or would like, to
watch on T.V.
4 Write down three reasons

why you would, or would
not, like cable T.V.
_________________________
_________________________
_________________________

write one or more supporting sentences that will convince your
audience of your point of view.
84
CHAPTER 7
January Writing Lessons

Every New Year, many people make resolutions to do something to

better themselves. Some people make resolutions to eat healthier foods,
to exercise more, to read more, or to be kinder to others. What resolution
would you like to make to help you become a better person?
My New Year’s resolution is to .
MARTIN LUTHER We can learn important lessons from

history. Think about something that you can do
KING, JR., DAY to help others live together in peace.
Something that I can do to help others get along is .

If you could have any wish come true, what would it be?
If I could have any wish come true, it would be .
85
What would you do or where would you go if you could make yourself
invisible?
If I could make myself invisible, I would .

Finish the following sentence with the first thought that comes to your
mind. Then add details to explain your idea.
I like it when .
mind. Then add details to explain your idea.
I don’t like it when .
We all lose things from time to time. Write about a day when you lost
something. Be sure to include how you were feeling.
I’ll never forget the day I lost .
Describe one person you like to visit and tell why. Include how you feel
when you visit this special person.
One person that I like to visit is .
86
If you could go anywhere, where would you like to go? Why would you like
to go there? What are some of the things that you imagine you’d do
there?
If I could go anywhere, I’d like to go .

Of all the animals that you know about, which is the best to keep as a pet?
Why does this animal make a good pet?
I think the best kind of pet to have is .
We all have things that we need to practice. Write about something that
you need to practice. Be sure to include how you feel.
Something that I need to practice is .
Explain how to have fun with Play-Doh or modeling clay.
To have fun with Play-Doh or modeling clay, you .
Convince your teacher that you need to have more art projects in school.
I think that we should have more art projects because .
87
week 17
Lesson
Winter Vacation
GENRE: Narrative paragraph
SKILL: Writing paragraphs

of purposes.
ASSIGNMENT: Students will write a five-sentence paragraph about winter
vacation.
FOCUS: Students now have had ample practice writing sentences for a variety of
purposes. Although their work may have resembled paragraphs, we were careful
not to call it a paragraph because the goal was to get all students writing sen-
CONFERRING tences comfortably. Announce to students that as a result of all their hard work
and practice, they are ready to take a big step as writers—they are ready to write
tip paragraphs.
Explain that a paragraph is made up of a group of sentences about the same
lthough you
A are writing an
example paragraph
topic. Just as a sentence is made up of words, a paragraph is made up of a group of
sentences supporting the purpose, or main idea. Tell them that the first sentence of
a paragraph begins several spaces in on a line. It is indented to signal to the reader
together, you may have
that a new paragraph is beginning. Show students examples from chapter books or
to individually walk
magazine articles.
students through this
same process as they
MODEL: Distribute the Winter Vacation Planning Page. Point out that the plan-
write their own para-
ning pages will now look different. There is no longer a space for pictorial
graphs. This may be
brainstorming, but assure students that they can illustrate on the back or in the
necessary for the first
margins if they want to. In addition, there is a new section added for the devel-
few paragraph assign-
opment of an ending sentence, to bring closure to the paragraph. This can be
ments. Students who
written after the two-minute chat. Walk students through the steps of the plan-
need a little additional
ning page and model the actual writing of the paragraph. The best approach is to
guidance may be able to
use an overhead projector and face the students as you write; then pause as they
conference in groups of
write, and continue on with this method until the planning page and five-sentence
three (one teacher to
paragraph are complete.
three students).
Analyzing the Audience: Think aloud with the students about the most
memorable part of winter vacation. Make the students aware that everyone
has had different experiences. For example, some students may have traveled
to visit relatives, while others may have had houseguests. Whatever the case,
writers must provide vibrant details so the audience can feel as if they
were there.
88
Setting the Purpose: Think aloud about several memories from winter
vacation and model how you select one to write about. Allow students to talk
with a partner about vacation memories for a few minutes so they can select a
memory. Then call the class together, and using an overhead of the planning
page, write the most memorable part of winter vacation—for example:
The most memorable part of my winter vacation was sledding.
Pause and have the students fill in their purpose.
Brainstorming: List three ideas to support your purpose. For example:
sled
laughter
hot cocoa/cookies
Pause and have the students list their three ideas.
Two-Minute Chat: On the next day, have students talk with their two-minute
chat partners. This will help them generate details and examples before they
begin writing. Chat partners should be encouraged to ask questions if anything
is unclear or confusing.
Write in the Ending Sentence: This sentence restates the purpose with
emotion or an overall feeling and/or prediction about the event. In your
example, it could be as follows:
I cannot wait for the weekend so I can sled again.
Notice that here you express your delight with sledding and your prediction
that you will do it again.
Pause and allow the students to fill in their ending sentence.
They can use your words: For example, I can (or cannot) wait to . . . .
Drafting: Following the two-minute chat and completion of the The most memorable part
planning page, students are ready to begin writing, either the same day of my winter vacation was
or the next. Display your planning page and model how you use it to sledding. I loved my red sled
compose a paragraph, flipping back and forth to the planning page so because it was so quick, and it
students can see exactly how it guides your writing. would spin at the bottom of
When writing in front of students, do not hesitate to cross out, the hill. This made my dad, my
delete, or add ideas if they come to you. Tell students that this is sister, and me laugh loudly.
what good writers do. Afterwards, at grandmother’s,
Stop after each group of words and ask students what to say in the we had hot cocoa with marsh-
next sentence. The final paragraph might look something like the mallows and mint chocolate-
sample at right. covered Oreos. I can’t wait for
the weekend so I can sled
Conferring/Revising/Editing: As students finish their drafts, meet
again.
with them for quick conferences, offering guidance as needed. On
the last day of the lesson, invite students to share.
89
Planning Page
Narrative Paragraph
Name:
Winter Vacation
mates. They may or may not have experienced the same event.
2 Setting the Purpose: The most memorable part of my winter

vacation was __________________________________________________.
(sentence one in paragraph)
3 Brainstorming: List three ideas about your purpose.
1. ______________________________________________________________
(sentence two in paragraph)
2. ______________________________________________________________
(sentence three in paragraph)
3. ______________________________________________________________
(sentence four in paragraph)
4 My Two-Minute Chat Partner Is: ________________________________
5 Ending Sentence: ______________________________________________

(sentence five in paragraph)
_________________________________________________________________.

and write supporting sentences using the ideas from above.
Remember to indent your paragraph.
90
week 18
Lesson
My Good Friend
GENRE: Descriptive paragraph
SKILL: Using START to expand brainstorm ideas and write
a paragraph
people, places, things, and events).
ASSIGNMENT: Students will write a paragraph about a good friend.
FOCUS: Prior to this assignment, make a poster or overhead of the START
acronym so that it is easily visible to the students (see page 28 for a Use START to
discussion of START). expand your ideas.
Ask students to describe what makes a good friend so great. After a
S
Show colors, textures,
few minutes of discussion, tell students that this week they’ll get to write tastes, and smells.
a descriptive paragraph about one of their own friends. To help them
T
Totally describe people, places,
feelings, and emotions.
write a super paragraph, tell them you’re going to give them a new
A
Audience awareness: Does my
writing strategy called START, which they can use on any assignment to audience understand my ideas?
make their writing stronger. Briefly go over the START poster or
R
Reasons: Are there at least three “ideas”
overhead, mentioning that not all of the ideas in START will be used for or “reasons” to explain my purpose?
T
Tell specific details, such as numbers
every writing assignment. For example, we would not describe the odor, (sizes, dates, ages, time) and seasons.
taste, or texture of our friend. (This will more than likely generate a bit
of laughter!) However, we would include hair color, eye color, and age
and/or birth date in our description. We would also include how we feel
when we are with this friend.
MODEL: It is critical to complete this assignment along with the students to
ensure a smooth transition to paragraphs. Begin by reviewing the process from
last week’s assignment.
Analyzing the Audience: Make the students aware that not everyone knows
the same people. Ask them if their audience knows their friend. Tell them
that after reading their paragraph, the audience should feel as if they know
the student’s friend.
Setting the Purpose: Fill in your purpose. For example:
Michelle is my good friend.
91
Pause and have the students fill in their purpose.
Brainstorming: List three ideas that describe your best friend. For example:
caring
supportive
fun
Pause and have the students list their three ideas.

Two-Minute Chat: Have students talk with their partners.
CONFERRING
Model: Show students how to use START to expand the brainstorm. For
tip example:
or struggling caring—always remembers birthday, sends a present, calls

F students, reduce
the number of brain-
supportive—listens, talks, met in 6th grade
fun—travel, shop, shows, fashion
storming reasons to two
instead of three, until the Pause and have the students expand their ideas with START.
students feel more
comfortable composing. Ending Sentence: Remind students that this sentence expresses emotion and/or
These students will then makes a prediction based on the purpose. It never introduces new ideas. For
have four instead of five example, I cannot wait to talk again with my friend, Michelle.
sentences for their body Pause and have the students fill in their ending sentence. Again, allow
paragraph, which is per- them to use your ending sentence if they so desire: I cannot wait to talk again
fectly acceptable. with my friend, _____________.
Drafting: You may now compose the paragraph. The first sentence will be
Setting the Purpose, followed by a sentence using each of the three expanded
ideas, and then the fifth sentence, the ending sentence.
For example, the complete paragraph will be as follows:
Michelle is my good friend. She is caring in that she always
remembers my birthday with a phone call and a present. She
also supports me by listening and giving advice any time I
need to talk with her. No matter what, she is always cheering
for me and encouraging me. And we have a lot of fun traveling
and shopping together. I cannot wait to talk again with my
friend, Michelle.
Tell students: “As a writer, I added more details that came to my mind
while I was writing. Let students know this is okay, as long is it stays with the
same subject or topic.”
92
Planning Page
Descriptive Paragraph
Name:
My Good Friend
1 Analyzing the Audience: The audience is your teachers and
classmates. Do they know your friend?
2 Setting the Purpose: __________________________________________

is my good friend. (sentence one in paragraph)
3 Brainstorming: List three ideas

about your purpose.
1. __________________________________ Use START to

(sentence two in paragraph) expand your ideas.
S
2. __________________________________
tastes, and smells.
T
3. __________________________________
A
(sentence four in paragraph) audience understand my ideas?
R
or “reasons” to explain my purpose?
T
4 My Two-Minute Chat Partner Is: (sizes, dates, ages, time) and seasons.
____________________________________
5 Ending Sentence: ______________________________________________.


write supporting sentences using the ideas from above. Remember
to indent your paragraph.
93
week 19
Lesson
Thank You, Thank You!

GENRE: Thank-you letter
SKILL: Using parts of a letter—greeting, body, and closing
STANDARD: Communicate ideas in writing to accomplish a variety of purposes;

use correct grammar, spelling, punctuation, capitalization, and
structure.
ASSIGNMENT: Students will write a thank-you letter.
FOCUS: Ask students to think about all of the special gifts that they received
during the holiday season. Which was their favorite, and who gave it to them?
Tell students that this week they’ll write a thank-you letter.
CONFERRING MODEL: Recall the friendly letters that were written at Thanksgiving time.
tip Remind students that they should write the date on the top line in the
right-hand corner. On the chalkboard, overhead, or chart paper, model proper
ome students capitalization and punctuation as you write a sample letter. Ask if anyone
S may have to
fill out the template
remembers what the first part of a letter is called (greeting). Remind students
that the first letters of each word in the greeting are to be capitalized and that
with you (one to one). the greeting ends with a comma (e.g., Dear Grandma,). Your sample might
Be sure to have the read like this:
students do the writing, Dear Grandma,
to ensure ownership, Thank you so much for giving me the alarm clock CD player for
attentiveness, Christmas. I put it on my nightstand next to my bed. The blue
and learning. color matches my room . Before I go to bed each night, I set it for
7:00 a.m. Then I choose a CD to listen to and it helps me fall asleep.
When the alarm rings in the morning, I know that it is time to get
up and get ready for school. I love my alarm clock CD player!
Last, recall that the closing ends the letter and tells whom it is from.
Students should sign their names right under the closing.
Your grandson,
Jaime
PLANNING PAGE: Distribute the Thank You, Thank You! Planning Page and
go through it with students. Then hand out the letter-writing template
(Appendix A, page 154) for students to draft on. Finally, hand out stationery for
students
94
Planning Page
Thank-You Letter
Name:
Thank You, Thank You

1 Analyzing the Audience: The audience is someone who gave you
a special gift. This person knows what the gift looks like, but may
not know how much you appreciate it or what you like to do with it.
2 Setting the Purpose: Thank you so much for giving me
__________________________________________.
3 Brainstorming: List three ideas about

what makes this gift so special.
Use START to
1. __________________________________ expand your ideas.
S
__________________________________ Show colors, textures,
tastes, and smells.
T
2. __________________________________ Totally describe people, places,
__________________________________
A
audience understand my ideas?
3. __________________________________
R
__________________________________
T
(sizes, dates, ages, time) and seasons.
4 My Two-Minute Chat Partner Is:
____________________________________
5 Ending Sentence: ______________________________________________.
6 Drafting: Fill in the letter template and then transfer to a sheet of

stationery.
95
CHAPTER 8
February Writing Lessons

Will the groundhog see his shadow and allow us six

GROUNDHOG DAY
more weeks of winter, or will he not see his shadow
and award us an early spring? Which do you wish for
and why?
I hope that the groundhog does/does not see its shadow because
.
Most dogs do not like cats. Pretend that you have a dog who understands
what you say. Convince the dog to allow you to bring home a cat.
I think that you would like a pet cat because .
Cats are known to eat mice. Convince a cat to start a friendship with a
mouse.
A mouse would be a good friend for you because .
Think about all that you did yesterday. Describe the best part of yesterday.
The best part about yesterday was .
96
If you could go back in time, what would you ask
LINCOLN’S BIRTHDAY President Abraham Lincoln?
I would like to ask President Abraham Lincoln .

Why do you need love? Think about all of the love

VALENTINE’S DAY you receive from family and friends. What would
your life be like without that love?
I need love because .
Sometimes when you ask for special things, your parents respond, “Maybe
for your birthday.” Think about one gift that you’d really like to receive for
your birthday. Include how you’d feel if you received it.
I’d really like a/an __________________________________________________

for my birthday because ____________________________________________ .
Pretend you are a bear. Describe how you feel when it’s time to hibernate
for the winter.
When it’s time to hibernate for the winter, I .
Think about a time when someone told you a lie. How did you know it was
a lie? How did you feel about this person not being truthful with you?
Someone told me a lie about .
97
The President has a lot of power and respon-
PRESIDENTS’ DAY sibility. Think about one thing that you would
do if you were “President for the Day.”
If I were “President for the Day,” I would .

If you could go back in time and meet

WASHINGTON’S BIRTHDAY President George Washington, what would
you ask him?
I would like to ask President George Washington .
It is unfair to treat people differently because

BLACK HISTORY MONTH of the color of their skin. What can you do to
help treat people equally?
I could help treat people equally by .
Pretend that you are a waterfall. How do you feel? How do people, rocks,
birds, and insects feel about you?
If I were a waterfall, .
Part of being a good friend is learning to take turns. Explain to a friend

why it is important to take turns.
It is important to take turns because .
98
To grow strong and keep healthy, you need to eat a good balance of
healthy foods. Describe two healthy foods that you eat. How do you feel
about eating these foods?
Two healthy foods that I enjoy are .

Unfortunately, it is often the unhealthy foods that taste good to children.

Describe two unhealthy foods that you eat. How do you feel about eating
these foods?
Two unhealthy foods that I enjoy are .
What does the expression “You are what you eat” mean to you?
“You are what you eat” means .
Describe the strangest food that you have ever eaten. Where did you eat
this food? What was so strange about it? Would you eat it again if you had
the chance?
The strangest food that I’ve ever eaten is .
Imagine that your parents invited a dragon over for dinner. Describe the
dinner.
When we had a dragon over for dinner, .
99
week 20
Lesson
Dear Visitor
GENRE: Formal letter
SKILL: Using parts of a letter—greeting, body, and closing
STANDARD: Write letters, reports, and stories based on acquired

information. Compose well-organized and coherent writing for
specific purposes and audiences.
ASSIGNMENT: Students will write a formal letter describing their
school to a visitor.
FOCUS: Ask students to think about all of the things that make their school a
special place. Tell them to pretend that a visitor is coming to their school. This
CONFERRING visitor has never been to the school before.
tip MODEL: Ask students to brainstorm all of the special things that they would
want the visitor to see. Record the list on the overhead, chart paper, or the
f students are not chalkboard. Students can use this as a word bank. Include examples of formal
I familiar with how
their school compares
language that they might include in their letters.
Before students begin their planning pages, remind them of the format of a
and contrasts with letter (see page 70). Tell students that they should use colorful, descriptive
others, share some of words that will make the visitor want to come and see their suggested sights.
your experiences. Explain, for example, that the sentence Please go see the auditorium can be made
more colorful by using a better choice of descriptive words: You should visit our
auditorium, with its soft, cushiony chairs and its huge, red velvet curtains. Take a few
minutes to allow student volunteers to share more examples of simple sentences
that can be made more descriptive. Record a list of examples.
PLANNING PAGE: Distribute the Dear Visitor Planning Page and letter template
(Appendix A, page 154). Read and discuss the following steps: Analyzing the
Audience, Setting the Purpose, Brainstorming, and Drafting. After each step,
model, and then pause to allow students to complete that step. Students can
draft on the letter template and then write their final copy on stationery.
100
Planning Page
Formal Letter
Name:
Dear Visitor
1 Analyzing the Audience: The audience is a visitor who has never
been to your school before. This person knows nothing about

where things are and what special things go on in your class.
2 Setting the Purpose: There are some special things that you
should see while you are visiting _________________________ School.
(sentence one in letter)

what you think the visitor would like Use START to
to see. expand your ideas.
S
1. __________________________________ tastes, and smells.
T
__________________________________
(sentence two in letter)
A
2. __________________________________
R
__________________________________ or “reasons” to explain my purpose?
T
(sentence three in letter) Tell specific details, such as numbers
3. __________________________________
__________________________________
(sentence four in letter)
5 Ending Sentence: ______________________________________________.

(sentence five in letter)
6 Drafting: Fill in the letter template and then transfer to a sheet of

stationery.
101
week 21
Lesson
My Invention
GENRE: Expository paragraph
SKILL: Using elaboration
STANDARD: Demonstrate focus, organization, elaboration, and integration in

written compositions.
ASSIGNMENT: Students will write an expository paragraph explaining
something that they imagine themselves inventing.
FOCUS: Discuss inventors with students. Invite students to give examples of
important inventions. Ask how these inventions are important in our daily life.
(They often make our jobs easier or save us time.) Where do inventors get
CONFERRING ideas? What inventions would students like to see?
tip MODEL: Tell students that they’ll be writing about an invention they would like
to create. Remind them that all the sentences in the paragraph must relate to
alk the students the purpose—all sentences will describe the invention and what it is used for.
W through START.
Make suggestions and
Before students begin writing, take some time to review paragraph
drafting and the example exercise described on page 29. Put sample paragraphs
allow students to write on the overhead, chalkboard, or chart paper. Insert one or two sentences that
them down. do not belong with the topic sentence. Students will enjoy trying to locate
these sentences and crossing them out. While these sentences may be true or
important, if they do not support, or explain, the topic sentence, then they
do not belong in that paragraph. Adding this exercise to your daily morning
routine will prove beneficial in the long run.
PLANNING PAGE: Distribute the My Invention Planning Page. Read and
Brainstorming, and Drafting. After each step, model, and then pause to allow
102
Planning Page
Expository Paragraph
Name:
My Invention
mates. They do not know about your invention.
2 Setting the Purpose: Some day I would like to invent

_________________________________________________________________.

about your purpose. Use START to
expand your ideas.
1. __________________________________
S
__________________________________ tastes, and smells.
T
A
2. __________________________________
__________________________________
R
(sentence three in paragraph) or “reasons” to explain my purpose?
T
3. __________________________________ (sizes, dates, ages, time) and seasons.
__________________________________
5 Ending Sentence: ______________________________________________.

6 Drafting: Using printing paper, write your paragraph. First,

copy your purpose sentence. Then, make a sentence out of each
brainstorming idea. Finally, copy your ending sentence.
103
week 22
Lesson
School Fun
SKILL: Writing paragraphs—purpose, supporting sentences,
and sentences of elaboration

of purposes. Demonstrate focus, organization, and elaboration,
in writing.
ASSIGNMENT: Students will use elaboration to describe their favorite thing
about school in a narrative paragraph.
FOCUS: Ask students what they like best about school. After a few minutes of
CONFERRING discussion, tell them that this week they’ll write about their favorite school
activity.
tip MODEL: As a teacher, you are continuously reviewing skills. You have taught a
elp students lot about paragraphs in a very short time. This lesson will be a good time to
H elaborate on
ideas for which they
review what you’ve taught:
The purpose, or topic sentence, is the sentence that controls the paragraph.
show excitement or
For example: One of the things that I enjoy the most about school is _________.
enthusiasm.
The supporting sentences, which are formed from the brainstorm ideas or
reasons, add detail and help explain or support the purpose. For example:
One of the things that I enjoy most about school is
science. Mr. Evans lets us do fun experiments. We use special
equipment that scientists use. Sometimes we make things
that we can bring home. This year we learned about our five
senses. We also learned about static electricity.
Remind students that START can help them elaborate. Some students will
enjoy elaborating on every idea, while others may begin by elaborating on one
or two. There is no rule that dictates which ideas should be elaborated upon.
PLANNING PAGE: Distribute the School Fun Planning Page. Read and
104
Planning Page
Narrative Paragraph
Name:
School Fun
classmates. They all enjoy different things about school.
2 Setting the Purpose: One of the things that I enjoy most about
school is ________________________________________________________.

about your purpose. Use START to
expand your ideas.
1. __________________________________
S
T
A
2. __________________________________
__________________________________
R
T
__________________________________
5 Ending Sentence: ______________________________________________.


105
week 23
Lesson
Something I Do Well
SKILL: Writing compound sentences
STANDARD: Use correct grammar, spelling, and punctuation.

ASSIGNMENT: Students will write a paragraph describing something
they do well.
FOCUS: Talk about something that you do well, and ask students to share things
they do well. Record the list on the overhead, chart paper, or the chalkboard.
Tell students that this week they'll write about one specific thing they do well.
MODEL: Distribute the Something I Do Well Planning Page and go over
CONFERRING Analyzing the Audience and Setting the Purpose. Have students draw a picture
tip of themselves performing the activity. Then ask them to think of three ideas
that relate to this talent and write three key words under their pictures.
ind examples After students talk with their chat partner, call the class together and model
F of compound
sentences in classroom
how to write a compound sentence, the skill for the week. Tell them that a
compound sentence is one sentence made up of two smaller sentences. To make
reading material. Draw writing sound interesting, writers should use a variety of sentences, some long
attention to the comma and some short. Compound sentences are one way to write longer sentences.
and conjunction, and Generate a list of compound sentences with students, showing how a special
have students look kind of word called a conjunction can be used to hook the two sentences togeth-
for two smaller er. Explain that conjunction is just a name for a group of words that join words
sentences that can stand and sentences together; they are and, but, or, nor, so, and yet—all words that stu-
independently. dents know and use. Give them an example of a compound sentence, such as
Tony plays competitive baseball on a team, and he plays for
fun with his friends.
Ask students to identify the conjunction. Cover up the comma and the word
and. Show students that they can tell a sentence is a compound sentence if each
of the parts can stand alone as a sentence.
After generating and discussing several examples, tell students to include
at least one compound sentence in their writing this week. Leave the examples
and list of conjunctions displayed while students write. Remind them to put a
comma before a conjunction that will join two sentences. After conferring,
revising, and editing, they can share their stories on the last day of the lesson.
106
Planning Page
Narrative Paragraph
Name:
Something I Do Well
classmates. They may or may not have the same talents as you.
2 Setting the Purpose: Something that I do well is ________________.
3 Brainstorming: Draw a picture of yourself doing something you

feel you are good at.
4 Write down three ideas about your special talent.
____________________ ____________________ ____________________

write one or more supporting sentences using the ideas from
above. Use a conjunction (and, but, or, nor, so, yet) to write at
least one compound sentence.
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CHAPTER 9
March Writing Lessons

Describe the best birthday party that you’ve ever been to. What things
made it “the best”?
The best birthday party I’ve been to was .
Describe your favorite movie. Tell about the characters, setting, problem,
and solution.
My favorite movie is .
Describe a perfect tree house.
A perfect tree house would have .
Describe a fun goody bag for a birthday party.
A fun goody bag will have
Describe a good activity for a rainy day.
A good rainy-day activity is .
108
recently did. Include how you felt during the activity.

Think about all of the desserts that you have ever eaten. Describe your
favorite dessert. How does it look and taste?
My favorite dessert is .
Think about all of the special places in your home. Which place is your
favorite? What do you do in this special place? How do you feel when
you are there?
My favorite place in my home is .
Describe how you would like to have fun on a Saturday. What would you
do? Who would you do it with?
Some Saturday, I’d like to .
mind. Then add details to explain your statement.
I’d like to solve the problem of .
109
Describe your adventures as a seedling. How do you travel? How will you
eventually sprout?
If I were a seedling, .
Describe your life as a flower. What kind of flower are

SPRING you? What do you look like? Where do you live? What
do you need to survive?
If I were a flower, I’d like to be .
Legend has it that you’ll find your dream at the

end of the rainbow. What would you like to find at the end of a rainbow?
I’d like to follow a rainbow and find .
A symbol of good luck for the Irish is the shamrock.

ST. PATRICK’S DAY Describe something that you value as a symbol of
good luck.
My symbol of good luck is .
Think about some things that you like to do with your best friend. What do
the two of you enjoy doing the most?
When I play with my best friend, we like to
110
While riding your bicycle it turns into a motorcycle. Describe your
adventures.
When my bicycle became a motorcycle, .

Describe losing a tooth.
When I lose a tooth, I feel
Describe a train or boat ride.
A train/boat ride is like
Think about something that you’d really like to do when you become
a parent.
When I become a parent .
Describe one person who is important to you. Why is this person so

important to you? How do you feel when you are with him or her?
A very important person to me is .
111
week 24
Lesson
Dear Teacher
GENRE: Persuasive letter
SKILL: Writing supporting sentences
STANDARD: Write letters, reports, and stories based on acquired

information.
ASSIGNMENT: Students will write a persuasive letter to their teacher.
FOCUS: Review with students the persuasive sentences that they wrote in the
Week 7 Lesson. Remind them that in persuasive writing, their goal is to try to
convince the reader to think the way they do. In October they tried to
convince their teacher and classmates the best game to play. This week, they
CONFERRING will begin to write a persuasive letter to their teacher about whether they
should have homework on weekends or weekdays.
tip MODEL: Before filling out the planning pages, tell students that the hardest
f students offer thing about good persuasive writing is choosing a position and then
I support for both
sides of an issue, help
supporting it. Students do not want to become wishy-washy, fluctuating
between both sides of the argument, listing the pros and cons of each. They
them recognize this need to pick one side only and be sure to support it with reasons. Before they
and eliminate the less begin their writing, they should know, without a doubt, which side they will
heartfelt side of the argue. Practice this type of debate by bringing up the examples of recess versus
argument. no recess and/or year-round school versus traditional school.
Since this project involves writing a letter as opposed to a paragraph, it
is a good opportunity to review the parts of a letter: date, greeting, body, and
closing.
PLANNING PAGE: Distribute the Dear Teacher Planning Page and letter
template (Appendix A, page 154). Read and discuss the following steps:
Analyzing the Audience, Setting the Purpose, Brainstorming, and Drafting.
After each step, model, and then pause to allow students to complete that
step.
112
Planning Page
Persuasive Letter
Name:
Dear Teacher
1 Analyzing the Audience: The audience is your teacher. He or she
may or may not agree with your side of the argument. You’ll need
to choose words that really sound convincing.
2 Setting the Purpose: I think that we should have homework

on _______________________ only. (Choose weekends or weekdays.)
(sentence one in letter)
3 Brainstorming: List three reasons to

support your choice. Use START to
expand your ideas.
1. __________________________________
S
T
(sentence two in letter)
A
2. __________________________________ Audience awareness: Does my
__________________________________
R
(sentence three in letter) or “reasons” to explain my purpose?
T
__________________________________
(sentence four in letter)
5 Ending Sentence: ______________________________________________.

(sentence five in letter)
6 Drafting: Fill in the letter template and then transfer to stationery.
113
week 25
Lesson
My Favorite Toy
GENRE: Descriptive paragraph
SKILL: Using descriptive language (similes)

of purposes.
ASSIGNMENT: Students will write a descriptive paragraph that includes
similes.
FOCUS: Ask students to think about their favorite toy. How would they describe
it to someone who has never seen it? Remind them that the careful choice of
words will help to paint a picture in the readers’ minds.
CONFERRING MODEL: Next, recall the Week 15 Lesson, My Favorite Place. Students were
tip asked to allow the reader to hear, see, feel, taste, or smell the place that was
being described. Tell students that this week they will write a descriptive para-
elp students graph about their favorite toy. Not all of the five “sense” words will apply to
H develop a specific
simile by having them
their topic. For example, their favorite toy might not have a “taste.” Students,
however, should try to use as many of the senses as possible when describing
write a noun followed by their favorite toy. Ask, How does your teddy bear look? How does it feel? How does
the word like or as. Then it smell? Does it make any sounds?
have them generate a Introduce the use of similes. Define a simile as a comparison—using like or
comparison object. as—that compares two unlike things. Write some examples on the
chalkboard, overhead, or chart paper, such as The horse ran like the wind. Ask
students to describe what these words called up in their minds. Encourage
students to use descriptive language and similes in this project to make their
writing come alive.
PLANNING PAGE: Distribute the My Favorite Toy Planning Page. Read and
allow students to complete that step.
114
Planning Page
Descriptive Paragraph
Name:
My Favorite Toy
mates. They may or may not be familiar with your favorite toy.
2 Setting the Purpose: My favorite toy is________________________.

3 Brainstorming: List three words that describe that toy.

Try to use words that appeal to the five senses—sight,
sound, touch, taste, and smell.
Use START to
1. __________________________________
expand your ideas.
__________________________________
S
(sentence two in paragraph) tastes, and smells.
T
2. __________________________________ feelings, and emotions.
__________________________________
A
R
3. __________________________________
T
__________________________________ (sizes, dates, ages, time) and seasons.
5 Ending Sentence: ______________________________________________.

6 Drafting: Using printing paper, write your paragraph. First, copy

your purpose sentence. Then, make a sentence out of each brain-
storming idea. Finally, copy your ending sentence.
115
week 26
Lesson
The Best Day of My Life

SKILL: Sequencing and using time-order transitions
STANDARD: Relate character, setting, and plot to real-life situations.

ASSIGNMENT: Students will write a personal narrative telling something
about their life.
FOCUS: Ask students to think about the best day of their life. Be ready for a
handful of students to say that they have so many it is hard to choose. To keep
them focused, ask them to list the days and then choose one that they’d like to
relive and write about today.
CONFERRING MODEL: Next, tell students that they are going to tell the story of this great day
tip by writing a narrative paragraph. They will need to tell the story in order so
that it makes sense. Give examples of sequence and time-order words that help
ost students readers understand when events take place.
M will write their
stories in one continuous
The best day of my life was my first trip to Rocky Point. When
we walked through the gate, I couldn’t believe all the rides!
paragraph. This is fine, as
First, my sister and I ran to the ferris wheel so we could get a
you want to encourage,
good view of the park.
not inhibit, the develop-
ment of the story. More PLANNING PAGE: On the first brainstorming line of The Best Day of My Life
advanced writers may Planning Page, students will try to jot down a word or phrase that describes
wish to be shown the beginning of this day. On the second line, they will try to think of what
when to begin new happened next, and so forth.
paragraphs. They can Before students begin their draft, share this short list of simple time-order
think of it like scenes transition words. Encourage students to use them to show the passing of time
from a movie. If it in their stories.
sounds like the begin-
ning of a new “scene,” after at the same time meanwhile
such as a different time at last finally when
of day, then they should
from then on later on as
begin a new paragraph.
during again best of all
lastly before first of all
soon first last of all
afterward then next
immediately
116
Planning Page
Narrative Paragraph
Name:
The Best Day of My Life

mates. They most likely did not experience this special day with you.
2 Setting the Purpose: The best day of my life was when

_________________________________________________________________.
3 Brainstorming: List three ideas about your special day.

Be sure to list your ideas in the order
in which they happened.
Use START to
expand your ideas.
1. __________________________________
S
T
2. __________________________________
A
__________________________________
R
T
__________________________________
5 Ending Sentence: ______________________________________________.

6 Drafting: Using printing paper, write your paragraph. First, copy

your purpose sentence. Then, make a sentence out of each brain-
storming idea. Finally, copy your ending sentence.
117
week 27
Lesson
Following the Rainbow

GENRE: Fiction
SKILL: Sequencing—beginning, middle, and end

people, places, things, and events).
ASSIGNMENT: Students will write a fictional story.
FOCUS: Tell students that they will again be working on a narrative paragraph.
The last narrative was based on an actual event in their lives, but this one
CONFERRING will be made up or imagined. This project, a fictional story, will be a little
more difficult for some students.
tip Explain that narrative stories must follow a sequence, have a clear
beginning, middle, and end, and use transitions that show the passing of
s students write
A drafts, they can
be encouraged to turn
time (see Week 26 Lesson). In addition, a good story fits together like a
puzzle. If any of the pieces are missing, the story will not make sense.
each puzzle piece into a MODEL: Read aloud a few St. Patrick’s Day stories, such as Clever Tom and the
paragraph by adding Leprechaun by Linda Shute and Jack and the Leprechaun by Ivan Robertson.
sentences of elaboration. Discuss the themes of leprechauns, pots of gold, and rainbows in these stories.
They will then have Also discuss the problem in each story, and how often characters make several
separate paragraphs unsuccessful attempts to solve a problem before they finally come to a resolution
about the characters, at the end. Then have students fold a paper into three rows and write the head-
setting, problem, and ings Beginning, Middle, and End at the top of each row. As you reread a story,
solution. You can also allow students to draw a picture that represents the beginning, the middle, and
point out similar para- the end of it.
graphs in their reading Tell students that they will be writing their own story about a character
material. who is looking for good fortune at the end of the rainbow. Students will invent
a problem and at least one unsuccessful attempt to solve it before the final
resolution.
PLANNING PAGE: The planning page for this project looks like a puzzle to
remind students that a good story must fit together. Model how to generate
characters, setting, a problem, and its solution on the planning page. Then
hand out the story template (Appendix B, page 155) and model drafting a story
with a beginning, middle, and end. As students draft independently, walk
around and help as needed.
118
Planning Page
Fiction
Name:
Following the Rainbow

classmates. They do not know your story. Choose words that tell
your story in order so that it makes sense to them.
2 Brainstorming: Fill in the puzzle pieces to plan your story.
Characters Setting
Who is in your story? Where and when does
the story take place?
_____________________________
__________________________
_____________________________
__________________________
_____________________________
_____________________________
_____________________________
Problem Solution
What is it? How do the characters How was the
try to solve it? problem solved?
_________________________ _____________________________
_________________________ _____________________________
_____________________________ _____________________________
_____________________________
3 Drafting: Use your puzzle to draft a story on the story template.

Be sure your story has a beginning, middle, and end.
119
CHAPTER 10
April Writing Lessons

Be sure to read lots of poems and have students respond

NATIONAL
to them. Read a favorite and ask students to complete this
POETRY prompt.
MONTH
This poem reminded me of .
Think about a time when you laughed very hard. What was it that was so
funny?
I laughed so hard when .
If you had the chance to ask your principal anything that you wanted,
what would you ask?
If I could ask my principal anything, I’d ask him or her .
As summer approaches, stores are filling their shelves with outside toys
and warm-weather clothes. Think about one thing that you will be able
to do in the summer.
In the summer, I will be able to .
Think about all of the things that you did in school throughout the year.
Which was your favorite? What did you learn while doing it?
The best thing that I did in school this year was .
120
Our friends help make us happy. Think about a time when you made a
friend happy. How did you feel when you made that friend happy?
I made my friend happy when .


What if there were no schools at all? What would your life be like?
If there were no schools, .
No one likes to be sick, but sometimes sick days can be a nice break
from the daily routine. What are some things that you can do if you
take a sick day from school?
If I take a sick day from school, I can .
We must all help to take care of Mother Earth. Write

EARTH DAY about one way that you could help Earth.
I could help Earth by .
121
Pretend that you are telling an alien from outer space about pollution.
How would you describe it so that they would understand what it is?
Be specific. Remember—they probably do not know what garbage is
or what automobiles are.
I would tell the alien that pollution is .

What if we never recycled anything? What would our world be like?
If we never recycled anything, .
Tell about something that you recently worked hard on. How did you
feel about working so hard?
I recently worked hard on .
Think about a time when someone helped you. Who was it that helped
you? How did this person help?
Once somebody helped me by .
mind. Then add more sentences to explain your thoughts.
I wish people would stop .
122
week 28
Lesson
Indoor vs. Outdoor

Recess
GENRE: Persuasive paragraph

SKILL: Writing supporting sentences
STANDARD: Demonstrate focus, organization, and elaboration in writing.
Write for a variety of purposes.
ASSIGNMENT: Students will write a persuasive paragraph to convince their
teacher and principal that indoor or outdoor recess is better.
FOCUS: Recall with students the persuasive sentences that they wrote in
October (page 58) and the persuasive letter that they wrote in March (page CONFERRING
112). Explain that they will be writing a persuasive paragraph with the goal of
convincing the audience—the teacher, the principal, and their classmates—that tip
their school should have outdoor or indoor recess.
ome students
Students must first decide which recess they would like to have. Put
students in pairs and have them take turns supporting each side. For the first
S may have trouble
determining which side
two to three minutes, one student argues for indoor recess while the other
they feel more strongly
supports outdoor; then they switch. After this exercise, each student must
about. If this is the case,
decide which recess they will write about. Remind students that supporting
help them to create a
sentences must support the purpose statement. If a sentence does not support
pro and con list for each
the purpose statement, it should be deleted. Their ending sentence should be
alternative; tell them that
powerful and restate their recess choice.
after brainstorming, the
MODEL: Model some sample paragraphs with supporting sentences that do not list with the most pros
belong and invite students to find these sentences. (and least cons) is most
likely the side they feel
I think that we should have outside recess. We need to be
more strongly about and
able to get exercise by running across the field and playing
should therefore argue
kickball games. Breathing in the fresh air helps to keep us
for, ensuring a heartfelt
healthy. Once my sister couldn’t go outside because she had
essay, which is much
a cold. The fresh air helps to clear our minds so that we can
easier to compose.
learn new things. Also, it would be a terrible waste not to be
able to use our new jungle gym. Outside recess is the only
choice for students at Edison School!
PLANNING PAGE: Distribute the Indoor vs. Outdoor Recess Planning Page.
Read and discuss the steps. After each step, model it, and then pause to allow
123
Planning Page
Persuasive Paragraph
Name:
Indoor vs. Outdoor Recess

1 Analyzing the Audience: The audience is your teacher, principal,
and classmates. They may or may not share your feelings.
2 Setting the Purpose: Our school should have indoor/outdoor

recess because __________________________________________________.
3 Brainstorming: List three (3) reasons
for your choice. Remember that you
are trying to convince people to think
the same way that you do.
Use START to
expand your ideas.
1. __________________________________
S
T
2. __________________________________
A
__________________________________
R
T
__________________________________
5 Ending Sentence: ______________________________________________.


reason. Finally, copy your ending sentence.
124
week 29
Lesson
Rainy-Day Fun

of purposes.
ASSIGNMENT: Students will write an expository paragraph about something
that can be done on a rainy day.
FOCUS: Ask students to think of a time when a rainy day spoiled their fun.
Share some examples of times when plans had to be changed due to rainy
weather. Invite students to think of some activities that can be fun to do on a
rainy day, so that they will be prepared the next time a storm rushes in. CONFERRING
MODEL: Make a list of activities on
the chalkboard, overhead, or chart after again
tip
at last before
paper. Ask students to choose one ransitions are
of the activities mentioned or one of
their own. Students should then write
during
from then on
first
in the meantime T often followed
by a comma. Help the
lastly meanwhile
step-by-step directions for the activity soon when students to identify
using time-order transitions; see the afterward as when to use a comma.
list at right. at the same time best of all
finally first of all
To illustrate just how carefully
immediately last of all
they must think as they write their later on next
directions, ask them to follow these then while
directions for getting a drink of
water:
First, line up at the front door. Then, quietly walk down the
hall to the drinking fountain. When you reach the fountain, line
up against the wall and wait patiently. Finally, walk back to
the classroom quietly.
If students follow the directions carefully, they will notice that getting
the actual drink was not in the directions!
PLANNING PAGE: Distribute the Rainy-Day Fun Planning Page. Read and
allow students to complete that step. Have the students list in the margins the
transitions they will use.
125
Planning Page
Name:
Rainy-Day Fun
1 Analyzing the Audience: Teacher and classmates. They may or
may not be familiar with the activity that you are explaining.
2 Setting the Purpose: A fun thing to do on a rainy day is
_________________________________________________________________.
3 Brainstorming: List the steps involved in your activity. Remember that

someone must be able to follow your directions. Use the back if you
have more steps.
Use START to
1. __________________________________
expand your ideas.
__________________________________
S
(sentence two in paragraph) tastes, and smells.
T
__________________________________
A
R
3. __________________________________
T
5 Ending Sentence: ______________________________________________.


126
week 30
Lesson
Who Let the Dog Out?

GENRE: Fiction CONFERRING
SKILL: Using rich vocabulary tip
STANDARD: Relate character, setting, and plot to real-life situations. roubleshoot
ASSIGNMENT: Students will write a creative story.

T with those who are
struggling with the puzzle
FOCUS: The focus of this assignment will be to show students how rich vocabu- graphic organizer by
lary can help paint a clear picture in the readers’ minds. Recall the planning creating a list from which
puzzle that was used last month (see page 118). Remind students that a good they can choose. For
story fits together like a puzzle. If any one of the pieces is missing, the story will example:
not make sense. Students will again use the puzzle organizer to plan their story. Characters: Mom,
This time, however, the problem/conflict is given: One day I walked into the yard Sister, Mailman, Bobby,
and noticed that my dog was missing. Students need to decide what events led up Kailey, Garbage Collector,
to the problem and how this problem was solved. Dad, George
MODEL: Use the following example or one of your own to begin illustrating rich Settings: house in
vocabulary. the city, house in the
When I noticed that my dog was missing, I went to tell my mom. country, farmhouse,
house in the mountains,
Explain to students that this sentence gives important information, but it is rainy day, sunny day,
hard to picture in our minds. Was the character in a hurry to tell Mom? Did blustery winter day
he or she run? Are there any other ways we can say run that will show us even
Problems: dog went to
more? Did the character dash, race, sprint, or even fly? These words all tell the
the park, dog hopped on
reader that the character was in a hurry to get Mom because this was an
the garbage truck, Mom
emergency.
left the gate open,
Encourage students to choose rich, colorful words that will help paint a
someone stole the dog,
picture in the minds of the readers. Some students will be able to put them in
dog ran after the ice-
as they draft, while other students will need to be encouraged to add them
cream truck
during the editing process.
Solutions: Neighbor
PLANNING PAGE: Distribute the Who Let the Dog Out? Planning Page, which brought the dog home,
has the puzzle graphic organizer. In this case, the problem is already entered, but police brought the dog
students must choose the characters, setting, events, and solution. Walk them home because he had
through this step. Then distribute the story template (Appendix B, page 155) his address on his tags,
and model drafting a story with a beginning, middle, and end. As students draft we found him in the
independently, walk around and help as needed. park
127
Planning Page
Fiction
Name:
Who Let the Dog Out?

classmates. They do not know what event led up to the problem

and how the problem is solved in your story. Remember to choose
words that will paint a picture in their minds.
Characters Setting
_____________________________
__________________________
_____________________________
__________________________
_____________________________
_____________________________
_____________________________
Problem Solution
One day, I walked into the yard How was the
and noticed that my problem solved?
dog was missing. _____________________________
_________________________ _____________________________
_________________________ _____________________________
_____________________________ _____________________________
3 Drafting: Use your puzzle to draft a story on the story template.

Be sure your story has a beginning, middle, and end.
128
CHAPTER 11
May Writing Lessons

You have many special qualities. Perhaps you are a good listener or
a hard worker. Think about all of your special qualities. Which do you
think is the best?
The best thing about me is .
All families are special and unique. They have different customs and
traditions. What do you like best about your family?
The best thing about my family is .

There are probably some things that you like about school, as well
as some things that you don’t like about school. How could school
be better for you?
School would be better if .
Think about something that you are good at doing. How would you teach
someone else to do it?
I could teach someone how to .
129
We all have things that we worry about. What is something that worries
you? Why do you worry about it?
Something that I worry about is .

PARENTS’ DAY What do you love most about you parent(s)?
The thing that I love most about my parent(s) is
How would your parent(s) describe you?
My parent(s) would describe me as .
What would you like/hate most about being a parent?
If I were a parent, I would like/hate
Tell what your parent(s) do to make you laugh.
My
makes me laugh by .
130
Describe a present that you would like to give to your mom or your dad
and tell why you would like to give it to him/her.
I would like to give my
a .
Describe the best birthday gift you’ve ever received. When did you receive
it? Who gave it to you? How did you feel when you got it?
The best birthday gift I ever received was .
What would you do if only one hot dog was left and neither you nor your
friend had had one?
If there was only one hot dog left, I would .
As summer approaches, we start to think about outside activities. Would

you like a built-in pool in your yard? Give reasons for your answer.
I would/would not like a built-in pool in my yard because .
Which do you think is better to ride: a scooter or a bicycle? Give reasons

for your answer.
A scooter/bicycle is better to ride because .
131
Convince your parents that all children do or do not need a computer. Be
sure to give reasons that will convince them of your belief.
All students do/do not need a computer because .

MEMORIAL DAY Who is your hero or heroine and why?
My hero/heroine is
because .
Describe the qualities that make a hero/heroine.
The qualities that a hero/heroine should have are .
Describe your life as a caterpillar. Think about what you know about the
life cycle of a butterfly.
My life as a caterpillar would be .
Describe the worst rainstorm you have ever seen. Were you inside
or outside during the storm? How did you feel during the storm?
The worst rainstorm was
132
week 31
Lesson
Taking Care of a Pet

CONFERRING
SKILL: Editing/revising
tip
STANDARD: Use correct grammar, spelling, punctuation, capitalization, and

structure. e sure to focus
ASSIGNMENT: Students will compose an expository paragraph explaining how B on only one or
two grammatical items,
to take care of a pet.
as more than that is
FOCUS: Begin a discussion about pets and what a responsibility it is to have overwhelming.
them. Ask students to share stories about their own pets, and tell them they’ll
be writing a paragraph explaining how to take care of a pet. If students don’t
have pets, ask them to imagine what it would be like.
MODEL: Most of the students should
feel fairly comfortable with paragraph
writing at this point. While you will
continue to conference with them about
their work, it is time to give them more STOP:
ownership of the editing/revising process.
Make a poster of STOP (Appendix
D, page 157). Demonstrate how to
S Spelling: Did I spell the words as
best I can by sounding them out
and using word banks and word
check each step on a sample paragraph walls? Did I use the dictionary?
you’ve prepared. You may even want to
make an individual checklist of the
acronym that students can check off as
they revise.
T Tells the purpose: Does my first
sentence communicate the purpose
of my writing?
PLANNING PAGE: Distribute the Taking
Care of a Pet Planning Page. Read and
discuss the following steps: Analyzing
O Organization and Out loud: How
does my paragraph sound when I
read it aloud? Are there any parts
the Audience, Setting the Purpose,
that do not make sense, do not flow,
Brainstorming, and Drafting. At this
or just sound funny? If so, could this
point, you can allow the students to be a grammar or punctuation error?
work through it alone.
P Punctuation and capitalization: Did

I use proper punctuation and
capitalization?
133
Planning Page
Name:
Taking Care of a Pet

mates. They may or may not know how to care for the pet.
2 Setting the Purpose: Taking care of a ___________________________

is a big responsibility. (sentence one in paragraph)
3 Brainstorming: List three things that

you must do to take care of this pet. Use START to
Try to put them in order from greatest expand your ideas.
to least importance.
S
tastes, and smells.
1. __________________________________
T
__________________________________
A
(sentence two in paragraph) audience understand my ideas?
R
2. __________________________________ or “reasons” to explain my purpose?
__________________________________
T
3. __________________________________
__________________________________
5 Ending Sentence: ______________________________________________.

6 Drafting: Using printing paper, write your paragraph. Use STOP

to revise and edit your paragraph.
134
week 32
Lesson
When I Was a Baby

SKILL: Understanding subject-verb agreement and past-tense
verb formation
and structure.
ASSIGNMENT: Students will write a paragraph telling about something that
they did when they were babies.
FOCUS: Ask students to tell stories about what they did when they were babies.
You may want to ask them to bring in baby pictures or share some of your own.
After students share some stories, tell them that this week they’ll be writing CONFERRING
about something they did when they were babies. (If students can’t think of
anything, have them ask their parents.) tip
MODEL: Now that your students are comfortable with the writing process, you’ll ave students read
want to focus your efforts on some common grammatical errors. Forming past-
tense verbs and making subjects and verbs agree are two problems young writers
H their work aloud
to you. Often students
commonly have. Since students are writing this week about events that hap- can hear their errors
pened in the past, it’s a perfect time to address these issues. when read aloud; they
Point out to students that they’ll be writing this story in the past tense, can recognize language
since they’ll be describing events that happened long ago. Following are some that sounds funny.
rules to share with your students about the proper use of verbs. You may wish
to make posters reminding students of these rules or create mini-lessons to
give which students can get extra practice. Choose an area to focus on based
on your assessment of students’ needs. Demonstrate as you write about
something you did as a child.
● Past-tense verbs tell about actions that already happened.
Many past-tense verbs end in -ed. If a verb already ends in
-e, just add -d.
I jumped on my trampoline.
I liked when I visited my grandma’s house.
135
● Irregular verbs become different words when used in the
past tense.
Examples: present past
is was
do did
begin began
run ran
sleep slept
throw threw
tell told
wear wore
● Sentences must have subject-verb agreement. A noun or
pronoun is usually the subject of the sentence. The subject
can be singular or plural.
● Singular subjects need singular verbs. Singular, present-
tense verbs end in -s.
Sarah plays in the band.

● Plural subjects need plural verbs. Plural, present-tense verbs
do not end in -s.
Sarah and Jack play in the band.

PRACTICE: Have the students correct the following example for past-tense verb
errors and subject-verb agreement errors.
When I is a baby I sleeped a lot. I weared onesies and

play-clothes all day. My sister and I plays a little with the
jungle gym, but I mostly liked to sleeps. I still have the first
pajamas I weared, and I still loves to sleep like a baby.
PLANNING PAGE: Distribute the When I Was a Baby Planning Page. Read and
Brainstorming, and Drafting. At this point, you can allow the students to work
through it alone.
136
Planning Page
Narrative Paragraph
Name:
When I Was a Baby

1 Analyzing the Audience: Teacher and classmates. They do not
know the funny things that you did when you were a baby.
2 Setting the Purpose: When I was a baby I used to
______________________________________________________________.

your purpose. Use START to
expand your ideas.
1. __________________________________
S
T
A
2. __________________________________ Audience awareness: Does my
__________________________________
R
T
__________________________________
5 Ending Sentence: ______________________________________________.

6 Drafting: Write your paragraph on printing paper. Use STOP

to revise and edit your paragraph.
137
week 33
Lesson
Earning a Privilege
GENRE: Persuasive paragraph
SKILL: Choosing titles
STANDARD: Communicate ideas in writing to accomplish a

variety of purposes.
ASSIGNMENT: Students will write a persuasive paragraph to try
to earn a privilege.
FOCUS: Begin a discussion of privileges, asking students to share some that they
have, both at home and in the classroom. Ensure that all students understand
what a privilege is—a special thing they get to do because of their age or
CONFERRING responsible behavior. Let students know that people must earn privileges. Ask
them to think about privileges they believe they are ready for. Tell them that
tip this week they’ll get to write a persuasive paragraph to convince an adult that
they are ready for a new privilege.
o not hesitate to
D use the thesaurus
when brainstorming for
MODEL: Before getting into the brainstorming on the planning page, introduce
the skill for the week: choosing titles. While the writing assignments have been
a title together. titled for organizational purposes, we have not, as yet, talked about students
choosing titles for their work. Students are often quick to title their writing,
long before it has been completed. When this happens, the original title often
does not capture the main idea of the text. Sometimes students feel constrained
by the title and limit their writing to fit. This week, the strategy is to title a
piece after it has been completed.
Ask students why writers give titles to their stories. How do titles help
readers? To model their importance, you might want to try omitting the titles
of read-alouds, or substituting very boring ones. When you finish reading, ask
students to volunteer titles that would and would not suit the story. Then ask
students how they think authors come up with titles. Guide them to
understand that writers often title stories when they’ve finished writing; if
they title a story first, the story might change during the writing process, and
the title might not be right anymore. Tell students that this week they will
give their paragraph a title after they finish writing it.
PLANNING PAGE: Distribute the Earning a Privilege Planning Page. Read and
Brainstorming, and Drafting. At this point, you can allow the students to work
through it alone.
138
Planning Page
Persuasive Paragraph
Name:
Earning a Privilege
1 Analyzing the Audience: The audience is an adult who may or
may not agree that you deserve the privilege.
2 Setting the Purpose: One privilege that I deserve is

______________________________________________________________.
3 Brainstorming: List three reasons why you feel that you deserve the
privilege. Remember that you are trying to convince people that you
deserve this privilege.
1. __________________________________ Use START to

expand your ideas.
__________________________________
S
tastes, and smells.
T
__________________________________
A
R
3. __________________________________
T
5 Ending Sentence: ______________________________________________.

6 Drafting: Using printing paper, write your paragraph. Use STOP

to revise and edit your paragraph. Then give it a title.
139
week 34
Lesson
A New Take
on an Old Stor y
GENRE: Fiction
SKILL: Using dialogue
STANDARD: Identify how the author and illustrators express their ideas
ASSIGNMENT: Students will write a story, based on a familiar story.
FOCUS: Explain to students that they are going to write their own story using a
favorite read-aloud as a model. They can change the characters, setting, prob-
lem, solution, and details. For example, Little Red Riding Hood can become
CONFERRING Little White Parka Hood. The setting can be the Arctic tundra, and a polar
bear can confront Little White Parka Hood.
tip Reread the original story and invite students to discuss how they might
change it.
f students are
I struggling with
altering the story
MODEL: Tell students that when they write their stories, they should use dia-
logue, having characters talk to each other. Explain that authors use marks
features, help them called quotation marks to make dialogue clear to readers. To teach students
create a new character, about quotation marks, ask them to go on a hunt and locate some quotation
setting, and problem. marks in their reading books. Point out that these marks are put around the
They can then elaborate exact words that a character says:
and fill in the solution
“Let me go!” screamed Little Red Riding Hood.
and details.
Make it clear that “screamed Little Red Riding Hood” does not need to be
inside the quotation marks because she did not say those words.
Each time a new character speaks, remind students that it is a new
paragraph. Point out examples of this in books.
As students write their stories, encourage them to use a yellow marker to
highlight the words spoken by characters. They can then go back and put
quotation marks around these highlighted words.
PLANNING PAGE: Distribute the A New Take on an Old Story Planning Page,
which has the puzzle graphic organizer. Model completing it with alternate
characters, setting, problem, and solution from the read-aloud. Have students do
the same. Distribute the story template (Appendix B, page 155) and invite stu-
dents to draft a story with a beginning, middle, and end.
140
Planning Page
Creative Story
Name:
A New Take on an Old Stor y

classmates. They know the story that you are using for a model,
but they do not know your changes.
Characters Setting
_____________________________
__________________________
_____________________________
__________________________
_____________________________
_____________________________
_____________________________
Problem Solution
What happened? Tell three How was the
exciting events. problem solved?
_____________________________
_________________________
_____________________________
_________________________
_____________________________
_____________________________
_____________________________
3 Drafting: Use your story puzzle to draft your story on the story
template. Be sure your story has a beginning, middle, and end.
141
CHAPTER 12
June Writing Lessons

Describe your favorite thing to do over the summer.
My favorite thing to do over the summer is .
How would you describe your classroom to the students who will be in it
next year? What are some things that you think they’ll like about it?
Room # is .
You have been given 3 marbles: blue, orange, and red. Create a game for
yourself or for you and a friend to play.
My marble game is .

If you could paint your bedroom today, what color would you paint it and
why?
I would paint my bedroom .
142
Pretend that you are a squirrel. Describe your life.
My life as a squirrel is .
Pretend that you are a kite floating through the air. Where would you like
to fly and why?
If I were a kite, I would like to fly to .
Describe a fun day at the beach. Include your feelings.
My fun day at the beach would include .
Write a letter to next years’ teacher describing yourself and what you want
to learn.
Next year I want to learn .
Think about your favorite sport. Do you like to play it, or do you like to
watch it? What makes it your favorite?
My favorite sport is
because .
143
Describe a good teacher.
A good teacher .
Pretend that you are a frog catching dinner. Describe your hunt.
If I were a frog hunting for dinner, I would .
You have been chosen to plan the class field trip. Where are you going?
When are you going, and why did you choose this spot?
For the class field trip, we will .
Describe a toy or an action figure that you would like to make. What would
it look like? Would it do anything special?
A toy or action figure that I would like to make is .
If you had the chance to tell next year’s teacher something about yourself,
what would it be?
I would tell my future teacher .
144
week 35
Lesson
Acrostic Poem
GENRE: Poetry
STANDARD: Describe differences between prose and poetry.

ASSIGNMENT: Students will write an acrostic poem.
FOCUS: This month’s writing focus is on poetry. Students have heard and read
poetry throughout the year; now they can try their hand at writing it. The
poetic forms introduced this month are highly structured and do not all require
rhyme, which helps students feel successful at writing poetry and builds their
confidence in working with this genre.
Begin with the question, “What is a poem?” Most young students will tell
you that a poem is something that rhymes. Point out that not all poems
rhyme. Describe the differences between poetry and prose. Poetry expresses a
tip
strong feeling about one topic. It is usually much shorter than prose, often ead aloud lots of
only a few lines. Lines can contain anywhere from one word to a complete
sentence, and one sentence can be broken up over several lines. Discuss the
R poetry this month
so students can get a
idea that because poetry is short, it is crucial that the imagery be bold and feel for the genre. You
appeal to the senses. can share your own
When working on poetry now as well as during poetry month (April), favorites and those from
immerse your students in the genre. Share your own poems, choose from your textbook.
anthologies found in the library, or select from reading textbooks. Some
good resources include A Child’s Book of Poems (Backpack Books), Favorite
Poems, Old and New, selected by Helen Ferris (Bantam Doubleday Dell), and
A Child’s Garden of Verses, by Robert Louis Stevenson (Chronicle Books).
Reread poems at least twice when sharing them, and encourage students
to read their own poems aloud multiple times as they write.
Tell students that the first poem they’ll write is called an acrostic poem.
An acrostic poem is a poem in which the first letters of each line form a
word when read vertically.
145
MODEL: As a group, select a topic word, preferably an animal or season. Write
this word vertically on chart paper, the chalkboard, or the overhead. Brainstorm
words and phrases that begin with each letter and relate to the topic. Remind
students to think of the five senses and imagery as they choose words for the
poem. Assure them that the poem does not have to rhyme, but it should sound
pleasing and create pictures in the reader’s mind.
Here are two examples of acrostic poems.

FALL
Falling on the piles
Around the yard, they blow.
Lovely crimson colors
Leaves all aglow.
CONFERRING CAT
tip Climbed through the window

Another night of adventure
oetry is about Tree after tree, while my owner looks for me.
P strong emotion or
passion for something. If
PLANNING PAGE: Distribute the Acrostic Poem Planning Page, and walk the
students through writing the poem. Have students brainstorm words and phrases
some students are hav-
that begin with the letters in their word. Be sure to review the model poem the
ing trouble, encourage
next day as they begin to choose words and draft the poem.
them to choose another
topic—something for
which they have strong
feelings.
146
Planning Page
Poetry
Name:
Acrostic Poem
1 Choose an animal or season you really love and write the word
vertically on the lines below.
2 Brainstorm words and phrases that begin with each letter of

the word and relate to the topic. Write them on the lines beside
the letters. Use the back if you need more room.
3 Draft: To draft the poem, write your word vertically on another

sheet of paper. Choose words from your brainstorm above to
create descriptive phrases and sentences about your topic.
4 Revise: After you confer with your teacher, revise your poem and
illustrate it. Remember: if you have replacement or additional
words, it is okay to add them as you revise.
147
week 36
Lesson
Name Poem
GENRE: Poetry
SKILL: Rhyming words
STANDARD: Communicate ideas in writing to accomplish a variety of

purposes.
ASSIGNMENT: Students will write a name poem, using their name and
including two words that rhyme.
FOCUS: Tell the students that they have already written an acrostic poem, one
that did not have to rhyme. They will be excited to know that for the next
poem, they will again write an acrostic, but this time they will use their name
CONFERRING and a minimum of two words that rhyme.
tip MODEL: You can use your name to model. First, write your name vertically on
the overhead, chalkboard, or chart paper. Then brainstorm words that begin
ome students with each letter of your name and describe something about you and, when pos-
S may have trouble
brainstorming and using
sible, rhyme. Point out that many rhyming words come from the same word
families and have common spelling patterns.
rhyming words. Allow
Example:
them to brainstorm and
draft the poem without M mighty, merry, mother
rhyming words, and A art, articulate
make this the last focus;
R running, roaring,
once they have words to
work with, they can then Y yard, yo-yo
attempt to find rhyming
words. You can invite the
whole class to help find Using your brainstormed words, draft the rhyming poem.
rhyming words. Example:
Mighty merry mother of two
Always looking for something to do, from
Running, gardening, swimming, and skiing to
Yo-yoing and painting, always looking after the happiness of her crew.
148
Note how we added and deleted words through the drafting phase; allow
students to see you do this as a normal part of writing. Also, note that it does
not matter where the rhymes occur within the poem. Give students time to
illustrate and share their poetry with others. You may even wish to create a
class poetry book.
PLANNING PAGE: Distribute the Name Poem Planning Page and walk students
through the steps. Remind students that poetry is to be read aloud, so when
they are brainstorming and revising, you should hear them reading aloud. The
final draft should be done the following day.
149
Planning Page
Poetry
Name:
Name Poem
1 Write your name vertically on the lines below.
2 Brainstorm words and phrases that begin with each letter of your
name and that describe who you are. Write them on the lines
beside the letters.
3 Draft: Write your name vertically on another sheet of paper.

Choose words from your brainstorm above to create descriptive
phrases and sentences about yourself. Try to include one rhyming
word pair.
4 Revise: After you confer with your teacher, revise your poem and
illustrate it. Remember: if you have replacement or additional
words, it is okay to add them as you revise.
150
week 37
Lesson
CONFERRING
tip
Cinquain S ome students
have a very hard
time not writing in
GENRE: Poetry complete sentences. In
this case, have them
write one sentence per

STANDARD: Communicate ideas in writing to accomplish a variety line, and then help them
of purposes. to pull out the strongest
ASSIGNMENT: Students will write a cinquain. word/words for the
poem, eliminating the
FOCUS: Tell students that this week they’ll try out a new kind of poem called a
weak words, such as
cinquain. The verse in a cinquain does not rhyme; however, it does follow a
the helping verbs (is,
very specific set of rules.
are, was). Here’s an
Line 1 One word (title or subject) example:
Line 2 Two words (describes the title or subject) Riding a Scooter:

Riding a scooter is a
Line 3 Three words (describes an action related to the title or subject)
cross between a bicycle
Line 4 Four words (describes a feeling about the subject or title) and a skateboard.
Line 5 One word (refers back to the title—can be the same word as the It is swishing and kicking
title or another word that refers to it) across the ground.
MODEL: Model writing some cinquains with the class before you send them off The scooter is whipping
on their own. Be sure to let them illustrate and share their final products. around corners and
speeding across the
Baby Dog
floor.
Soft, gentle Loving pet I love the freedom of
Cries for mom Watches over us quickly racing around.
Loves to be fed A man’s best friend

Now here is the
Infant Wags
completed cinquain:
Scootering
PLANNING PAGE: Distribute the Cinquain Planning Page and the Cinquain Bicycling, skateboarding
template (on page 153) and walk the students through the steps, using the sam- Swishing, kicking, whip-
ple for further explanation. Be sure to build in another day for the final draft. ping freedom, roaming,
love, racing Motoring
151
Planning Page
Poetry
Name:
Cinquain
A cinquain is a five-line
poem. See the sample Sample Cinquain

cinquain on the right. Summer
Sun, fun
1 Choose a topic (which is Swimming, running, climbing,
Warmth, relaxation, happiness, healing
also your title) for your
Sensational
cinquain.
2 Draw a picture of your topic to help you describe it.
3 Fill in the cinquain template.
4 To Be Completed the Next Day: Write the poem on a new

sheet of paper. Remember that it is okay to change or add words.
Be sure to also illustrate your poem.
152
Name:
Cinquain Template
Line 1: the title
________________
(one word)
Line 2: describe the title

________________ ________________
(two words)
Line 3 : describe an action

________________ ________________ ________________
(three words)
Line 4: describe a feeling about the topic

________________ ________________
________________ ________________
(four words)
Line 5: refer back to the title

________________
(one word)
153
Student Page
Letter Template
____________________
(date)
Dear____________________________________,
(greeting)
(body)
Write your Setting the Purpose sentence from the planning page:
Use your planning page to write sentences with each of your three
brainstorming ideas, and conclude with your ending sentence:
Love,
__________________________
Your Name
(closing)
154 Appendix A
Student Page
Story Template
Name: Date:
The Beginning: In the beginning of the story, describe the setting

and introduce the characters and the problem. What happens in
the beginning of your story?
The Middle: In the middle of a story, the characters try to solve

the problem. Often their first try doesn't work, and they have to
try something else. What happens in the middle of your story?
The End: In the end of a story, the problem is solved. What happens
in the end of your story?
Appendix B 155
Student Page
Time-Order Transitions
after immediately
afterward in the meantime
again last
at last lastly
at the same time last of all
before later on
best of all meanwhile
during next
fifth second
finally soon
first then
first of all third
from then on when
fourth while
156 Appendix C
Student Page Student Page
: STOP:
tures, Spelling: Did I spell the
ls. START: S words as best as I can by
Show colors, textures, sounding them out and Spellin
people, S tastes, and smells. using word banks and word S words a
and walls? Did I use the soundin
dictionary? using w
Totally describe people,
T places, feelings, and walls?
emotions. Tells the purpose: Does my diction
ness:
e T first sentence communicate
eas? the purpose of my writing? Tells th
Audience awareness:
Appendix D
A Does my audience T first sen
understand my ideas? Organization and Out loud: the pur
re at least
“reasons” O How does my paragraph sound
rpose? sound when I read it aloud? Are Organiz
Reasons: Are there at least there any parts that do not make
R three “ideas” or “reasons” O How do
sense, do not flow, or just sound sound
ils, such as to explain my purpose?
funny? If so, could this be a there an
tes, ages,
grammar or punctuation error? sense, d
s. Tell specific details, such as
funny? I
T numbers (size, dates, ages,
time) and seasons. Punctuation and gramma
P capitalization: Did I use
proper punctuation and Punctu
capitalization? P capitali
157
proper
capitaliz
Student Page
Name: Date:
Writing Checklist: Sentences

Did I begin with my purpose statement?

yes no
Did I add detail by making sentences

yes no
Did I use proper punctuation and

capitalization in my sentences?
yes no
Does my writing make sense?

yes no
158 Appendix E
Student Page
Name: Date:
Writing Checklist: Paragraphs

Do I have 5 sentences?
yes no
Did I begin with my purpose statement?

yes no
Did I add detail by making sentences

yes no
Did I use proper punctuation and

capitalization in my sentences?
yes no
Appendix F 159
R ECOM M E N DE D R EADI NG
Anson, Charles M. Writing and Response. Urbana, IL: NCTE, 1989.
Calkins, Lucy McCormick. The Art of Teaching Writing. Portsmouth, NH:

Heinemann, 1994.
Cohen, Moshe, and Margaret Riel. “The Effects of Distant Audiences on

Students’ Writing.” American Educational Research Journal. 26.2 (Sum. 1989):
143-159.
Cooper, Charles R. and Lee Odell, eds. Evaluating Writing: Describing,

Measuring, Judging. Urbana, IL: NCTE, 1977
Elbow, Peter. Writing Without Teachers. New York: Oxford UP, 1973.
Elbow, Peter and Pat Belanoff. Sharing and Responding. New York: Random
House, 1989.
Graves, Donald. A Fresh Look At Writing. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann,

1994.
Hillocks, G., Jr. & Smith, M.W. “Grammars and literacy learning.” In J.
Flood, D. Lapp, J.R. Squire, & J.M. Jensen (Eds.), Handbook of Research on
Teaching the English Language Arts (2nd ed.). Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum, 2003.
Hillocks, G. Jr. “Research on written composition: New Directions for

teaching.” Urbana, IL: National Conference on Research in English/ERIC
Clearinghouse on Reading and Communication Skills, 1986.
Lees, Elaine O. “Evaluating Student Writing.” College Composition and

Communication. 30.4 (Dec. 1979): 370-74.
Odell, Lee. “The Process of Writing and the Process of Learning.” College
Composition and Communication. 31.1 (Feb. 1980): 42-50.
Tate, Gary and Edward P.J. Corbett, eds. The Writing Teacher’s Sourcebook.
New York: Oxford UP, 1981.
Weaver, Constance. Understanding Whole Language. Portsmouth, NH:

Heinemann, 1990.
160 Appendix F

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Grade 1

NEW YORK • TORONTO • LONDON • AUCKLAND • SYDNEY

Cover design by Maria Lilja

Copyright © 2005 by Kathleen A. Carden and Mary Godley-Sugrue

Chapter 2: First-Grade Writers: A Curriculum............................................ 13

Daily Journal Writing .................................................................................................. 16

Chapter 3: September Writing Lessons ............................................................ 37

Chapter 4: October Writing Lessons ................................................................. 52

Chapter 5: November Writing Lessons ............................................................. 64

Chapter 6: December Writing Lessons ............................................................. 76

Chapter 8: February Writing Lessons ............................................................... 96

Week 21 Lesson: My Invention.............................................................................102

Chapter 9: March Writing Lessons.................................................................. 108

Chapter 10: April Writing Lessons .................................................................. 120

Chapter 11: May Writing Lessons.................................................................... 129

Chapter 12: June Writing Lessons ................................................................... 142

Writing is about communicating. It is the art of expressing feelings,

S TAG E S OF S P E LLI NG D EVE LOP M E NT

for many reasons. It reinforces phonics skills by encouraging students to match

students begin to spell words as

Sample of student writing in the Sample of student writing in the

first-grade writers spelling at this stage.

Where Does My Spelling

Sample form for weekly spelling words. After a

“What should I write about?” or “What if my story doesn’t make sense?”

setting the purpose, brainstorming, drafting, conferring, editing, revising,

T o become competent writers, students must have ample time to

Something I Do Well Use correct grammar, spelling, punctuation, and capitalization.

In addition to daily journals, many teachers use math, science, and/or

E STAB LI S H I NG TH E R OUTI N E AN D S ET TI NG E XP EC TATION S

Pencils and erasers: All writing should be done in

What would you like to be when

When I grow up, I’d like to be a

_________________________. Sample journal entry written by a first grader

struggling or beginning writers, you may need to adjust your

positive during the free-writing journal activity.

Weekly Writing Instruction

Day 1: Teach Skill/Assign Topic/Prewriting

of capitalization as a signal to the audience or reader

steps to the writing process consist of the following:

Analyzing the Audience

teachers, classmates, the principal, another class, or family members. Before

Setting the Purpose

S Show colors, textures,

T Totally describe people,

R Reasons: Are there at least

won the championship and

Create a comfortable area to hold conferences. Some teachers like

Since the goal is to help students become confident, competent writers, we

samples—either originals or Da te:

curricular areas.) The portfolio is a great oper pu nc tua

or administrators, these samples can

difficulty. Many schools set up assessment 158

portfolios that begin in first grade and

Meeting the Needs of

How to Help Students Struggling With Word Formation

How to Help Students Struggling

How to Help the Struggling Writer Draft a Paragraph

teacher conferencing, dictation, and laptop usage.

How to Help Early Finishers

How to Help Late Finishers

W e wish you luck as you embark on your journey of teaching

September Writing Lessons

How do you get ready for the school year?