teach writing essay

Teaching the Literacy Narrative

Guides & tips.

There’s a lot going on at the beginning of the term, and we appreciate WR instructors carving out a little time to assign the Writing Program’s common literacy narrative assignment, which is a key part of all students’ cumulative portfolios . One goal of the assignment is to get students thinking flexibly about literacy and language from Day 1 of their WR experience. Another is to help instructors get to know students–in general and as language users. You can use the assignment to introduce your course to your students as well. “At its simplest, literacy is the way that we interact with the world around us, how we shape it and are shaped by it. It is how we communicate with others via reading and writing, but also by speaking, listening, and creating.” 

—Amber Peterson, “Literacy Is More Than Just Reading and Writing,” NCTE

For example, as you assign the literacy narrative in the first week of the semester, consider taking a few minutes in class to connect the broad definition of literacy it offers to your own course:

• How might students draw on the kinds of literacy they already have–such as a tradition of family storytelling or the phenomenon of inventing new slang within a close-knit friend group–in the assignments and activities you have planned for the semester?
• What kinds of course topic-related literacy might they have, and what kinds will the course help them develop?
• Consider tapping into the questions the assignment poses about literacy and community to frame a discussion about class participation expectations or classroom community agreements.

Following up later in the term with one of the quick in-class or homework reflections below will reinforce the themes of the literacy narrative and encourage transfer of learning.

Remind students who have written the literacy narrative in a previous WR course that they do not need to re-do the assignment; however, they should ensure that the literacy narrative and their entire portfolio are shared with you, and they should probably revisit their assignment in order to refresh their memory and participate in shared conversations.

Suggested Midterm Reflections: Considering Language and Community

Reflect on how the drafting and peer reviewing we have done so far have affected your sense of yourself as a writer and as part of a community of writers. How has reading your peers’ work in our review sessions affected your knowledge of the way other writers use language? How has reading other writers’ work–and their feedback on your drafts–led you to reflect on your own linguistic choices?  What kinds of feedback makes you feel empowered as a writer? 

What experiences around language or literacy outside of the class this semester have informed your thinking about your language (e.g. visiting a writing consultant; talking with a professor; meeting peers who come from different places than you; volunteering or club activities)? Do you see your own language changing because of interactions through reading, listening, speaking, and/or writing?

Suggested End-of-Term Reflections: Looking Back on the Literacy Narrative

Consider the literacy narrative that you wrote at the beginning of the term in which you reflected on your experiences of speaking, listening, reading, and writing in the communities of which you are a part. What key experiences might you add to your narrative now considering the work you have done this term and your interactions with fellow writers in our class? What have you learned about your identity as a writer and member of the BU community? What new knowledge about your identity as a writer might you carry forward into your work in your major or beyond the classroom into other communities of which you are a member? 

These reflections should complement the broad array of reflective writing you are already assigning. If you choose to have students submit these midterm/end-of-term reflections in writing, remember not to require students to upload them to their portfolios and not to confuse any end-of-term reflections with the final reflective essay that students complete (and do post to their portfolios) in WR 15x classes.

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How To Use the RACE Writing Strategy (Plus Free Printables)

Plus, how is the RACES writing strategy different?

In today’s world, it’s more important than ever for students to be able to articulate their thoughts clearly and concisely through the written word. One easy way to help them strengthen their skills is by using the RACE writing strategy. This structured method guides writers through creating a strong response to reading comprehension and other short-answer questions, including those found on standardized tests. Here’s how it works and how to teach it.

Don’t forget to grab our free printable set of graphic organizers. We’ve included options for both RACE and RACES, in color and black-and-white. Plus, get printable images for an easy RACE/RACES anchor chart!

What is the RACE writing strategy?

How is the races writing strategy different, how to teach the race/races writing strategy.

• What’s included in the RACES Printable Bundle?

This simple method is one of many writing strategies educators use to help students ensure they’re answering questions and writing prompts clearly, concisely, and thoroughly. It’s most commonly used with reading comprehension short-answer essay questions, but it works for any situation where students need to provide a written response in paragraph form.

The easy-to-remember acronym breaks the process into four parts, and the best way to explain it is to see it in action. To explore how the strategy works, we’ll use this passage about penguins:

“Penguins have special ways to live in their cold environments. Their smooth bodies and flippers help them swim fast to catch fish, squid, and krill. Their thick, waterproof feathers keep them warm and dry, and a layer of fat, called blubber, gives them extra warmth and helps them float. Penguins have special behaviors too, like huddling together to stay warm and protect their eggs and babies from the cold. Their black-and-white feathers help them hide from predators by blending in with the ocean. All these things help penguins survive and do well in very cold places.”

Question: How do penguins’ bodies help them survive their environment?

First, students turn the question into a statement, to ensure they fully understand what’s being asked. The statement is usually open-ended, because they’ll complete the sentence in the second step.

RACE Writing Strategy Example: “Penguins’ bodies help them survive their environment because they …”

Then, students answer the question with a clear, succinct response. Essentially, they complete the sentence they began in the “Restate” step with a direct answer. ADVERTISEMENT

RACE Writing Strategy Example: ” … help them swim fast, protect them against the cold, and hide them from predators.”

In this key step, students back up their answers by pointing to evidence from the text itself. They may quote or paraphrase what’s written to prove their point.

RACE Writing Strategy Example: “For instance, penguins have smooth bodies and flippers, along with thick black-and-white feathers and blubber.”

Now, students expand on their citation in their own words, so they’re not just parroting back what they’ve read. They explain how the facts they’ve cited help to answer the question.

RACE Writing Strategy Example: “Their bodies and flippers help them swim fast to catch their favorite foods, and their waterproof feathers and blubber keep them warm in the cold weather. Predators have a hard time seeing them because their black-and-white feathers blend into the landscape.”

Some teachers add an S to the RACE strategy, which stands for “Summarize.” This is the conclusion sentence at the end of the response that reinforces the main points in the answer. A complete answer using the RACES strategy might look like this:

“Penguin bodies help them survive their environment because they help them swim fast, protect them against the cold, and hide them from predators. For instance, penguins have smooth bodies and flippers, along with thick black-and-white feathers and blubber. Their bodies and flippers help them swim fast to catch their favorite foods, and their waterproof feathers and blubber keep them warm in the cold weather. Predators have a hard time seeing them because their black-and-white feathers blend into the landscape. All of these body parts help penguins survive in cold and dangerous environments.”

Most teachers begin introducing this method in the mid-elementary years, often around third grade. Continue to use and reinforce it throughout the rest of the elementary years and into the middle grades. By high school, students should be very comfortable with RACE/RACES and consider it an important part of their writing strategies toolbox .

Try these activities and teaching methods to introduce and use this valuable strategy with your students.

Anchor Chart

Create and hang an anchor chart students can refer back to throughout the school year. Make things even easier on yourself by using our free printables to create your chart in no time flat!

Modeling and Guided Practice

As with nearly any strategy, it helps to model the correct behavior for your students first. Use the paragraph above about penguins, or choose any other reading passage you like. Then, walk through the steps together, demonstrating the thinking process and writing out the responses.

Next, provide students with another reading passage ( AI can be a real help here , and short stories work too ) and a comprehension question. Ask them to work in groups to try out the RACE/RACES model. Share each group’s response with the class, then work together to evaluate, correct, and strengthen them as needed.

Graphic Organizers

This organizational tool is ideal for RACE/RACES. Use our free printables (see below), or encourage kids to draw their own simple chart. They can use these organizers to make notes and sketch out their responses before finalizing their answer in paragraph form.

Color Coding

Pull out your highlighters! After students write their responses using the RACE/RACES method, ask them to highlight the various sections that match each letter of the model (e.g., orange for Restate, yellow for Answer, etc.). This ensures they don’t miss any of the steps in writing a complete response. We’ve included color-coded versions in our graphic organizer set to make the process even easier.

Sentence Starters

Jump-start the process by providing a list of sentence stems and starters . These are especially helpful for the Cite, Explain, and Summarize sections. Try these examples:

• The passage says …
• As noted in the text …
• The writer tells us that …
• According to the author …
• As mentioned in the article …
• This shows that …
• The author means …
• This example demonstrates …
• This is how we know that …
• The evidence supports the idea because …
• In summary …
• In conclusion …
• Based on these facts …
• For these reasons …

Find more conclusion sentence starters here.

RACE Writing Strategy Free Printables Bundle

RACE Graphic Organizer

Use the color-coded version of this organizer along with highlighters to help kids create strong short answers. There’s a black-and-white version too.

RACES Graphic Organizer

These organizers include a Summarize section to help students wrap up their answers neatly. Get a color-coded or black-and-white version.

RACE or RACES Anchor Chart

Use these free printables to create an easy anchor chart. You can use all the pages for a RACES chart, or leave off the Summarize pages for the traditional RACE writing strategy chart. We’ve even included some fun race-car-themed graphics to jazz things up!

Get your free printable RACE writing strategy set instantly by filling out the form on this page.

How do you use the race writing strategy with your students come share your thoughts and ask for advice in the we are teachers helpline facebook group ., you might also like.

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Writing a Personal Statement

Preparing to Write

Brainstorming, don't forget, sample prompts.

A personal statement is a narrative essay that connects your background, experiences, and goals to the mission, requirements, and desired outcomes of the specific opportunity you are seeking. It is a critical component in the selection process, whether the essay is for a competitive internship, a graduate fellowship, or admittance to a graduate school program. It gives the selection committee the best opportunity to get to know you, how you think and make decisions, ways in which past experiences have been significant or formative, and how you envision your future. Personal statements can be varied in form; some are given a specific prompt, while others are less structured. However, in general a personal statement should answer the following questions:

• Who are you?
• What are your goals?
• How does this specific program/opportunity help you achieve your goals?
• What is in the future?

A personal statement is not:

• A variation of your college admissions essay
• An academic/research paper
• A narrative version of your resume
• A creative writing piece (it can be creative, though)
• An essay about somebody else

Keep in mind that your statement is only a portion of the application and should be written with this in mind. Your entire application package will include some, possibly all, of the materials listed below. You will want to consider what these pieces of the application communicate about you. Your personal statement should aim to tie everything together and fill in or address any gaps. There will likely be some overlap but be sure not to be too repetitive.

• Personal Statement(s)
• Transcripts
• Letters of recommendations
• Sample of written work
• Research proposal

For a quick overview of personal statements, you might begin by watching this "5 Minute Fellowships" video!

If you are writing your first personal statement or working to improve upon an existing personal statement, the video below is a helpful, in-depth resource.

A large portion of your work towards completing a personal statement begins well before your first draft or even an outline. It is incredibly important to be sure you understand all of the rules and regulations around the statement. Things to consider before you begin writing:

• How many prompts? And what are they? It is important to know the basics so you can get your ideas in order. Some programs will require a general statement of interest and a focused supplementary or secondary statement closely aligned with the institution's goals.
• Are there formatting guidelines? Single or double spaced, margins, fonts, text sizes, etc. Our general guideline is to keep it simple.
• How do I submit my statement(s)? If uploading a document we highly suggest using a PDF as it will minimize the chances of accidental changes to formatting. Some programs may event ask you to copy and paste into a text box.
• When do I have to submit my statement(s)? Most are due at the time of application but some programs, especially medical schools, will ask for secondary statements a few months after you apply. In these instances be sure to complete them within two weeks, any longer is an indication that you aren't that interested in the institution.

Below is a second 5 Minute Fellowships video that can help you get started!

Before you start writing, take some time to reflect on your experiences and motivations as they relate to the programs to which you are applying. This will offer you a chance to organize your thoughts which will make the writing process much easier. Below are a list of questions to help you get started:

• What individuals, experiences or events have shaped your interest in this particular field?
• What has influenced your decision to apply to graduate school?
• How does this field align with your interests, strengths, and values?
• What distinguishes you from other applicants?
• What would you bring to this program/profession?
• What has prepared you for graduate study in this field? Consider your classes at Wellesley, research and work experience, including internships, summer jobs and volunteer work.
• Why are you interested in this particular institution or degree program?
• How is this program distinct from others?
• What do you hope to gain?
• What is motivating you to seek an advanced degree now?
• Where do you see yourself headed and how will this degree program help you get there?

For those applying to Medical School, if you need a committee letter for your application and are using the Medical Professions Advisory Committee you have already done a lot of heavy lifting through the 2017-2018 Applicant Information Form . Even if you aren't using MPAC the applicant information form is a great place to start.

Another great place to start is through talking out your ideas. You have a number of options both on and off campus, such as: Career Education advisors and mentors ( you can set up an appointment here ), major advisor, family, friends. If you are applying to a graduate program it is especially important to talk with a faculty member in the field. Remember to take good notes so you can refer to them later.

When you begin writing keep in mind that your essay is one of many in the application pool. This is not to say you should exaggerate your experiences to “stand out” but that you should focus on clear, concise writing. Also keep in mind that the readers are considering you not just as a potential student but a future colleague. Be sure to show them examples and experiences which demonstrate you are ready to begin their program.

It is important to remember that your personal statement will take time and energy to complete, so plan accordingly. Every application and statement should be seen as different from one another, even if they are all the same type of program. Each institution may teach you the same material but their delivery or focus will be slightly different.

In addition, remember:

• Be yourself: You aren’t good at being someone else
• Tragedy is not a requirement, reflection and depth are
• Research the institution or organization
• Proofread, proofread, proofread
• How to have your personal statement reviewed

The prompts below are from actual applications to a several types of programs. As you will notice many of them are VERY general in nature. This is why it is so important to do your research and reflect on your motivations. Although the prompts are similar in nature the resulting statements would be very different depending on the discipline and type of program, as well as your particular background and reasons for wanting to pursue this graduate degree.

• This statement should illustrate your academic background and experiences and explain why you would excel in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering (UMass Amherst - M.S. in Civil Engineering).
• Describe your academic and career objectives and how the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies can help you achieve them. Include other considerations that explain why you seek admissions to the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies and your interests in the environmental field (Yale - Master of Environmental Management).  
• Please discuss your academic interests and goals. Include your current professional and research interests, as well as your long-range professional objectives. Please be as specific as possible about how your objectives can be met at Clark and do not exceed 800 words (Clark University - M.A. in International Development and Social Change).
• Write a 500- to 700-word statement that describes your work or research. Discuss how you came to focus on the medium, body of work, or academic area you wish to pursue at the graduate level. Also discuss future directions or goals for your work, and describe how the Master of Fine Arts in Studio (Printmedia) is particularly suited to your professional goals (School of the Art Institute of Chicago - MFA in Studio, Printmaking).
• Your statement should explain why you want to study economics at the graduate level. The statement is particularly important if there is something unusual about your background and preparation that you would like us to know about you (University of Texas at Austin - Ph.D in Economics).
• Your personal goal statement is an important part of the review process for our faculty members as they consider your application. They want to know about your background, work experience, plans for graduate study and professional career, qualifications that make you a strong candidate for the program, and any other relevant information (Indiana University Bloomington - M.S.Ed. in Secondary Education).
• Your autobiographical essay/personal statement is a narrative that outlines significant experiences in your life, including childhood experiences, study and work, your strengths and aspirations in the field of architecture, and why you want to come to the University of Oregon (University of Oregon - Master of Architecture).
• Personal history and diversity statement, in which you describe how your personal background informs your decision to pursue a graduate degree. You may refer to any educational, familial, cultural, economic or social experiences, challenges, community service, outreach activities, residency and citizenship, first-generation college status, or opportunities relevant to your academic journey; how your life experiences contribute to the social, intellectual or cultural diversity within a campus community and your chosen field; or how you might serve educationally underrepresented and underserved segments of society with your graduate education (U.C. Davis - M.A. in Linguistics).
• A Personal Statement specifying your past experiences, reasons for applying, and your areas of interest. It should explain your intellectual and personal goals, why you are interested in pursuing an interdisciplinary degree rather than a more traditional disciplinary one, and how this degree fits into your intellectual and personal future (Rutgers University - Ph.D in Women’s and Gender Studies).
• Your application requires a written statement to uploaded into your application and is a critical component of your application for admission. This is your opportunity to tell us what excites you about the field of library and information science, and what problems you want to help solve in this field. Please also tell us how your prior experiences have prepared you for this next step toward your career goals and how this program will help you achieve them (University of North Carolina Chapel Hill - Master of Science in Library Science).
• After watching the video, please describe what strengths and preferences as a learner you have that will facilitate your success in this innovative curriculum. What challenges in our curriculum do you anticipate and what strategies might you use to address these challenges? (MGH Institute of Health Professions PT - They recently redesigned their curriculum)
• Your personal goal statement should briefly describe how you view the future of the field, what your goals are to be part of that future, and what brought you to pursue an advanced education degree in your chosen field. You may include any other information that you feel might be useful. (Northeastern PT)
• Personal Statement: In 500 words or less, describe a meaningful educational experience that affected your professional goals and growth and explain how it impacted you. The educational experience does not need to be related to this degree. Focus on the educational experience and not why you think you would be a good professional in this field. (Simmons PT)
• Personal Statement (500 word minimum): State your reasons for seeking admission to this program at this institution. Include your professional goals, why you want to pursue a career in this field and how admission to this program will assist you in accomplishing those goals. (Regis College Nursing)
• “Use the space provided to explain why you want to go to this type of program.” (AMCAS)
• Address the following three questions(Though there is no set limit, most statements are 1–2 pages, single-spaced.): What are your reasons for pursuing this degree? Why do you wish to pursue your degree at this institution? How do you intend to leverage your degree in a career of this field? (Boston University MPH)
• Please submit a personal statement/statement of purpose of no more than 500 words for the department/degree of choice. Professional degree essays require a clear understanding of the _______ field and how you hope to work within the field. Be sure to proofread your personal statement carefully for spelling and grammar. In your statement, be sure to address the following: what interests you in the field of _____ what interests you in a specific degree program and department at this institution and what interests you in a particular certificate (if applicable). Please also describe how you hope to use your ________ training to help you achieve your career goals. (Columbia PhD in Public Health - Epidemiology)
• Because each Home Program requires significant original research activities in fulfillment of the requirements for the degree, we are interested in obtaining as much information as possible about your previous research experiences. Those who already have such experience are in a better position to know whether they are truly interested in performing ______ research as part of a graduate program. Please include specific information about your research experience in your Statement of Purpose. You may also use the Statement to amplify your comments about your choice of Home Program(s), and how your past experiences and current interests are related to your choice. Personal Statements should not exceed two pages in length (single spaced). Make sure to set your computer to Western European or other English-language setting. We cannot guarantee the ability to access your statement if it is submitted in other fonts. (Stanford Biosciences PhD)
• Your statement of purpose should describe succinctly your reasons for applying to the Department of ____ at ___ University. It would be helpful to include what you have done to prepare for this degree program. Please describe your research interests, past research experience, future career plans and other details of your background and interests that will allow us to evaluate your ability to thrive in our program. If you have interests that align with a specific faculty member, you may state this in your application. Your statement of purpose should not exceed two pages in length (single spaced). (Stanford Bioengineering PhD)
• Statement of purpose (Up to one page or 1,000 words): Rather than a research proposal, you should provide a statement of purpose. Your statement should be written in English and explain your motivation for applying for the course at this institution and your relevant experience and education. Please provide an indication of the area of your proposed research and supervisor(s) in your statement. This will be assessed for the coherence of the statement; evidence of motivation for and understanding of the proposed area of study; the ability to present a reasoned case in English; and commitment to the subject. (Oxford Inorganic Chemistry - DPhil)

Related resources

APA Style for beginners

Then check out some frequently asked questions:

What is APA Style?

Why use apa style in high school, how do i get started with apa style, what apa style products are available, your help wanted.

APA Style is the most common writing style used in college and career. Its purpose is to promote excellence in communication by helping writers create clear, precise, and inclusive sentences with a straightforward scholarly tone. It addresses areas of writing such as how to

• format a paper so it looks professional;
• credit other people’s words and ideas via citations and references to avoid plagiarism; and
• describe other people with dignity and respect using inclusive, bias-free language.

APA Style is primarily used in the behavioral sciences, which are subjects related to people, such as psychology, education, and nursing. It is also used by students in business, engineering, communications, and other classes. Students use it to write academic essays and research papers in high school and college, and professionals use it to conduct, report, and publish scientific research .

High school students need to learn how to write concisely, precisely, and inclusively so that they are best prepared for college and career. Here are some of the reasons educators have chosen APA Style:

• APA Style is the style of choice for the AP Capstone program, the fastest growing AP course, which requires students to conduct and report independent research.
• APA Style helps students craft written responses on standardized tests such as the SAT and ACT because it teaches students to use a direct and professional tone while avoiding redundancy and flowery language.
• Most college students choose majors that require APA Style or allow APA Style as an option. It can be overwhelming to learn APA Style all at once during the first years of college; starting APA Style instruction in high school sets students up for success.

High school students may also be interested in the TOPSS Competition for High School Psychology Students , an annual competition from the APA Teachers of Psychology in Secondary Schools for high school students to create a short video demonstrating how a psychological topic has the potential to benefit their school and/or local community and improve people’s lives.

Most people are first introduced to APA Style by reading works written in APA Style. The following guides will help with that:

Many people also write research papers or academic essays in APA Style. The following resources will help with that:

Instructors will also benefit from using the following APA Style resources:

In addition to all the free resources on this website, APA publishes several products that provide comprehensive information about APA Style:

The APA Style team is interested in developing additional resources appropriate for a beginner audience. If you have resources you would like to share, or feedback on this topic, please contact the APA Style team . 

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AZ529 2024 Essay Writing Contest

Dream. Write. Win.

Your 5th or 6th grader could win $529 towards an AZ529 Education Savings Plan.

CONTEST RULES

CONTEST IS OPEN AUGUST 26 THROUGH OCTOBER 6, 2024.

Tell us how you’d make the world a better place.

For the fifth year, Arizona State Treasurer Kimberly Yee and the AZ529 Education Savings Plan are hosting an essay contest for kids. The 2024 Essay Writing Contest invites Arizona 5th and 6th graders to submit essays explaining their dream job and the steps they’ll take to reach it. Winners will receive $529 toward an AZ529 Education Savings Plan to fund their future educational aspirations!

Contest Details

All current 5th and 6th grade students in Arizona, including students from district, charter, private schools, tribal schools, and homeschools.

Answer the question, “What is your dream job and how do you plan on achieving it in the future?” Responses should be a minimum of three (3) paragraphs with a maximum of 350 words. The more creative, unique, and thought-provoking the better!

Entries will be accepted through October 6, 2024 at 11:59 PM (MST).

Online: Essays can be submitted online at AZ529.gov/EssayContest using the upload button on this page. (Accepted file types: Microsoft Word, PDF, JPG and JPEG. Max. file size: 256 MB).

Or you can mail entries to: 5th and 6th Grade Essay Writing Contest Attention: Jeffrey O. Office of the State Treasurer 1700 West Washington Street, #102 Phoenix, AZ 85007

Because winning $529 towards a new or existing AZ529 Education Savings Plan is an incredible way to launch your 5th or 6th grader’s future!

Twenty (20) prizes, each in the amount of $529, will be awarded towards a new or existing AZ529 Education Savings Plan. Winners will be selected from each of Arizona’s 15 counties and there will also be winners representing all types of schools, including students from district, charter, private schools, tribal schools, and homeschools. We’re excited to help 20 young writers start saving for their educational plans beyond high school!

Official Contest Rules

One (1) original entry per person.

HOW TO ENTER:

Online: Upload entries using the “Upload Here” button on this page. (Accepted file types: Microsoft Word, PDF, JPG and JPEG. Max. file size: 256 MB).

All entries must be received by October 6, 2024 at 11:59 PM (MST).

JUDGING CRITERIA:

• Entries will be judged and scored by a panel of judges, including representatives of the AZ529 Plan Advisory Committee.
• Entries will be anonymously judged based on a scoring rubric of: 40 percent for overall content, 30 percent for originality, and 30 percent for organization. Any ties will be broken based on an additional score for overall readability and grammar.
• Judges will also ensure that a student is selected from each of the five (5) main types of schools in Arizona: district, charter, private schools, tribal schools, or homeschools.

ELIGIBILITY: All participants must be Arizona residents, currently enrolled in 5th or 6th grade as of August 2024 in an Arizona school. The parent or legal guardian submitting an entry on behalf of the minor must also be an Arizona resident. Employees and families of the Arizona State Treasurer’s Office and Davidson Belluso are not eligible to win.

PRIZES: Twenty (20) awards, each in the amount of $529, will be awarded toward an AZ529 Education Savings Plan, across Arizona. All prizes will be conveyed through a direct contribution to a new or existing AZ529 account in the name of the winner or their parent/guardian. No cash prizes will be awarded.

WINNER SELECTION/VERIFICATION: Winners and their parents/guardians will be notified by phone and/or email after the close of the contest and completion of judging. To receive AZ529 funds, parents/guardians must submit verification of an open AZ529 account within 90 days after the award notification. If verification is not completed within 90 days of the notification, the prize will be forfeited.

AGREEMENT TO THE OFFICIAL RULES: By participating in the Contest, each Entrant fully and unconditionally agrees to accept these Official Rules and the decision of the sponsor and judges which are final and binding in all matters related to the Contest. No purchase necessary to enter or win.

AGREEMENT TO USE OF CONTENT: By submitting an entry, each participant (and their parent or legal guardian) agrees to allow The Office of the Arizona State Treasurer , AZ529, Arizona’s Education Savings Plan and its agents to use the content of each essay. Verbiage from selected essays may be shared online or in print for marketing purposes, either in full or in excerpts. The child’s last name will not be shared or posted online or in a social message but may be used in news releases or media coverage. Further, by submitting an entry, a parent or legal guardian agrees to allow AZ529 to use their own or their child’s likeness, photograph(s), video, voice, or name without costs of advertising, publicity, social media, or any other lawful purpose in any medium now known or hereafter, without any review or approval.

DISCLOSURE OF SPONSORS: The AZ529 Education Savings Plan is managed by The Office of the Arizona State Treasurer . Approved AZ529 Plan providers include Fidelity and Goldman Sachs Asset Management. This contest is being managed by Davidson Belluso, marketing partner of the Arizona Education Savings Plan.

TAX LIABILITY: The Sponsors and their agents make no representations as to the tax liability or deductibility of a prize. Each participant (and their parent or legal guardian) shall be solely responsible for filing and paying any taxes arising from the receipt of a prize.

Who will judge?

The 20 winners will be declared by a panel of judges from the AZ529 Advisory Committee. The panel will read and judge each essay based on content, originality, and organization.

What is an AZ529 account?

The AZ529 Education Savings Plan is a designated account to save for qualified higher education expenses at universities, colleges, vocational, and technical schools. Contributions to this account grow on a tax-deferred basis. Funds in an AZ529 account can be used for tuition and fees, room and board, books and supplies, a computer, internet services and other related educational expenses.

Does my child have to attend an Arizona university to use the AZ529 funds?

If your child wins, you will receive a $529 deposit into an AZ529 Education Savings Plan. AZ529 funds can be used to pay for higher education institutions across the country and some schools abroad. There is no obligation to use the winning funds at a specific vocational school, college, or university.

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How to Write a Hook PowerPoint Lesson

Subject: English

Age range: 11-14

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30 August 2024

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Are your students struggling to grab their readers’ attention? Do their essays lack that spark that keeps readers hooked from the very first sentence? Elevate your students’ writing with the How to Hook Your Reader PowerPoint Lesson.

This 32-slide product provides a step-by-step guide to writing a variety of hooks (including anecdotes, quotations, statistics, etc.), Do’s and Don’ts, Check for Understanding Quiz, and Your Turn Writing Practice. You and your students will love this!

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AI pioneers want bots to replace human teachers – here’s why that’s unlikely

Associate Professor of English, University of Pittsburgh

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Annette Vee received a NEH Summer Stipend to support the writing and research of this article.

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OpenAI co-founder Andrej Karpathy envisions a world in which artificial intelligence bots can be made into subject matter experts that are “deeply passionate, great at teaching, infinitely patient and fluent in all of the world’s languages.” Through this vision, the bots would be available to “personally tutor all 8 billion of us on demand.”

The embodiment of that idea is his latest venture, Eureka Labs , which is merely the newest prominent example of how tech entrepreneurs are seeking to use AI to revolutionize education.

Karpathy believes AI can solve a long-standing challenge: the scarcity of good teachers who are also subject experts.

And he’s not alone. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman , Khan Academy CEO Sal Khan , venture capitalist Marc Andreessen and University of California, Berkeley computer scientist Stuart Russell also dream of bots becoming on-demand tutors , guidance counselors and perhaps even replacements for human teachers.

As a researcher focused on AI and other new writing technologies , I’ve seen many cases of high-tech “solutions” for teaching problems that fizzled. AI certainly may enhance aspects of education, but history shows that bots probably won’t be an effective substitute for humans. That’s because students have long shown resistance to machines, however sophisticated, and a natural preference to connect with and be inspired by fellow humans.

The costly challenge of teaching writing to the masses

As the director of the English Composition program at the University of Pittsburgh, I oversee instruction for some 7,000 students a year. Programs like mine have long wrestled with how to teach writing efficiently and effectively to so many people at once.

The best answer so far is to keep class sizes to no more than 15 students . Research shows that students learn writing better in smaller classes because they are more engaged.

Yet small classes require more instructors, and that can get expensive for school districts and colleges .

Resuscitating dead scholars

Enter AI. Imagine, Karpathy posits , that the great theoretical physicist Richard Feynman , who has been dead for over 35 years, could be brought back to life as a bot to tutor students.

For Karpathy, an ideal learning experience would be working through physics material “together with Feynman, who is there to guide you every step of the way.” Feynman, renowned for his accessible way of presenting theoretical physics, could work with an unlimited number of students at the same time.

In this vision, human teachers still design course materials, but they are supported by an AI teaching assistant. This teacher-AI team “could run an entire curriculum of courses on a common platform,” Karpathy wrote. “If we are successful, it will be easy for anyone to learn anything,” whether it be a lot of people learning about one subject, or one person learning about many subjects.

Other efforts to personalize learning fall short

Yet technologies for personal learning aren’t new. Exactly 100 years ago, at the 1924 meeting of the American Psychological Association, inventor Sidney Pressey unveiled an “automatic teacher” made out of typewriter parts that asked multiple-choice questions.

In the 1950s, the psychologist B. F. Skinner designed “teaching machines.” If a student answered a question correctly, the machine advanced to ask about the problem’s next step. If not, the student stayed on that step of the problem until they solved it.

In both cases, students received positive feedback for correct answers. This gave them confidence as well as skills in the subject. The problem was that students didn’t learn much – they also found these nonhuman approaches boring, education writer Audrey Watters documents in “ Teaching Machines .”

More recently, the world of education saw the rise and fall of “massive open online courses,” or MOOCs. These classes, which delivered video and quizzes, were heralded by The New York Times and others for their promise of democratizing education . Again, students lost interest and logged off.

Other web-based efforts have popped up, including course platforms like Coursera and Outlier. But the same problem persists: There’s no genuine interactivity to keep students engaged. One of the latest casualties in online learning was 2U, which acquired leading MOOC company edX in 2021 and in July 2024 filed for bankruptcy restructuring to reduce its US$945 million debt load . The culprit: falling demand for services.

Now comes the proliferation of AI-fueled platforms. Khanmigo deploys AI tutors to, as Sal Khan writes in his latest book , “personalize and customize coaching, as well as adapt to an individual’s needs while hovering beside our learners as they work.”

The educational publisher Pearson, too, is integrating AI into its educational materials . More than 1,000 universities are adopting these materials for fall 2024 .

AI in education isn’t just coming; it’s here. The question is how effective it will be.

Drawbacks in AI learning

Some tech leaders believe bots can customize teaching and replace human teachers and tutors, but they’re likely to face the same problem as these earlier attempts: Students may not like it.

There are important reasons why, too. Students are unlikely to be inspired and excited the way they can be by a live instructor. Students in crisis often turn to trusted adults like teachers and coaches for help. Would they do the same with a bot? And what would the bot do if they did? We don’t know yet.

A lack of data privacy and security can also be a deterrent. These platforms collect volumes of information on students and their academic performance that can be misused or sold. Legislation may try to prevent this, but some popular platforms are based in China , out of reach of U.S. law.

Finally, there are concerns even if AI tutors and teachers become popular. If a bot teaches millions of students at once, we may lose diversity of thought. Where does originality come from when everyone receives the same teachings, especially if “academic success” relies on regurgitating what the AI instructor says?

The idea of an AI tutor in every pocket sounds exciting. I would love to learn physics from Richard Feynman or writing from Maya Angelou or astronomy from Carl Sagan. But history reminds us to be cautious and keep a close eye on whether students are actually learning. The promises of personalized learning are no guarantee for positive results.

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Jump-Start to Writing a Teaching Philosophy Statement Peer Writing Program Fall 2024

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If you are applying for an academic position, it is increasingly likely that you will be asked to submit a teaching philosophy statement during the application process. Yet, setting aside the time to write your statement and obtaining feedback from colleagues can be challenging with a busy schedule. The Jump-Start to Writing a Teaching Philosophy Statement Peer Writing Program offers the opportunity for advanced graduate students and postdocs to navigate the initial stages of drafting and revising their statements within a structured format and in a supportive environment.

During the program, participants will examine sample statements, reflect on their teaching, and write and revise three drafts of their teaching philosophy statements. Peer writing groups will offer feedback at each stage of the drafting process, and Center for Teaching and Learning staff will be on hand to answer questions as well. Note that participants need not have a draft of their statement going into the program.

Participants must plan to attend all four virtual meetings on Wednesday afternoons Sept 25th – Oct 16th and must also have previously attended the Center for Teaching and Learning’s Writing a Teaching Philosophy Statement workshop. Those who have not taken the workshop previously, but who wish to participate in Jump-Start should plan to register for and attend the workshop prior to the beginning of the program.

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'She wanted to live a good life': Parents of Indian doctor raped and murdered on night shift

The rape and murder of a trainee doctor in India’s Kolkata city earlier this month has sparked massive outrage in the country, with tens of thousands of people protesting on the streets, demanding justice. BBC Hindi spoke to the doctor’s parents who remember their daughter as a clever, young woman who wanted to lead a good life and take care of her family.

All names and details of the family have been removed as Indian laws prohibit identifying a rape victim or her family.

"Please make sure dad takes his medicines on time. Don't worry about me."

This was the last thing the 31-year-old doctor said to her mother, hours before she was brutally assaulted in a hospital where she worked.

“The next day, we tried reaching her but the phone kept ringing," the mother told the BBC at their family home in a narrow alley, a few kilometres from Kolkata.

The same morning, the doctor’s partially-clothed body was discovered in the seminar hall, bearing extensive injuries. A hospital volunteer worker has been arrested in connection with the crime.

The incident has sparked massive outrage across the country, with protests in several major cities. At the weekend, doctors across hospitals in India observed a nation-wide strike called by the Indian Medical Association (IMA), with only emergency services available at major hospitals.

The family say they feel hollowed out by their loss.

“At the age of 62, all my dreams have been shattered," her father told the BBC.

Since their daughter's horrific murder, their house, located in a respectable neighbourhood, has become the focus of intense media scrutiny.

Behind a police barricade stand dozens of journalists and camera crew, hoping to capture the parents in case they step out.

A group of 10 to 15 police officers perpetually stand guard to ensure the cameras do not take photos of the victim's house.

The crime took place on the night of 9 August, when the woman, who was a junior doctor at the city's RG Kar Medical College, had gone to a seminar room to rest after a gruelling 36-hour shift.

Her parents remembered how the young doctor, their only child, was a passionate student who worked extremely hard to become a doctor.

“We come from a lower middle-class background and built everything on our own. When she was little, we struggled financially," said the father, who is a tailor.

The living room where he sat was cluttered with tools from his profession - a sewing machine, spools of thread and a heavy iron. There were scraps of fabrics scattered on the floor.

There were times when the family did not have money to even buy pomegranates, their daughter's favourite fruit, he continued.

"But she could never bring herself to ask for anything for herself."

“People would say, ‘You can’t make your daughter a doctor'. But my daughter proved everyone wrong and got admission in a government-run medical college," he added, breaking down. A relative tried to console him.

The mother recalled how her daughter would write in her diary every night before going to bed.

“She wrote that she wanted to win a gold medal for her medical degree. She wanted to lead a good life and take care of us too,” she said softly.

And she did.

The father, who is a high blood-pressure patient, said their daughter always made sure he took his medicines on time.

“Once I ran out of medicine and thought I’d just buy it the next day. But she found out, and even though it was around 10 or 11pm at night, she said no-one will eat until the medicine is here,” he said.

“That’s how she was - she never let me worry about anything."

Her mother listened intently, her hands repeatedly touching a gold bangle on her wrist - a bangle she had bought with her daughter.

The parents said their daughter’s marriage had almost been finalised. "But she would tell us not to worry and say she would continue to take care of all our expenses even after marriage," the father said.

As he spoke those words, the mother began to weep, her soft sobs echoing in the background.

Occasionally, her eyes would wander to the staircase, leading up to their daughter's room.

The door has remained shut since 10 August and the parents have not set foot there since the news of her death.

They say they still can't believe that something "so barbaric" could happen to their daughter at her workplace.

"The hospital should be a safe place," the father said.

Violence against women is a major issue in India - an average of 90 rapes a day were reported in 2022, according to government data.

The parents said their daughter’s death had brought back memories of a 2012 case when a 22-year-old physiotherapy intern was gang-raped on a moving bus in capital Delhi. Her injuries were fatal.

Following the assault - which made global headlines and led to weeks of protests - India tightened laws against sexual violence.

But reported cases of sexual assault have gone up and access to justice still remains a challenge for women.

Last week, thousands participated in a Reclaim the Night march held in Kolkata to demand safety for women across the country.

The doctor’s case has also put a spotlight on challenges faced by healthcare workers, who have demanded a thorough and impartial investigation into the murder and a federal law to protect them - especially women - at work.

Federal Health Minister JP Nadda has assured doctors that he will bring in strict measures to ensure better safety in their professional environments.

But for the parents of the doctor, it's too little too late.

“We want the harshest punishment for the culprit," the father said.

“Our state, our country and the whole world is asking for justice for our daughter."

Raped Indian doctor's colleague speaks of trauma and pain

Protest at indian railway station over alleged abuse of girls, india gang rape victim's death sparks outrage, the rape victim’s mum fighting for india’s daughters, what do delhi rape hangings mean for women.

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Republican Donors, Do You Know Where Your Money Goes?

By Juleanna Glover

Juleanna Glover is the chief executive of Ridgely Walsh, a corporate consultancy, and a former adviser to many Republican officials.

We long ago blew past any meaningful controls on political giving in American elections. Now we should focus on the rules governing political spending, which are in equally terrible shape. For that we can blame the Trump campaign and the federal government’s feeble enforcement efforts.

Anyone who has spent time reviewing Donald Trump’s campaign spending reports would quickly conclude they’re a governance nightmare. There is so little disclosure about what happened to the billions raised in 2020 and 2024 that donors (and maybe even the former president himself) can’t possibly know how it was spent.

Federal Election Commission campaign disclosure reports from 2020 show that much of the money donated to the Trump campaign went into a legal and financial black hole reportedly controlled by Trump family members and close associates. This year’s campaign disclosures are shaping up to be the same. Donors big and small give their hard-earned dollars to candidates with the expectation they will be spent on direct efforts to win votes. They deserve better.

During the 2020 election, almost $516 million of the over $780 million spent by the Trump campaign was directed to American Made Media Consultants, a Delaware-based private company created in 2018 that masked the identities of who ultimately received donor dollars, according to a complaint filed with the F.E.C. by the nonpartisan Campaign Legal Center . How A.M.M.C. spent the money was a mystery even to Mr. Trump’s campaign team , according to news reports shortly after the election.

All but 18 of the 150 largest expenditures on a Trump campaign’s 2020 F.E.C. report went to A.M.M.C. None of the expenses were itemized or otherwise explained aside from anodyne descriptions including “placed media,” “SMS advertising” and “online advertising.” F.E.C. rules require candidates to fully and accurately disclose the final recipients of their campaign disbursements, which is usually understood to include when payments are made through a vendor such as A.M.M.C. This disclosure is intended to assure donors their contributions are used for campaign expenses. Currently, neither voters nor law enforcement can know whether any laws were broken.

A.M.M.C.’s first president was reported to be Lara Trump , the wife of Mr. Trump’s son Eric. The New York Times reported that A.M.M.C. had a treasurer who was also the chief financial officer of Mr. Trump’s 2020 presidential campaign. Mr. Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner signed off on the plan to set up A.M.M.C., and one of Eric Trump’s deputies from the Trump Organization was involved in running it.

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How to Teach Essay Writing in Secondary ELA

Teaching students how to write a multi-paragraph essay is a process, and it isn’t something that can be taught in one class period, nor is it a skill that we should expect our incoming students to know. Before I even assign my students a multi-paragraph essay, I first take several weeks to teach paragraph writing, and I typically do this with my short story unit.

However, once my students are ready to make the jump from paragraphs to an essay, I still continue to break down my writing instruction. When I teach essay writing in my high school English students, I break it down paragraph-by-paragraph to encourage them to be the best writer they can be. All of the lessons that I will refer to throughout this blog post are included in this print and digital essay writing teaching unit .

Teach Essay Writing in Middle School and High School ELA

Start with brainstorming.

I am a huge fan of group brainstorming, especially since I usually have some EL and SPED students mainstreamed in my college prep English classes. I usually dedicate an entire class period to brainstorming where students gather ideas, paragraph topics, and supporting quotes. You can read more about group brainstorming in this blog post  where I discuss brainstorming with my students and I teach them how to brainstorm an essay.

Outline the essay

After brainstorming, I move my students to the outlining phase of the writing process. This step is essential because it helps students organize their papers and stay on topic. Ever since I started dedicating an entire class period to in-class essay outlining, I’ve noticed a significant improvement in my students’ essays. You can read more about how I teach essay outlining in this blog post . When we focus on outlining the essay, I make sure that we focus on all of the essential components of an essay: thesis statement, topic sentences, and evidence.

Write the thesis statement

After the class has completed the brainstorming and outlining, I then move on to direct instruction for essay writing. Since students have already outlined their main ideas, they can start working on their thesis statement. I use my introduction and thesis statement lesson to help students write a meaningful thesis statement. I also look at examples of good thesis statements with my students and have students turn in their draft thesis statements to me before moving on.

Write the introduction

Once students have a solid working thesis statement (and I say working because it is possible for it to change throughout this process), I then have them move on to the introduction. Using the same introduction and thesis writing lesson, I then have my students work on drafting a hook and background information to complete their introduction. Now that students are in high school, I don’t accept a question as an acceptable hook. However, if my students get stuck, especially some of my lower students, I have them write their questions and then help them turn them into a statement.

Also, I’ve noticed that students sometimes have a hard time jumping on the hook. They tend to get stuck there, and when this happens, I have them jump right into the background information. In doing so, students get started writing, and they can go back to the hook later.

Topic Sentences

When I complete essay outlining with my students before the drafting process, I typically have them outline each paragraph with a topic sentence and then the quotes they want to use. Once we move from the introduction to the body paragraphs, I have them work on their topic sentence first. I use my topic sentences and body paragraphs essay writing lesson with my students at this point in the essay. Once students have a good topic sentence for their body paragraph, they write the rest of their body paragraph.

Write the body paragraphs

The next step in the writing process, especially for the first essay of the school year, is for students to write out the rest of their body paragraphs. If they’ve done their outlining correctly, they have a good idea about what they want to include in their body paragraphs. In this step, I really emphasize that my students need to provide support and analysis. They should be providing more explanation than simply restating their quotes.

Write the conclusion

Once students have their introduction and body paragraphs complete, I then have them move on to writing the conclusion. At this step, I teach conclusion writing to my students and have them restate the thesis and add a general thought to the end of the paragraph. At this point, I emphasize that students should not be adding in any new information. Also, one way to help students rephrase their thesis statement is to have them rewrite it in two sentences since a thesis statement is typically a one-sentence statement.

Complete peer editing

Provide time for essay revisions

Once students revise their essays and turn them in, I still like to provide students with some time to revise their essays after I grade them. This is where true learning and growth happen. It is when a student thinks they are done but then goes back to try to improve their essay. In this blog post about essay revisions , you can read more about how I conduct them in the classroom.

An entire year of writing instruction

What if I told you that you could have all of your writing instruction for the ENTIRE SCHOOL YEAR planned and ready to go? I’m talking about all the major writing strands and peer editing to grading rubrics. Just imagine how much time and stress you’ll save! 

It almost sounds too good to be true, right?

It’s not! My Ultimate Writing Bundle is your one-stop shop for all of your writing instruction needs! Plus, your students will thrive with the built-in scaffolding and consistency throughout the year!

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How to Teach Essay Writing

Last Updated: June 26, 2023 Fact Checked

This article was co-authored by Christopher Taylor, PhD . Christopher Taylor is an Adjunct Assistant Professor of English at Austin Community College in Texas. He received his PhD in English Literature and Medieval Studies from the University of Texas at Austin in 2014. There are 12 references cited in this article, which can be found at the bottom of the page. This article has been fact-checked, ensuring the accuracy of any cited facts and confirming the authority of its sources. This article has been viewed 90,719 times.

Teaching students how to write an essay is a big undertaking, but this is a crucial process for any high school or college student to learn. Start by assigning essays to read and then encourage students to choose an essay topic of their own. Spend class time helping students understand what makes a good essay. Then, use your assignments to guide students through writing their essays.

Choosing Genres and Topics

• Narrative, which is a non-fiction account of a personal experience. This is a good option if you want your students to share a story about something they did, such as a challenge they overcame or a favorite vacation they took. [2] X Trustworthy Source Purdue Online Writing Lab Trusted resource for writing and citation guidelines Go to source
• Expository, which is when you investigate an idea, discuss it at length, and make an argument about it. This might be a good option if you want students to explore a specific concept or a controversial subject. [3] X Trustworthy Source Purdue Online Writing Lab Trusted resource for writing and citation guidelines Go to source
• Descriptive , which is when you describe a person, place, object, emotion, experience, or situation. This can be a good way to allow your students to express themselves creatively through writing. [4] X Trustworthy Source Purdue Online Writing Lab Trusted resource for writing and citation guidelines Go to source
• Argumentative or persuasive essays require students to take a stance on a topic and make an argument to support that stance. This is different from an expository essay in that students won't be discussing a concept at length and then taking a position. The goal of an argumentative essay is to take a position right away and defend it with evidence. [5] X Trustworthy Source Purdue Online Writing Lab Trusted resource for writing and citation guidelines Go to source

• Make sure to select essays that are well-structured and interesting so that your students can model their own essays after these examples. Include essays written by former students, if you can, as well as professionally written essays.

Tip : Readers come in many forms. You can find readers that focus on a specific topic, such as food or pop culture. You can also find reader/handbook combos that will provide general information on writing along with the model essays.

• For example, for each of the essays you assign your students, you could ask them to identify the author's main point or focus, the structure of the essay, the author's use of sources, and the effect of the introduction and conclusion.
• Ask the students to create a reverse outline of the essay to help them understand how to construct a well-written essay. They'll identify the thesis, the main points of the body paragraphs, the supporting evidence, and the concluding statement. Then, they'll present this information in an outline. [8] X Research source

• For example, if you have assigned your students a narrative essay, then encourage them to choose a story that they love to tell or a story they have always wanted to tell but never have.
• If your students are writing argumentative essays, encourage them to select a topic that they feel strongly about or that they'd like to learn more about so that they can voice their opinion.

Explaining the Parts of an Essay

• For example, if you read an essay that begins with an interesting anecdote, highlight that in your class discussion of the essay. Ask students how they could integrate something like that into their own essays and have them write an anecdotal intro in class.
• Or, if you read an essay that starts with a shocking fact or statistic that grabs readers' attention, point this out to your students. Ask them to identify the most shocking fact or statistic related to their essay topic.

• For example, you could provide a few model thesis statements that students can use as templates and then ask them to write a thesis for their topic as an in-class activity or have them post it on an online discussion board.

Tip : Even though the thesis statement is only 1 sentence, this can be the most challenging part of writing an essay for some students. Plan to spend a full class session on writing thesis statements and review the information multiple times as well.

• For example, you could spend a class session going over topic sentences, and then look at how the authors of model essays have used topic sentences to introduce their claims. Then, identify where the author provides support for a claim and how they expand on the source.

• For example, you might direct students to a conclusion in a narrative essay that reflects on the significance of an author's experience. Ask students to write a paragraph where they reflect on the experience they are writing about and turn it in as homework or share it on class discussion board.
• For an expository or argumentative essay, you might show students conclusions that restate the most important aspect of a topic or that offer solutions for the future. Have students write their own conclusions that restate the most important parts of their subject or that outline some possible solutions to the problem.

Guiding Students Through the Writing Process

• Try giving students a sample timeline for how to work on their essays. For example, they might start brainstorming a topic, gathering sources (if required), and taking notes 4 weeks before the paper is due.
• Then, students might begin drafting 2 weeks before the paper is due with a goal of having a full draft 1 week before the essay's due date.
• Students could then plan to start revising their drafts 5 days before the essay is due. This will provide students with ample time to read through their papers a few times and make changes as needed.

• Freewriting, which is when you write freely about anything that comes to mind for a set amount of time, such as 10, 15, or 20 minutes.
• Clustering, which is when you write your topic or topic idea on a piece of paper and then use lines to connect that idea to others.
• Listing, which is when you make a list of any and all ideas related to a topic and ten read through it to find helpful information for your paper.
• Questioning, such as by answering the who, what, when, where, why, and how of their topic.
• Defining terms, such as identifying all of the key terms related to their topic and writing out definitions for each one.

• For example, if your students are writing narrative essays, then it might make the most sense for them to describe the events of a story chronologically.
• If students are writing expository or argumentative essays, then they might need to start by answering the most important questions about their topic and providing background information.
• For a descriptive essay, students might use spatial reasoning to describe something from top to bottom, or organize the descriptive paragraphs into categories for each of the 5 senses, such as sight, sound, smell, taste, and feel.

• For example, if you have just gone over different types of brainstorming strategies, you might ask students to choose 1 that they like and spend 10 minutes developing ideas for their essay.

• Try having students post a weekly response to a writing prompt or question that you assign.
• You may also want to create a separate discussion board where students can post ideas about their essay and get feedback from you and their classmates.

• You could also assign specific parts of the writing process as homework, such as requiring students to hand in a first draft as a homework assignment.

• For example, you might suggest reading the paper backward 1 sentence at a time or reading the paper out loud as a way to identify issues with organization and to weed out minor errors. [21] X Trustworthy Source University of North Carolina Writing Center UNC's on-campus and online instructional service that provides assistance to students, faculty, and others during the writing process Go to source
• Try peer-review workshops that ask students to review each others' work. Students can work in pairs or groups during the workshop. Provide them with a worksheet, graphic organizer, or copy of the assignment rubric to guide their peer-review.

Tip : Emphasize the importance of giving yourself at least a few hours away from the essay before you revise it. If possible, it is even better to wait a few days. After this time passes, it is often easier to spot errors and work out better ways of describing things.

Community Q&A

• Students often need to write essays as part of college applications, for assignments in other courses, and when applying for scholarships. Remind your students of all the ways that improving their essay writing skills can benefit them. Thanks Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0

You Might Also Like

• ↑ https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/general_writing/academic_writing/essay_writing/index.html
• ↑ https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/general_writing/academic_writing/essay_writing/narrative_essays.html
• ↑ https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/general_writing/academic_writing/essay_writing/expository_essays.html
• ↑ https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/general_writing/academic_writing/essay_writing/descriptive_essays.html
• ↑ https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/general_writing/academic_writing/essay_writing/argumentative_essays.html
• ↑ https://wac.colostate.edu/jbw/v1n2/petrie.pdf
• ↑ https://www.uww.edu/learn/restiptool/improve-student-writing
• ↑ https://twp.duke.edu/sites/twp.duke.edu/files/file-attachments/reverse-outline.original.pdf
• ↑ https://www.niu.edu/citl/resources/guides/instructional-guide/brainstorming.shtml
• ↑ https://writingcenter.unc.edu/faculty-resources/tips-on-teaching-writing/situating-student-writers/
• ↑ https://writingcenter.unc.edu/faculty-resources/tips-on-teaching-writing/in-class-writing-exercises/
• ↑ https://writingcenter.unc.edu/tips-and-tools/revising-drafts/

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The Harvard Writing Project publishes resource guides for faculty and teaching fellows that help them integrate writing into their courses more effectively — for example, by providing ideas about effective assignment design and strategies for responding to student writing.

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Classroom Q&A

With larry ferlazzo.

In this EdWeek blog, an experiment in knowledge-gathering, Ferlazzo will address readers’ questions on classroom management, ELL instruction, lesson planning, and other issues facing teachers. Send your questions to [email protected]. Read more from this blog.

Four Strategies for Effective Writing Instruction

• Share article

(This is the first post in a two-part series.)

The new question-of-the-week is:

What is the single most effective instructional strategy you have used to teach writing?

Teaching and learning good writing can be a challenge to educators and students alike.

The topic is no stranger to this column—you can see many previous related posts at Writing Instruction .

But I don’t think any of us can get too much good instructional advice in this area.

Today, Jenny Vo, Michele Morgan, and Joy Hamm share wisdom gained from their teaching experience.

Before I turn over the column to them, though, I’d like to share my favorite tool(s).

Graphic organizers, including writing frames (which are basically more expansive sentence starters) and writing structures (which function more as guides and less as “fill-in-the-blanks”) are critical elements of my writing instruction.

You can see an example of how I incorporate them in my seven-week story-writing unit and in the adaptations I made in it for concurrent teaching.

You might also be interested in The Best Scaffolded Writing Frames For Students .

Now, to today’s guests:

‘Shared Writing’

Jenny Vo earned her B.A. in English from Rice University and her M.Ed. in educational leadership from Lamar University. She has worked with English-learners during all of her 24 years in education and is currently an ESL ISST in Katy ISD in Katy, Texas. Jenny is the president-elect of TexTESOL IV and works to advocate for all ELs:

The single most effective instructional strategy that I have used to teach writing is shared writing. Shared writing is when the teacher and students write collaboratively. In shared writing, the teacher is the primary holder of the pen, even though the process is a collaborative one. The teacher serves as the scribe, while also questioning and prompting the students.

The students engage in discussions with the teacher and their peers on what should be included in the text. Shared writing can be done with the whole class or as a small-group activity.

There are two reasons why I love using shared writing. One, it is a great opportunity for the teacher to model the structures and functions of different types of writing while also weaving in lessons on spelling, punctuation, and grammar.

It is a perfect activity to do at the beginning of the unit for a new genre. Use shared writing to introduce the students to the purpose of the genre. Model the writing process from beginning to end, taking the students from idea generation to planning to drafting to revising to publishing. As you are writing, make sure you refrain from making errors, as you want your finished product to serve as a high-quality model for the students to refer back to as they write independently.

Another reason why I love using shared writing is that it connects the writing process with oral language. As the students co-construct the writing piece with the teacher, they are orally expressing their ideas and listening to the ideas of their classmates. It gives them the opportunity to practice rehearsing what they are going to say before it is written down on paper. Shared writing gives the teacher many opportunities to encourage their quieter or more reluctant students to engage in the discussion with the types of questions the teacher asks.

Writing well is a skill that is developed over time with much practice. Shared writing allows students to engage in the writing process while observing the construction of a high-quality sample. It is a very effective instructional strategy used to teach writing.

‘Four Square’

Michele Morgan has been writing IEPs and behavior plans to help students be more successful for 17 years. She is a national-board-certified teacher, Utah Teacher Fellow with Hope Street Group, and a special education elementary new-teacher specialist with the Granite school district. Follow her @MicheleTMorgan1:

For many students, writing is the most dreaded part of the school day. Writing involves many complex processes that students have to engage in before they produce a product—they must determine what they will write about, they must organize their thoughts into a logical sequence, and they must do the actual writing, whether on a computer or by hand. Still they are not done—they must edit their writing and revise mistakes. With all of that, it’s no wonder that students struggle with writing assignments.

In my years working with elementary special education students, I have found that writing is the most difficult subject to teach. Not only do my students struggle with the writing process, but they often have the added difficulties of not knowing how to spell words and not understanding how to use punctuation correctly. That is why the single most effective strategy I use when teaching writing is the Four Square graphic organizer.

The Four Square instructional strategy was developed in 1999 by Judith S. Gould and Evan Jay Gould. When I first started teaching, a colleague allowed me to borrow the Goulds’ book about using the Four Square method, and I have used it ever since. The Four Square is a graphic organizer that students can make themselves when given a blank sheet of paper. They fold it into four squares and draw a box in the middle of the page. The genius of this instructional strategy is that it can be used by any student, in any grade level, for any writing assignment. These are some of the ways I have used this strategy successfully with my students:

* Writing sentences: Students can write the topic for the sentence in the middle box, and in each square, they can draw pictures of details they want to add to their writing.

* Writing paragraphs: Students write the topic sentence in the middle box. They write a sentence containing a supporting detail in three of the squares and they write a concluding sentence in the last square.

* Writing short essays: Students write what information goes in the topic paragraph in the middle box, then list details to include in supporting paragraphs in the squares.

When I gave students writing assignments, the first thing I had them do was create a Four Square. We did this so often that it became automatic. After filling in the Four Square, they wrote rough drafts by copying their work off of the graphic organizer and into the correct format, either on lined paper or in a Word document. This worked for all of my special education students!

I was able to modify tasks using the Four Square so that all of my students could participate, regardless of their disabilities. Even if they did not know what to write about, they knew how to start the assignment (which is often the hardest part of getting it done!) and they grew to be more confident in their writing abilities.

In addition, when it was time to take the high-stakes state writing tests at the end of the year, this was a strategy my students could use to help them do well on the tests. I was able to give them a sheet of blank paper, and they knew what to do with it. I have used many different curriculum materials and programs to teach writing in the last 16 years, but the Four Square is the one strategy that I have used with every writing assignment, no matter the grade level, because it is so effective.

‘Swift Structures’

Joy Hamm has taught 11 years in a variety of English-language settings, ranging from kindergarten to adult learners. The last few years working with middle and high school Newcomers and completing her M.Ed in TESOL have fostered stronger advocacy in her district and beyond:

A majority of secondary content assessments include open-ended essay questions. Many students falter (not just ELs) because they are unaware of how to quickly organize their thoughts into a cohesive argument. In fact, the WIDA CAN DO Descriptors list level 5 writing proficiency as “organizing details logically and cohesively.” Thus, the most effective cross-curricular secondary writing strategy I use with my intermediate LTELs (long-term English-learners) is what I call “Swift Structures.” This term simply means reading a prompt across any content area and quickly jotting down an outline to organize a strong response.

To implement Swift Structures, begin by displaying a prompt and modeling how to swiftly create a bubble map or outline beginning with a thesis/opinion, then connecting the three main topics, which are each supported by at least three details. Emphasize this is NOT the time for complete sentences, just bulleted words or phrases.

Once the outline is completed, show your ELs how easy it is to plug in transitions, expand the bullets into detailed sentences, and add a brief introduction and conclusion. After modeling and guided practice, set a 5-10 minute timer and have students practice independently. Swift Structures is one of my weekly bell ringers, so students build confidence and skill over time. It is best to start with easy prompts where students have preformed opinions and knowledge in order to focus their attention on the thesis-topics-supporting-details outline, not struggling with the rigor of a content prompt.

Here is one easy prompt example: “Should students be allowed to use their cellphones in class?”

Swift Structure outline:

Thesis - Students should be allowed to use cellphones because (1) higher engagement (2) learning tools/apps (3) gain 21st-century skills

Topic 1. Cellphones create higher engagement in students...

Details A. interactive (Flipgrid, Kahoot)

B. less tempted by distractions

C. teaches responsibility

Topic 2. Furthermore,...access to learning tools...

A. Google Translate description

B. language practice (Duolingo)

C. content tutorials (Kahn Academy)

Topic 3. In addition,...practice 21st-century skills…

Details A. prep for workforce

B. access to information

C. time-management support

This bare-bones outline is like the frame of a house. Get the structure right, and it’s easier to fill in the interior decorating (style, grammar), roof (introduction) and driveway (conclusion). Without the frame, the roof and walls will fall apart, and the reader is left confused by circuitous rubble.

Once LTELs have mastered creating simple Swift Structures in less than 10 minutes, it is time to introduce complex questions similar to prompts found on content assessments or essays. Students need to gain assurance that they can quickly and logically explain and justify their opinions on multiple content essays without freezing under pressure.

Thanks to Jenny, Michele, and Joy for their contributions!

Please feel free to leave a comment with your reactions to the topic or directly to anything that has been said in this post.

Consider contributing a question to be answered in a future post. You can send one to me at [email protected] . When you send it in, let me know if I can use your real name if it’s selected or if you’d prefer remaining anonymous and have a pseudonym in mind.

You can also contact me on Twitter at @Larryferlazzo .

Education Week has published a collection of posts from this blog, along with new material, in an e-book form. It’s titled Classroom Management Q&As: Expert Strategies for Teaching .

Just a reminder; you can subscribe and receive updates from this blog via email (The RSS feed for this blog, and for all Ed Week articles, has been changed by the new redesign—new ones are not yet available). And if you missed any of the highlights from the first nine years of this blog, you can see a categorized list below.

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" Course Selection Assistance Suggested Age Levels for Homeschool Writing Entry Level I - Prepare to Write Entry Level II - Creating Sentences Level 1 - Sentence to Paragraph Level 2 - Paragraph Level 3 - Essay Free Curriculum Writing Samples Example Teaching Videos Online Grading Service Writing Skills Reference Folder How to Present a Lesson Grading Writing Key Points for Grading Writing MindBenders® Order Curriculum Packages Order Worksheets Only Refund/Return Policy Selecting Home School Curriculum Writing Preparation Writing Development High School and Beyond Homeschool Co-ops Homeschool How To The Story Behind TWF Why Another Writing Curriculum? Copyright Information He is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid the foundation on the rock . Luke 6:48 Dedicated to equipping God's children with the ability to communicate His Truth to the world. Teaching Tools Curriculum Ordering homeschool writing curriculum home school writing samples Mind Benders® Online Grading Copyright © 2021 TheWriteFoundation.org web site design - evolvethebrand.com Essay Papers Writing Online Mastering the art of teaching essay writing – strategies, tips, and techniques for educators. Instructors constantly strive to deliver exemplary teaching that not only provides students with the necessary knowledge but also equips them with skills essential for success in their academic and professional lives. One crucial skill that students need to develop is essay writing, as it is directly linked to effective communication and critical thinking. Engaging Students in the Process: To encourage students’ active participation, instructors can adopt various strategies such as incorporating real-life examples or current events into essay prompts. By giving students a chance to express their opinions on topics that matter to them, instructors create a sense of relevance and foster deeper engagement. Promoting Structure and Organization: One key aspect of effective essay writing is the ability to structure thoughts and ideas in a coherent manner. Instructors can guide students in outlining their essays, emphasizing the importance of an introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Establishing this foundation helps students convey their arguments systematically and persuasively. Define the Purpose and Audience In order to write an effective essay, it is important to first define the purpose and audience. The purpose of an essay is the main goal or objective that the writer wants to achieve with their writing, while the audience refers to the specific group of people for whom the essay is intended. Both the purpose and audience play a crucial role in shaping the content, tone, and style of the essay. When defining the purpose of an essay, writers need to consider what they want to accomplish with their writing. Do they want to inform, persuade, entertain, or argue? The purpose will depend on the topic, the writer’s own intentions, and the desired outcome. For instance, a writer may want to inform their audience about a specific topic, or they may want to persuade readers to adopt a certain viewpoint. By clearly defining the purpose, writers can focus their efforts on achieving their desired outcome. Equally important is identifying the target audience for the essay. The audience may vary depending on the type of essay and its intended purpose. Is the essay meant for a general audience, or is it targeted toward a specific group of people with a particular interest or knowledge? Understanding the audience allows the writer to tailor their language, examples, and arguments to better connect with and engage the intended readers. It also helps to determine the appropriate level of complexity and detail that should be included in the essay. Once the purpose and audience have been defined, writers can then proceed with planning and crafting their essay. By having a clear understanding of the intended goal and the specific readers, writers can create content that is relevant, compelling, and impactful. So, before diving into the writing process, take the time to define the purpose and audience to lay a strong foundation for an effective essay. Teach Proper Essay Structure In order to effectively guide students in their essay writing, it is important to teach them the proper structure that essays should follow. By providing a clear and organized framework, students will be able to craft well-structured and coherent essays. One key element of teaching proper essay structure is introducing students to the concept of an introduction. The introduction serves as the opening paragraph of an essay and should grab the reader’s attention while providing a brief overview of the topic. Encouraging students to begin their essay with a strong hook or an interesting fact can help captivate the reader from the start. Another crucial aspect of essay structure is the body paragraphs. The body paragraphs should present the main ideas and arguments of the essay in a logical and coherent manner. Each paragraph should focus on a single idea or argument and be supported by evidence or examples. Teaching students how to effectively transition between paragraphs and connect their ideas can enhance the overall flow and cohesiveness of their essays. Finally, it is important to teach students how to craft a strong conclusion for their essays. The conclusion should summarize the main points of the essay and provide a sense of closure. Encouraging students to end their essays with a thought-provoking statement or a call to action can leave a lasting impression on the reader. By teaching proper essay structure, educators can equip students with the necessary tools to effectively communicate their ideas and arguments in a clear and organized manner. This not only improves their writing skills, but also enhances their ability to think critically and develop well-supported arguments. Encourage Brainstorming and Outlining One effective approach to improving essay writing is to encourage students to engage in brainstorming and outlining activities before they begin their first draft. By providing students with a structured framework for organizing their thoughts, they can better develop their ideas and create a coherent and well-structured essay. When students brainstorm, they generate a variety of ideas related to the essay prompt or topic. This process allows them to explore different perspectives, consider different arguments or examples, and think critically about the subject matter. Brainstorming helps students to expand their thinking and gather a wide range of potential content to include in their essay. Once students have generated their ideas through brainstorming, it is important to guide them through the outlining process. Outlining provides students with a roadmap for their essay, helping them to organize their thoughts and create a logical flow of ideas. By outlining, students can see the connections between their main points and how they support their thesis statement. This process helps to ensure that their essay is well-structured and cohesive. Teachers can encourage students to brainstorm and outline by providing them with specific prompts or questions to consider. This can help to focus their thinking and guide them towards developing strong arguments and supporting evidence. Additionally, teachers can provide examples of effective outlines to model the process for students. By demonstrating the benefits of brainstorming and outlining, students are more likely to engage in these activities and ultimately produce higher quality essays. Incorporating brainstorming and outlining as regular components of the essay writing process can significantly improve students’ writing skills. These activities encourage critical thinking, strengthen organizational skills, and promote thoroughness and clarity in writing. By teaching students to brainstorm and outline effectively, educators can empower them to communicate their ideas more clearly and convincingly in their essays. Teach Effective Research Techniques In order to enhance students’ ability to write high-quality essays, it is vital to teach them effective research techniques. By providing students with the skills and knowledge required to conduct thorough research, they will be better equipped to gather relevant and reliable information for their essays. One key aspect of teaching effective research techniques is teaching students how to differentiate between credible and non-credible sources. It is important to emphasize the importance of using reputable sources such as scholarly articles, academic journals, and books. Students should be encouraged to critically evaluate the information they find and consider the author’s credentials, the publication’s credibility, and any potential biases. Another crucial component of effective research is teaching students how to effectively use search engines and databases. Students should learn how to use search operators and filters to refine their search results, as well as how to use advanced search techniques to locate specific information within a source. By teaching students these skills, they will be able to efficiently navigate through the vast amount of information available online and find the most relevant sources for their essays. Furthermore, students should be taught how to properly cite their sources and avoid plagiarism. It is important for students to understand the different citation styles, such as APA, MLA, or Chicago, and how to correctly format their references and in-text citations. By teaching students the importance of giving credit to the original authors and avoiding plagiarism, they will develop a strong sense of academic integrity and ethical writing practices. Lastly, it is important to teach students how to effectively organize and manage their research materials. Students should learn how to create annotated bibliographies, take effective notes, and develop a systematic approach to organizing their research. By teaching students these skills, they will be able to easily access and reference their sources when writing their essays, resulting in more coherent and well-structured papers. In conclusion, teaching effective research techniques is a vital component of essay writing instruction. By providing students with the skills and knowledge necessary to conduct thorough research, differentiate between credible and non-credible sources, effectively use search engines and databases, properly cite sources, and organize their research materials, students will be better equipped to write high-quality essays that are well-supported and well-evidenced. Provide Feedback and Revision Strategies Enhancing the quality of students’ essays involves an ongoing process of feedback and revision. This section explores effective strategies for providing feedback and guiding students through the revision process to improve their essay writing skills. Constructive Feedback: Rather than focusing solely on mistakes or shortcomings, it is important to provide students with constructive feedback that highlights both their strengths and areas for improvement. This type of feedback encourages students to continue developing their writing abilities. Specific Feedback: Instead of offering general comments, it is beneficial to provide specific feedback that addresses particular aspects of the essay. This could include suggestions for improving the organization, clarity of arguments, or use of evidence. Specific feedback helps students understand where they need to focus their revision efforts. Guided Revision Process: To support students in their revision process, educators can provide step-by-step guidance on how to revise their essays effectively. This could include breaking down the revision process into smaller tasks, such as reviewing the thesis statement, strengthening topic sentences, or checking for grammatical errors. Peer Feedback: Encouraging students to share their essays with their peers and provide feedback can be a valuable learning experience. Peer feedback allows students to benefit from multiple perspectives and receive input from their classmates. It also fosters collaboration and promotes a sense of community within the classroom. Encouraging Self-Reflection: In addition to external feedback, it is essential to promote self-reflection in the revision process. By asking students to critically analyze their own writing, they can identify areas for improvement and develop a stronger sense of self-awareness as writers. Revision Checklist: Providing students with a revision checklist can be a helpful tool to guide their revision process. This checklist could include prompts or questions related to the core components of essays, such as thesis statements, evidence, organization, and coherence. Revision Workshops: Organizing revision workshops can create a supportive and collaborative environment for students to work on their essays. These workshops can include activities such as peer review, group discussions, or one-on-one conferences with the instructor to offer personalized feedback. By implementing these feedback and revision strategies, educators can empower students to refine their essay writing skills and achieve greater levels of clarity, coherence, and persuasive effectiveness in their work. Develop Strong Thesis Statements Crafting a persuasive and coherent thesis statement is essential for any essay. The thesis statement serves as the foundation for the entire argument, setting the tone and direction of the piece. A strong thesis statement concisely conveys the main idea of the essay, while also indicating the writer’s stance on the topic. Teach Clear and Concise Writing Style One essential aspect of effective essay writing is teaching students how to develop a clear and concise writing style. This style involves using precise language and avoiding unnecessary words or phrases. By teaching students to write in a clear and concise manner, they can effectively communicate their ideas and arguments to their readers. When students are able to write with clarity and conciseness, they are more likely to engage and hold their reader’s attention. Clear and concise writing allows the reader to understand the main points and arguments without getting lost in unnecessary details or confusing language. By teaching this writing style, students can craft essays that are easy to read and understand. One way to teach clear and concise writing is by emphasizing the use of precise language. Encourage students to choose words that accurately convey their intended meaning and avoid using vague or general terms. By using specific and descriptive language, students can paint a clear picture for their readers and make their writing more engaging. Another strategy is to teach students how to avoid unnecessary words or phrases. Help them understand that brevity can enhance their writing and make it more concise. Encourage them to eliminate redundant phrases, remove filler words, and trim unnecessary information. By doing so, their writing will become more focused and impactful. In addition, it is important to teach students how to structure their sentences and paragraphs in a clear and concise manner. Emphasize the use of concise sentences that contain one main idea and are free of unnecessary details. Teach them to use transitions effectively to guide their readers smoothly from one idea to the next. Encourage them to organize their paragraphs logically, with each paragraph focusing on a specific point or argument. Overall, by teaching students to write in a clear and concise style, you are equipping them with a valuable skill that can be applied not only in essay writing but also in various professional and academic settings. Clear and concise writing allows ideas to be communicated effectively and leaves a lasting impact on the reader. Related Post How to master the art of writing expository essays and captivate your audience, convenient and reliable source to purchase college essays online, step-by-step guide to crafting a powerful literary analysis essay, unlock success with a comprehensive business research paper example guide, unlock your writing potential with writers college – transform your passion into profession, “unlocking the secrets of academic success – navigating the world of research papers in college”, master the art of sociological expression – elevate your writing skills in sociology. Essay Writing: A complete guide for students and teachers P LANNING, PARAGRAPHING AND POLISHING: FINE-TUNING THE PERFECT ESSAY Essay writing is an essential skill for every student. Whether writing a particular academic essay (such as persuasive, narrative, descriptive, or expository) or a timed exam essay, the key to getting good at writing is to write. Creating opportunities for our students to engage in extended writing activities will go a long way to helping them improve their skills as scribes. But, putting the hours in alone will not be enough to attain the highest levels in essay writing. Practice must be meaningful. Once students have a broad overview of how to structure the various types of essays, they are ready to narrow in on the minor details that will enable them to fine-tune their work as a lean vehicle of their thoughts and ideas. In this article, we will drill down to some aspects that will assist students in taking their essay writing skills up a notch. Many ideas and activities can be integrated into broader lesson plans based on essay writing. Often, though, they will work effectively in isolation – just as athletes isolate physical movements to drill that are relevant to their sport. When these movements become second nature, they can be repeated naturally in the context of the game or in our case, the writing of the essay. THE ULTIMATE NONFICTION WRITING TEACHING RESOURCE 270  pages of the most effective teaching strategies 50+   digital tools  ready right out of the box 75   editable resources  for student   differentiation   Loads of   tricks and tips  to add to your teaching tool bag All explanations are reinforced with  concrete examples. Links to  high-quality video  tutorials Clear objectives  easy to match to the demands of your curriculum Planning an essay The Boys Scouts’ motto is famously ‘Be Prepared’. It’s a solid motto that can be applied to most aspects of life; essay writing is no different. Given the purpose of an essay is generally to present a logical and reasoned argument, investing time in organising arguments, ideas, and structure would seem to be time well spent. Given that essays can take a wide range of forms and that we all have our own individual approaches to writing, it stands to reason that there will be no single best approach to the planning stage of essay writing. That said, there are several helpful hints and techniques we can share with our students to help them wrestle their ideas into a writable form. Let’s take a look at a few of the best of these: BREAK THE QUESTION DOWN: UNDERSTAND YOUR ESSAY TOPIC. Whether students are tackling an assignment that you have set for them in class or responding to an essay prompt in an exam situation, they should get into the habit of analyzing the nature of the task. To do this, they should unravel the question’s meaning or prompt. Students can practice this in class by responding to various essay titles, questions, and prompts, thereby gaining valuable experience breaking these down. Have students work in groups to underline and dissect the keywords and phrases and discuss what exactly is being asked of them in the task. Are they being asked to discuss, describe, persuade, or explain? Understanding the exact nature of the task is crucial before going any further in the planning process, never mind the writing process . BRAINSTORM AND MIND MAP WHAT YOU KNOW: Once students have understood what the essay task asks them, they should consider what they know about the topic and, often, how they feel about it. When teaching essay writing, we so often emphasize that it is about expressing our opinions on things, but for our younger students what they think about something isn’t always obvious, even to themselves. Brainstorming and mind-mapping what they know about a topic offers them an opportunity to uncover not just what they already know about a topic, but also gives them a chance to reveal to themselves what they think about the topic. This will help guide them in structuring their research and, later, the essay they will write . When writing an essay in an exam context, this may be the only ‘research’ the student can undertake before the writing, so practicing this will be even more important. RESEARCH YOUR ESSAY The previous step above should reveal to students the general direction their research will take. With the ubiquitousness of the internet, gone are the days of students relying on a single well-thumbed encyclopaedia from the school library as their sole authoritative source in their essay. If anything, the real problem for our students today is narrowing down their sources to a manageable number. Students should use the information from the previous step to help here. At this stage, it is important that they: ●      Ensure the research material is directly relevant to the essay task ●      Record in detail the sources of the information that they will use in their essay ●      Engage with the material personally by asking questions and challenging their own biases ●      Identify the key points that will be made in their essay ●      Group ideas, counterarguments, and opinions together ●      Identify the overarching argument they will make in their own essay. Once these stages have been completed the student is ready to organise their points into a logical order. WRITING YOUR ESSAY There are a number of ways for students to organize their points in preparation for writing. They can use graphic organizers , post-it notes, or any number of available writing apps. The important thing for them to consider here is that their points should follow a logical progression. This progression of their argument will be expressed in the form of body paragraphs that will inform the structure of their finished essay. The number of paragraphs contained in an essay will depend on a number of factors such as word limits, time limits, the complexity of the question etc. Regardless of the essay’s length, students should ensure their essay follows the Rule of Three in that every essay they write contains an introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Generally speaking, essay paragraphs will focus on one main idea that is usually expressed in a topic sentence that is followed by a series of supporting sentences that bolster that main idea. The first and final sentences are of the most significance here with the first sentence of a paragraph making the point to the reader and the final sentence of the paragraph making the overall relevance to the essay’s argument crystal clear.  Though students will most likely be familiar with the broad generic structure of essays, it is worth investing time to ensure they have a clear conception of how each part of the essay works, that is, of the exact nature of the task it performs. Let’s review: Common Essay Structure Introduction: Provides the reader with context for the essay. It states the broad argument that the essay will make and informs the reader of the writer’s general perspective and approach to the question. Body Paragraphs: These are the ‘meat’ of the essay and lay out the argument stated in the introduction point by point with supporting evidence. Conclusion: Usually, the conclusion will restate the central argument while summarising the essay’s main supporting reasons before linking everything back to the original question. ESSAY WRITING PARAGRAPH WRITING TIPS ●      Each paragraph should focus on a single main idea ●      Paragraphs should follow a logical sequence; students should group similar ideas together to avoid incoherence ●      Paragraphs should be denoted consistently; students should choose either to indent or skip a line ●      Transition words and phrases such as alternatively , consequently , in contrast should be used to give flow and provide a bridge between paragraphs. HOW TO EDIT AN ESSAY Students shouldn’t expect their essays to emerge from the writing process perfectly formed. Except in exam situations and the like, thorough editing is an essential aspect in the writing process.  Often, students struggle with this aspect of the process the most. After spending hours of effort on planning, research, and writing the first draft, students can be reluctant to go back over the same terrain they have so recently travelled. It is important at this point to give them some helpful guidelines to help them to know what to look out for. The following tips will provide just such help:  One Piece at a Time: There is a lot to look out for in the editing process and often students overlook aspects as they try to juggle too many balls during the process. One effective strategy to combat this is for students to perform a number of rounds of editing with each focusing on a different aspect. For example, the first round could focus on content, the second round on looking out for word repetition (use a thesaurus to help here), with the third attending to spelling and grammar. Sum It Up: When reviewing the paragraphs they have written, a good starting point is for students to read each paragraph and attempt to sum up its main point in a single line. If this is not possible, their readers will most likely have difficulty following their train of thought too and the paragraph needs to be overhauled. Let It Breathe: When possible, encourage students to allow some time for their essay to ‘breathe’ before returning to it for editing purposes. This may require some skilful time management on the part of the student, for example, a student rush-writing the night before the deadline does not lend itself to effective editing. Fresh eyes are one of the sharpest tools in the writer’s toolbox. Read It Aloud: This time-tested editing method is a great way for students to identify mistakes and typos in their work. We tend to read things more slowly when reading aloud giving us the time to spot errors. Also, when we read silently our minds can often fill in the gaps or gloss over the mistakes that will become apparent when we read out loud. Phone a Friend: Peer editing is another great way to identify errors that our brains may miss when reading our own work. Encourage students to partner up for a little ‘you scratch my back, I scratch yours’. Use Tech Tools: We need to ensure our students have the mental tools to edit their own work and for this they will need a good grasp of English grammar and punctuation. However, there are also a wealth of tech tools such as spellcheck and grammar checks that can offer a great once-over option to catch anything students may have missed in earlier editing rounds. Putting the Jewels on Display: While some struggle to edit, others struggle to let go. There comes a point when it is time for students to release their work to the reader. They must learn to relinquish control after the creation is complete. This will be much easier to achieve if the student feels that they have done everything in their control to ensure their essay is representative of the best of their abilities and if they have followed the advice here, they should be confident they have done so. WRITING CHECKLISTS FOR ALL TEXT TYPES ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (92 Reviews) ESSAY WRITING video tutorials Skip to main content Writing Masterclass Math Masterclass Course Login Join Lesson Genie Log In to Lesson Genie Search this website Not So Wimpy Teacher The Not So WImpy Teacher creates resources for busy teachers in grades 2-5 who are looking to deliver engaging and meaningful lessons without overwhelm and chaos. Get my FREE Editing & Revising Centers Get my free editing & revising centers. Help your students master tricky writing skills with these FREE Editing and Revising Centers. Students in grades 2-5 will love this fun, collaborative way to practice editing and revising. Perfect for test prep and review. We won't send you spam. Unsubscribe at any time. Last updated on July 29, 2023 by Not So Wimpy Teacher The Best Way to Teach Students Paragraph Writing I’m not a betting girl . . . but if I were, I’d bet that many of you start the year with a unit about paragraph writing. Am I right?  I thought so. It’s pretty common to begin your writing instruction with a unit on “how to write a paragraph.” Typical lessons include what a paragraph is, how to write topic sentences and conclusions, and how to construct the perfect five-sentence paragraph. But after teaching for a couple of years, I stopped teaching paragraph writing at the beginning of the year. And after you read this post, maybe you will too. By the way, I recorded a video talk about paragraph writing. You can watch it here ! Keep reading more below. Paragraph Writing is Boring When I was a new teacher, I too started my writing lessons with the paragraph unit. I thought that’s what you were supposed to do. But I quickly realized that my students were bored to tears.  At first, I thought, oh well, learning how to write paragraphs isn’t very much fun. But it’s a skill students need to learn, so they’ll just have to deal with it.  But the more I thought about it, the more I realized that it wasn’t okay. I didn’t want my kids to be bored. I didn’t want them to think that writing was dull. And I definitely didn’t want them to dread writing workshop.  I wanted writing workshop to be fun. I wanted it to be something my students looked forward to and got excited about. I wanted them to know that writing was going to be different in my classroom. We all know that how you start the year sets the tone for your entire school year. I did not want to send the message that writing workshop was going to be a drag. But starting with the driest topic certainly wasn’t helping to convince my students that writing is fun. Students Don’t Care About Paragraphs The truth is students just don’t get excited about paragraphs. They don’t care about, or even really understand topic sentences. Transition words, hooks, reasons, and examples . . . none of those things really matter to most students. At least not right away. I decided to flip my instruction around and start with something a little more exciting. A writing lesson the students found interesting. I thought that if I could get them invested in writing, then when I introduced the boring stuff, like paragraph writing, they would be more willing to work on it. And I was right. Once I got kids hooked on writing, they wanted to be better writers. They were more willing to work on their paragraphs when those paragraphs became an important part of telling a story they cared about. Paragraphs Aren’t One Size Fits All Think about it for a minute… What does a paragraph look like in this blog post? In a Charles Dickens novel? In your favorite psychological thriller, memoir, or chick lit?  The reality is that paragraphs are not all 5-7 sentences long. They come in many shapes and sizes. The length of a paragraph depends greatly on the type of writing. And many of the types of writing that we teach our students don’t have standard 5-sentence paragraphs. Take personal narratives, for example. You teach your students to start a new paragraph every time the speaker changes. This means that most paragraphs are only one or two sentences long. Why spend weeks teaching your students that a paragraph has five sentences only to immediately launch into the exceptions to that rule in the next unit? That’s super confusing for kids. Teach Paragraph Writing in Context I’ve got good news, though. You don’t need a separate unit for teaching paragraphs. Rather, you can teach paragraph writing within each specific genre of writing. That’s what I do. I don’t launch each unit with a lesson on paragraph writing, either. First, I get the kids writing. I let them put their ideas on paper and start crafting their masterpiece. Then, a few weeks in, once they are invested in the writing, I introduce a lesson on paragraphs specific to the genre we’re working on. It’s just one of many mini lessons I teach about the genre. Personal Narrative Paragraph Writing When I teach personal narrative, I show kids how to start a new paragraph every time a new character speaks. I also model how to use quotation marks and punctuation. Informational Essay Paragraph Writing As we move on to other types of writing, I repeat my paragraph lesson specific to each new genre. When I teach informational writing, I explain how every subtopic in their outline becomes its own paragraph. I also teach them about topic sentences, details, and concluding sentences.  This is the typical paragraph many of us think of when we think of teaching paragraphs. It makes sense to teach it inside the informational writing unit because it is appropriate for that genre.  Opinion Paragraph Writing In opinion writing, the paragraphs are similar to informational writing. There is a topic sentence and a conclusion and supporting details in between. But the important thing for students to understand is that each of the reasons that support their opinion becomes its own paragraph.  Fiction Paragraph Writing Finally, when I get to fiction writing, the paragraphs become eclectic. Some paragraphs may be one sentence long when students are writing dialogue. Others may be long and chock full of details. When students describe the setting or a character’s thoughts, they may have long, descriptive paragraphs. This variation in length makes the writing more interesting. I typically teach fiction writing last. So students have already learned about many different types of paragraphs, and they can combine them into one story that is interesting to read.   Perfect Paragraphs Are Not the Goal At the end of the year, not all of your students will write perfect paragraphs. That’s okay. They are children. They will continue to practice writing paragraphs year after year, all the way through high school and beyond. I’ve played around with the paragraph formatting in this blog post a couple of times. And I’ve been writing paragraphs for a really long time. What you are looking for is growth, not perfection. Do they indent? Are they switching paragraphs when ideas change? Are they using more than one paragraph in their writing?  Teaching writing is about so much more than using paragraphs correctly. You are looking for a story with strong details. You want to see a supported opinion. You want to see that students know how to reference texts and summarize information. All of those things are much more important than perfect paragraphs. Want to learn how to plan an entire year of writing at one time? Check out this post . FREE Ultimate Step-by-Step Guide to Teach Paragraph Writing If you want more information about how to teach paragraph writing, download my Ultimate Step-by-Step Guide to Teach Paragraph Writing. You’ll love this surprisingly simple way to teach paragraph writing to kids in grades 2-5 . It will help your students fall in love with writing and learn how to write a variety of paragraphs. Check out this step-by-step lesson you can use with any genre. Work With Me Want to learn more about teaching writing? Awesome!  Writing is my jam. And I’ve created an online professional development course for teachers about how to make teaching writing easier, more effective, and a heck of a lot more fun. Check out my Not So Wimpy Writing Masterclass today. I specifically developed this online professional development course for teachers in grades 2-5 to help simplify writing workshop and provide the tools and strategies you need to be a more confident writing teacher. You’ll learn: A process for teaching writing that makes it simple, effective, and even joyful to teach writing —for you and your students, too. How to create manageable mini-lessons to teach—and have your students stay on task for independent writing time. Where to find time every day for writing instruction—and weekly conference time for all of your students. How to help ALL your students get the skills they need to become better writers— and perform well on standardized tests. Most importantly, teaching writing will be easy, breezy, and beautiful—and your students will actually love to write! The best part is this professional development takes place completely online. You can do it when you want, where you want, wearing what you want. And you get lifetime access to the course. So you can watch it on your time and go back and rewatch it whenever you want.  ​​ Registration for the Not So Wimpy Writing Masterclass is currently closed. Be sure to sign up for the Waitlist so you will be the first to know when we open it again. Sign up now so you don’t miss out! Have a Not So Wimpy Day, You may also enjoy these posts Reader Interactions 12 comments. May 24, 2021 at 8:05 am Is the Best Way to Teach Paragraph Writing a free item? If so please email it to me. Thanks. May 24, 2021 at 7:39 pm The Writing Pacing Guide is a free resource. To have it delivered to your inbox, please follow the link in the article. Thank you! June 7, 2021 at 2:36 pm I am an alumni of your terrific writing course but still have a question. Why aren’t the mentor texts indented? They’re just double spaced between. You even mentioned indenting above. I’ve wanted to know this since I started with your material but never asked. I have my students indent and add the double spacing between. June 10, 2021 at 6:53 am I’ve thought the same thing. I know you mention something about it, but can aome mentor texts show indentation so students see the difference? June 11, 2021 at 1:26 am Hi Susan, Thanks for your question. The age of digital media changed everything! Some style guides for grammar and formatting changed as well. According to the style guides, it is acceptable to indent or skip a line between paragraphs. It’s not recommended that students do both. It’s one or the other. I think it’s important that students see text in both ways and have conversations about the different formats. February 23, 2023 at 11:31 pm Hi! May I ask what style guides you follow? February 28, 2023 at 12:13 am Hi Dianne, Our informational writing bundle includes lessons on the importance of citations and the information needed to cite. As teachers have different expectations on which style to use when creating citations, we leave it up to the teacher which style guide to use. When writing essays in grades 2-5 it’s important for students to maintain the same voice throughout the paper. The revision lessons guide them with that skill. November 10, 2021 at 6:42 am I love the layout of all the info November 10, 2021 at 6:44 am Im lookingforward to getting more info from you. The literature on paragraph writing has been very useful to me November 10, 2021 at 10:22 am You’ll find the writing pacing guide to also be useful. To have it delivered to your inbox, follow the link in the article. Wonderful website. Great resources March 21, 2024 at 1:33 pm Thank you. This looks wonderful! Leave a Comment Cancel reply Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked * Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Want an ALL ACCESS PASS to Not So Wimpy Teacher Resources? More than 400 helpful resources available in my shop. Not So Wimpy Writing Masterclass Do you struggle to find time to teach writing? Do you find it a challenge to deliver lessons that help all of your writers? Would you like to learn a simple and effective way to teach writing? The Not So Wimpy Writing Masterclass is an online professional development course for grades 2-5. In this course, you will go from feeling overwhelmed to feeling confident and excited about teaching writing. Check out these recent podcast episodes: Connecting with Students Online with Jennifer Serravallo A Simple Problem-Solving Strategy That Works Every Time Giving Students Feedback About Their Writing Virtual and Socially Distant Valentine’s Day Activities for the Classroom How to Use Project-Based Learning in the Classroom Grab a snack and join the discussion over on Facebook! We have four separate groups for grades 2-5 Get even more great tips and tricks on my YouTube channel! We LOVE and recommend these products! Check out the books, supplies, and other products that we use in our own classrooms. We only recommend those things that we absolutely love and swear by! Hello! I’m Jamie I believe that students need to be the leaders of the classroom. Even third graders are old enough to be held accountable and to take responsibility for their learning. I do not believe that kids were made to sit in seats. They need to get up and move around. Differentiated instruction is a must. I use guided reading and guided math groups to meet the individual needs of my students. Helping a student to discover their love for reading is a privilege that I never get tired of. School should be fun! We party in my class! Follow Me Here How To Teach Writing: What Educators Need To Know Here, we’ll go over the basics of how to teach writing and how to light the imagination in a way that lends itself to stellar student writing. As a teacher, you want to inspire your students and help them grasp the writing process. Writing assignments can be subjective, and it can be tough to teach students to harness their creativity in a way that allows their writing skills to shine. As a language arts teacher, you know there’s no right or wrong answer when completing a piece of writing, and you want your students to take risks and be bold–all while creating good writing with top-notch vocabulary and excellent sentence structure. Whether you’re an elementary school writing teacher, someone who works with children with learning disabilities, a high school English teacher, or a college professor working on teaching the process of writing to your students, you’re teaching your kids or young adults a skill that will serve them well throughout their academic careers and beyond. Here, we’ll take a look at the steps required to develop an effective writing lesson, how to gauge whether your students are moving forward in becoming better writers, and digital tools that you can use to help your students grow their writing practice. Before you begin: How to teach writing to students, step 1. talk to your students, step 2. learn about your students’ writing skills, step 3. boost class confidence, step 4. start small, step 5. pay attention to skill level, step 7. provide feedback. 1. Grammarly 2. Google Docs 3. Purdue OWL 4. Hemingway Editor 5. Vocabulary.com Teaching writing skills to students can be tricky; before you begin, plan ahead by creating a lesson plan. You can use our how-to guide below to plan your next lesson for teaching writing and learn how to teach this tricky subject easily. Include each step in your lesson plan and the list of activities you will assign your students; make sure to cover each topic in a different lesson, so you don’t overwhelm your students.  Whether you’re working with elementary-age students or college-level young adults, many in your classroom likely have already had experiences shaping how they feel about the writing process. If your students have had negative experiences with writing in the past, it can be tough to get them to open up and be willing to try something new. Asking your students open-ended questions can help you to get a feel about where they are in their writing confidence. You may choose to ask questions out loud in a classroom setting, or you may choose to talk with your students one on one if time permits. Some questions you may want to ask students to help you gauge how they feel about their writing skills include: What do you know about the writing process? Tell me everything! Last time you wrote a story, what was it about? What’s the biggest challenge when it comes to writing? If you’re going to write a story, how would you get started? By asking these questions, you won’t just know more about your students’ confidence–you’ll also get an idea of what they’ve already been taught about the writing process and whether there are any gaps you’ll need to fill in as you teach them to become writers. You may also want to let students know that they can come to talk to you with any questions or concerns they have about writing. Sometimes, students with learning disabilities or other issues that affect their writing ability may feel uncomfortable discussing these issues in front of their classmates. If necessary, you may want to work with a special education teacher who can address any unique learning needs in your classroom. After you talk to your students about the writing process, you may want to provide them with a short writing assignment to help you get a better idea of where they’re at with writing. It’s up to you to decide how much guidance you’d like to give them. Some sample assignment ideas to help you get a good idea of where your students are at when it comes to writing include: Write a one-page story about something interesting that happened to you over the summer. Write about when you got into an argument with a family member and how the issue was resolved. Imagine it’s ten years from now. Where are you? What are you doing? Who is around you? Provide as much detail as possible. In addition to giving insight into your student’s writing ability, asking these questions can also show how comfortable your students are with the writing process. You’ll notice that some students excitedly get to work while others give short or vague answers. Take note of how your students do with this initial assignment so that you can praise their progress as they move forward with your writing lessons. Of course, progress will differ for each student; for some, learning to write in complete sentences may be a big accomplishment. For others, mastering a five-paragraph essay may be the goal. Step 6. Teach The Process After you understand how your students feel about the writing process and where they’re at in their journey to become better writers, it’s time to begin teaching the writing process. The exact process that you’ll teach your students will largely depend on their age and skill level, and you may find that you need to adjust your process as you continually get a better idea of your student’s skill levels. The framework provided here is at an elementary to middle school level. The first step in the writing process is developing topic ideas. Then, during the brainstorming process, encourage students to write down anything that comes to mind without censoring themselves—allowing students to keep their brainstorming processes to themselves (rather than requiring them to share out loud or hand in their paper) can help them think freely and write what’s on their mind without a barrier of self-judgment. After your students complete their first brainstorm, encourage them to return to their lists and cross out any ideas that don’t seem like they could be a good fit. Narrowing down their ideas to three options can be a helpful first step in getting started. Following the initial brainstorming process, ask students to take a few moments to flesh out their three ideas. Often, students find that they can tie two of their brainstorming ideas together, making it easier for them to share more of what they’re passionate about. During this second stage of the brainstorming process, ask students to add details to the topics they’re debating, helping them see which option has the best chance of developing a compelling story. After your students complete the brainstorming process and decide on a topic, it’s time to move forward with developing the first draft. Again, it would be best to let your students know that their first draft is a draft. There’s no need for the first draft of their story to be perfect. Before actually beginning the draft writing process, you may decide to encourage your students to create an outline to guide their writing. For example, they may choose to list all of the points they’d like to make if they’re writing a persuasive piece or may want to list the events they want to describe if they’re writing a personal narrative. For students who have anxiety around writing, it can be especially helpful to get some of their ideas onto paper to act as a guide before they begin writing their first draft. For many students, writing as freely as possible–including spelling and grammar mistakes–helps them develop the framework necessary to move forward with their writing piece. Remind students that they’ll be able to come back to their work later to clean it up and that there’s no need to get everything right on the first try. After completing the first draft, give your students some time away from their writing before they begin to revise. Taking a few hours or a few days can give students the time to process what they’ve written and look at their work in a new light. For many students, a two- or three-stage revision process can be helpful. During the first revision, students read the work themselves. Your students may find it helpful to read all or parts of their work out loud while working through their revision. Hearing their words out loud can help them find sections of text that are awkward or incorrectly phrased and can help them find areas that could be condensed or need to be better explained. Following the first revision of their work, peer revision can be helpful. During the peer revision, students trade their writing with one another to get constructive criticism on their work. Be warned: this part of the writing process can be difficult for some students, especially if they’re not confident in their writing skills or have chosen to write about a personal topic. Before beginning the peer revision process, set ground rules with your class on how to give the author feedback that’s helpful and drives the writing process forward. After completing the revision process, it’s time for your students to begin the editing process, where they’ll take the feedback they received during revisions and put it to good use. Editing can take time, and it’s smart to give your students leeway to move back and forth between the revision and editing processes. It’s key to let students know that the writing process isn’t always linear, and sometimes it’s essential to take a step back and reconsider how they’re developing their work. As an educator, you may want to review your student’s work with them during the editing process before they move on to the publishing phase. Depending on the amount of correction needed and the types of writing your students are working on, you may want to ask them to go back and create a new draft before they enter the final phase of the process. While there’s no need to re-do the pre-writing activities associated with the beginning of the writing process, exploring the draft, revision, and editing phases can make for a smoother final copy. The publishing process will look different from classroom to classroom, and it’s up to you and your students to decide how they’d like to publish their writing. Some educators put student work into a binder of stories to distribute at the end of the year. Sometimes, simply printing a final edit of their work for them to take home to their parents can be enough to help them feel like a writer. Talk to your students about how they’d like their work to be shared. Creating a classroom website or blog can also be fun for students to share their work with others. As a teacher, providing feedback to young children and adults on their writing can be tough, especially when you know it’s something they’ve been working to improve. However, providing direct, kind, constructive feedback can go a long way in helping students to become better writers. When possible, try complimenting students’ writing skills while providing constructive feedback. This helps students see many positive points in their work and can help them feel motivated to continue working on their writing in the future. You may also want to create a system in your classroom that allows students to provide anonymous feedback to one another. This can allow students to read the work of others without bias and can help students feel less nervous about their peers reading their work. Digital Tools for Teaching Writing Technology makes it easier than ever to teach writing, as long as you know how to use the tools you have at your disposal. Here, we’ve compiled a list of some of the most effective tools you can use to help your students boost their writing skills inside and outside the classroom. 1.  Grammarly We know–correcting the tiny grammatical mistakes that your students make day in and day out can take a toll on you as an educator. Grammarly makes it simple for students to correct spelling and grammar mistakes and explains why certain words, phrases, and structures should be changed. The free version of Grammarly works perfectly and provides your students with everything they need to grow as writers. In addition, when your students use a Grammarly account, their work is cloud-based and can be accessed from both school and home, making it simple for them to keep working on their writing no matter where they are. 2.  Google Docs Like Grammarly, Google Docs makes it simple for students to keep working on their writing at school and at home. Google Docs allows multiple people to edit a document, allowing you and your students to work together to create a top-notch piece of writing. With Google Docs, you’ll also be able to make comments to your students about their writing, ask questions, and create a dialouge that allows you to understand their goals 3.  Purdue OWL Older students will benefit from using the Purdue Online Writing Lab, or OWL, to give them the information they need to make their writing meet currently acceptable journalistic and academic standards. In addition to providing basic information on grammar, the Purdue OWL also offers citation instructions for both APA and MLA formats and can help students figure out how to create technically correct writing. Students must check against the OWL regularly, as APA and MLA requirements change from time to time. 4.  Hemingway Editor Hemingway’s short, concise sentences and to-the-point descriptions made his writing clear and bold. Readers love Hemingway because he broke down cumbersome topics in a way that made them accessible, and many readers today strive to emulate the timeless author’s style of writing. Another tool best suited for high school and college students, the Hemingway Editor, helps students find grammar errors and uses of passive voice, which many agree are best avoided in academic and professional writing. A word of caution: Hemingway Editor does not save work, so it’s key that students copy and paste their edited material into a Google Doc or other platform where their work will be saved. 5.  Vocabulary.com Professional authors and students alike find themselves struggling with using the same words over and over again. Using a site like Vocabulary.com helps writers learn new words in ways that stick, making it easy to spice up writing without getting repetitive. The site is also helpful for looking up the meaning of a single word but has capabilities that go far beyond offering standard dictionary definitions. Cool bonus: the site is free! Looking for more? Check out our guide on how to teach paraphrasing to students ! Professional development Planning lessons and courses Planning a writing lesson Writing, unlike speaking, is not an ability we acquire naturally, even in our first language - it has to be taught. Unless L2 learners are explicitly taught how to write in the new language, their writing skills are likely to get left behind as their speaking progresses. But teaching writing is not just about grammar, spelling, or the mechanics of the Roman alphabet. Learners also need to be aware of and use the conventions of the genre in the new language. What is genre? Generating ideas Focusing ideas Focus on a model text Organising ideas Peer evaluation A genre can be anything from a menu to a wedding invitation, from a newspaper article to an estate agent's description of a house. Pieces of writing of the same genre share some features, in terms of layout, level of formality, and language. These features are more fixed in formal genre, for example letters of complaint and essays, than in more 'creative' writing, such as poems or descriptions. The more formal genre often feature in exams, and may also be relevant to learners' present or future 'real-world' needs, such as university study or business. However, genre vary considerably between cultures, and even adult learners familiar with a range of genre in their L1 need to learn to use the conventions of those genre in English. Stages of a writing lesson I don't necessarily include all these stages in every writing lesson, and the emphasis given to each stage may differ according to the genre of the writing and / or the time available. Learners work in pairs or groups as much as possible, to share ideas and knowledge, and because this provides a good opportunity for practising the speaking, listening and reading skills. This is often the first stage of a process approach to writing. Even when producing a piece of writing of a highly conventional genre, such as a letter of complaint, using learners' own ideas can make the writing more memorable and meaningful. Before writing a letter of complaint, learners think about a situation when they have complained about faulty goods or bad service (or have felt like complaining), and tell a partner. As the first stage of preparing to write an essay, I give learners the essay title and pieces of scrap paper. They have 3 minutes to work alone, writing one idea on each piece of paper, before comparing in groups. Each group can then present their 3 best ideas to the class. It doesn't matter if the ideas aren't used in the final piece of writing, the important thing is to break through the barrier of ' I can't think of anything to write.' This is another stage taken from a process approach, and it involves thinking about which of the many ideas generated are the most important or relevant, and perhaps taking a particular point of view. As part of the essay-writing process, students in groups put the ideas generated in the previous stage onto a 'mind map'. The teacher then draws a mind-map on the board, using ideas from the different groups. At this stage he / she can also feed in some useful collocations - this gives the learners the tools to better express their own ideas. I tell my students to write individually for about 10 minutes, without stopping and without worrying about grammar or punctuation. If they don't know a particular word, they write it in their L1. This often helps learners to further develop some of the ideas used during the 'Generating ideas' stage. Learners then compare together what they have written, and use a dictionary, the teacher or each other to find in English any words or phrases they wrote in their L1. Once the students have generated their own ideas, and thought about which are the most important or relevant, I try to give them the tools to express those ideas in the most appropriate way. The examination of model texts is often prominent in product or genre approaches to writing, and will help raise learners' awareness of the conventions of typical texts of different genres in English. I give learners in groups several examples of a genre, and they use a genre analysis form to identify the features and language they have in common. This raises their awareness of the features of the genre and gives them some language 'chunks' they can use in their own writing. Genre analysis form 54k reason for writing how I found out about the job relevant experience, skills and abilities closing paragraph asking for an interview Learners are given an essay with the topic sentences taken out, and put them back in the right place. This raises their awareness of the organisation of the essay and the importance of topic sentences. Once learners have seen how the ideas are organised in typical examples of the genre, they can go about organising their own ideas in a similar way. Students in groups draft a plan of their work, including how many paragraphs and the main points of each paragraph. These can then be pinned up around the room for comment and comparison. When preparing to write an essay, students group some of the ideas produced earlier into main and supporting statements. In a pure process approach, the writer goes through several drafts before producing a final version. In practical terms, and as part of a general English course, this is not always possible. Nevertheless, it may be helpful to let students know beforehand if you are going to ask them to write a second draft. Those with access to a word processor can then use it, to facilitate the redrafting process. The writing itself can be done alone, at home or in class, or collaboratively in pairs or groups. Peer evaluation Peer evaluation of writing helps learners to become aware of an audience other then the teacher. If students are to write a second draft, I ask other learners to comment on what they liked / didn't like about the piece of work, or what they found unclear, so that these comments can be incorporated into the second draft. The teacher can also respond at this stage by commenting on the content and the organisation of ideas, without yet giving a grade or correcting details of grammar and spelling. When writing a final draft, students should be encouraged to check the details of grammar and spelling, which may have taken a back seat to ideas and organisation in the previous stages. Instead of correcting writing myself, I use codes to help students correct their own writing and learn from their mistakes. Error correction code 43k By going through some or all of these stages, learners use their own ideas to produce a piece of writing that uses the conventions of a genre appropriately and in so doing, they are asked to think about the audience's expectations of a piece of writing of a particular genre, and the impact of their writing on the reader. If you have any ideas that you feel have successfully helped your students to develop their writing why not add them as a comment below and share them. Further reading A process genre approach to teaching writing by Badger, Richards and White. ELT Journal Volume 54(2), pp. 153-160 Writing by T Hedge. Oxford University Press. Writing by C Tribble. Oxford University Press Process writing by R White and V Arndt. Longman Very practical and easy-to-go advice for teaching writing Thank you for this wonderful article. I was planning to improve my teaching skills for the writing class. And I found the techniques you shared are detailed, feasible, and engaging. I will apply the methods you share in my writing class. Log in or register to post comments It's very informative and time saving. thank you for sharing this… thank you for sharing this article Really innovative It was very informative and… It was very informative and helpful Interesting article. Useful information This is a very nice and… This is a very nice and informative article. Thanks for this amazing article Planning a Writing Lesson Plan I believe this will make the lesson not only productive but also interesting. Thank you. Thanks for a very interesting Thanks for a very interesting and useful article. Ideas first, then language  Thanks for sharing the plan~ I found in my class that it is always 'Ideas firt, then language follows', similar to L1 writing. Dear Catherine, I found your article very useful and I love the advice you give. When I ask my students to write an essay, I tend to correct their mistakes for them and after reading the article I realized that I should be doing it the way you suggested. I learned from my mistakes by finding them out and correcting them not having them corrected for me.  Thank you for a wonderful article. I am grateful for you for this great article Research and insight Browse fascinating case studies, research papers, publications and books by researchers and ELT experts from around the world. See our publications, research and insight 162 COMMENTS Teaching the Literacy Narrative There's a lot going on at the beginning of the term, and we appreciate WR instructors carving out a little time to assign the Writing Program's common literacy narrative assignment, which is a key part of all students' cumulative portfolios.One goal of the assignment is to get students thinking flexibly about literacy and language from Day 1 of their WR experience. How To Use the RACE Writing Strategy (Plus Free Printables) It's most commonly used with reading comprehension short-answer essay questions, but it works for any situation where students need to provide a written response in paragraph form. ... How To Teach the RACE/RACES Writing Strategy. Most teachers begin introducing this method in the mid-elementary years, often around third grade. ... Writing a Personal Statement A personal statement is a narrative essay that connects your background, experiences, and goals to the mission, requirements, and desired outcomes of the specific opportunity you are seeking. It is a critical component in the selection process, whether the essay is for a competitive internship, a graduate fellowship, or admittance to a graduate school program. Study shows how students and teachers are using AI for college essays A new study from Seattle-based education research organization foundry10 found that 30% of students and teachers surveyed are using AI to help with the college essay and letters of recommendation ... APA Style for beginners: High school, college, and beyond APA Style is the most common writing style used in college and career. Its purpose is to promote excellence in communication by helping writers create clear, precise, and inclusive sentences with a straightforward scholarly tone. It addresses areas of writing such as how to. format a paper so it looks professional; online teaching jobs jobs in 'work From Home Tutor.com is looking to bring on additional Online Essay Writing Tutors for rewarding work that can make a difference. Online tutoring is one of the top work-from-home positions. ... Keep your teaching skills sharp with this education job. Great resume builder for teachers. Online tutoring helps make a difference. Job Type: Part-time. Essay Contest Announcement 5th and 6th Grade Essay Writing Contest Attention: Jeffrey O. Office of the State Treasurer 1700 West Washington Street, #102 Phoenix, AZ 85007. WHY: Because winning $529 towards a new or existing AZ529 Education Savings Plan is an incredible way to launch your 5th or 6th grader's future! How to Write a Hook PowerPoint Lesson Elevate your students' writing with the How to Hook Your Reader PowerPoint Lesson. This 32-slide product provides a step-by-step guide to writing a variety of hooks (including anecdotes, quotations, statistics, etc.), Do's and Don'ts, Check for Understanding Quiz, and Your Turn Writing Practice. You and your students will love this! AI pioneers want bots to replace human teachers Programs like mine have long wrestled with how to teach writing efficiently and effectively to so many people at once. The best answer so far is to keep class sizes to no more than 15 students . Rachel Maddow: What Worries Me Most About Election Night Ms. Maddow is the host of "The Rachel Maddow Show" on MSNBC and the MSNBC podcast "Rachel Maddow Presents: Ultra." On Dec. 1, 1960, the far-right preacher and racist demagogue Gerald L.K ... Opinion Guest Essay. Abraham Lincoln's Wiliest Trick Should Be a Lesson for Biden. ... A few days before writing the Blind Memorandum, Lincoln held a meeting in the White House with War Democrats, the ... Jump-Start to Writing a Teaching Philosophy Statement Peer writing groups will offer feedback at each stage of the drafting process, and Center for Teaching and Learning staff will be on hand to answer questions as well. Note that participants need not have a draft of their statement going into the program. Participants must plan to attend all four virtual meetings on Wednesday afternoons Sept ... Kolkata doctor's rape case: Parents remember daughter who was ... The doctor's death has sparked a nation-wide conversation on violence against women in India The rape and murder of a trainee doctor in India's Kolkata city earlier this month has sparked ... Trump can soon tap his $2 billion Truth Social fortune. But it ... For the past six months, former President Donald Trump has been sitting on a social media fortune that he couldn't touch. That will change very soon. My Son and Gus Walz Deserve a Champion Like Tim Walz Ms. Brown is the author, most recently, of "The Palace Papers: Inside the House of Windsor — the Truth and the Turmoil." The sight at the Democratic convention on Wednesday night of Tim Walz ... Opinion All but 18 of the 150 largest expenditures on a Trump campaign's 2020 F.E.C. report went to A.M.M.C. None of the expenses were itemized or otherwise explained aside from anodyne descriptions ... How to Teach Essay Writing in Secondary ELA Once students have their introduction and body paragraphs complete, I then have them move on to writing the conclusion. At this step, I teach conclusion writing to my students and have them restate the thesis and add a general thought to the end of the paragraph. At this point, I emphasize that students should not be adding in any new information. 3 Ways to Teach Essay Writing Teaching students how to write an essay is a big undertaking, but this is a crucial process for any high school or college student to learn. Start by assigning essays to read and then encourage students to choose an essay topic of their own. Spend class time helping students understand what makes a good essay. Guides to Teaching Writing The Harvard Writing Project publishes resource guides for faculty and teaching fellows that help them integrate writing into their courses more effectively — for example, by providing ideas about effective assignment design and strategies for responding to student writing.. A list of current HWP publications for faculty and teaching fellows is provided below. Four Strategies for Effective Writing Instruction 'Four Square' Michele Morgan has been writing IEPs and behavior plans to help students be more successful for 17 years. She is a national-board-certified teacher, Utah Teacher Fellow with Hope ... Tips and Techniques to Teach Essay Writing effectively Polish Writing Mechanics: Writing an exceptional essay involves more than just ideas and creativity. Our guide will provide you with practical tips to refine grammar, spelling, and punctuation, ensuring that your students' written work is polished and professional. Structure with Purpose: Teach your students the art of organizing their ... How to Teach Your Students to Write an Essay Outline. The last thing to do before starting to write an essay is to make its outline. Choose some topic and make a list of points your students would need to mention if they wrote an essay on it. Such a technique will give them a better understanding of what and essay is, and how it should be written. Make sure that all students perfectly ... How to Teach Essay Writing Discuss writing blocks and ways to overcome them. Discuss the planning process and experience how it helps flesh out an essay. Walk them through each lesson making sure they complete each step successfully before attempting to move on in the writing process. Working side by side with your student also helps you become a better instructor by ... Tips for Effective Essay Writing Instruction Promoting Structure and Organization: One key aspect of effective essay writing is the ability to structure thoughts and ideas in a coherent manner. Instructors can guide students in outlining their essays, emphasizing the importance of an introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Establishing this foundation helps students convey their ... Teaching Essay Writing in Secondary Schools: Tips That Work Teaching essay writing in high school can be tedious work for just about anyone. Don't be discouraged; find a thorough guide to help you through it here. Teaching Elementary School Students to Be Effective Writers Students should be encouraged to learn words they frequently misspell, as well as words they wish to include in their writing. Teachers also should help students acquire the skills they need to generate and check plausible spellings for words. 3. Teach students to construct sentences for fluency , meaning and style. Essay Writing: A Complete Guide for Students and Teachers ESSAY WRITING PARAGRAPH WRITING TIPS. Each paragraph should focus on a single main idea. Paragraphs should follow a logical sequence; students should group similar ideas together to avoid incoherence. Paragraphs should be denoted consistently; students should choose either to indent or skip a line. The Best Way to Teach Students Paragraph Writing The reality is that paragraphs are not all 5-7 sentences long. They come in many shapes and sizes. The length of a paragraph depends greatly on the type of writing. And many of the types of writing that we teach our students don't have standard 5-sentence paragraphs. Take personal narratives, for example. How To Teach Writing: What Educators Need To Know Provide as much detail as possible. In addition to giving insight into your student's writing ability, asking these questions can also show how comfortable your students are with the writing process. You'll notice that some students excitedly get to work while others give short or vague answers. Step 5. Planning a writing lesson As part of the essay-writing process, students in groups put the ideas generated in the previous stage onto a 'mind map'. The teacher then draws a mind-map on the board, using ideas from the different groups. ... A process genre approach to teaching writing by Badger, Richards and White. ELT Journal Volume 54(2), pp. 153-160 Writing by T Hedge ... assignment essay homework paper phd report resume review thesis