Crazy Critters: Write a 5-Paragraph Report (The IEW Way)

Every student needs the basic "five paragraph essay" in their bag of tricks. First, this class will cover the basics of outline note taking from a source. Then, students will learn to use their outline to write 3 body paragraphs, an introduction paragraph, and a conclusion paragraph. After this four week course, students will have practiced researching a topic and writing a complete report.

Before writing, students learn how to write a key word outline from sources I provide. Outlines are very important to the writing process. Specifically, students can use outlines to write notes from the source text and organize those notes. As young writers, they benefit from the ability to write ideas in the form of outlines without needing to worry about complete sentences and other grammar rules. Reading source texts about interesting aquatic animals, learners will identify and outline important and interesting details.

Additionally, reports should be interesting to read, not only informational and boring. In order to help students accomplish this, we practice adding five dress-ups. Dress-ups help writers use a variety of words and phrases to engage their readers with interesting and specific word choices. I will also help your student learn how to revise and edit their reports. Concise, compelling essays encourage engagement from readers.

Throughout class, I will instruct with both lecture and student collaboration. Using powerpoint and handouts, I will teach the skill for the week. I will encourage students to answer questions and practice the skill verbally, through the chat box, or using visual cues such as a thumbs-up or the reactions in the zoom classroom. Student involvement encourages learning. During the week, students will have the opportunity to practice writing through homework assignments. 

No previous experience with IEW is required. I will teach each step of the essay process and provide handouts. If you are familiar with the Institute for Excellence in Writing, this class covers units 4 and 8 and the five dress-ups.

Week 1: Key Word Outline-Dumbo Octopus (HW: Key Word Outline-Blobfish and Narwhal)
Week 2: 5 Dress-ups, Introduction and Conclusion Paragraphs (HW: Write the Blobfish and Narwhal paragraphs, introduction and conclusion paragraph handout)
Week 3: Edit and Revise (HW-Write the introduction and conclusion paragraphs; edit and revise)
Week 4: Share reports, review games