Opinion Writing for First Graders

Welcome to our opinion writing class, a dynamic and engaging course tailored for first graders. This foundational class is perfect for beginning writers ready to take their writing skills to the next level. Young learners will learn how to distinguish between facts and personal opinions, a crucial skill in both academics and life.

Through carefully structured activities, first graders will learn to organize their ideas systematically, paving the way for writing clear and complex sentences with ease. By the end of the week, each learner will have expressed their thoughts confidently in written English, using simple but powerful sentences.

WHO CAN PARTICIPATE IN THIS CLASS

To get the most out of this writing class, it's important for students to be able to write short, simple sentences on their own. If your child is currently writing sentences, even if they are very short and simple, they are welcome to join this class! We will work together in class to expand on those sentences, making them more complex and detailed as we go along. Remember, it's completely normal for first graders to make spelling errors, so don't worry about perfect spelling—it's all part of the learning process.

TEACHING STYLE

Given that my classes are tailored towards English Language Learners with simple English, visual aids, interactive activities, and concise, comprehensible lessons, several other unique learning needs can also benefit from this approach, such as students with ADHD, ASD, or speech and language delays. 

In my lessons, I incorporate these support to cater to the various needs:

Visual Support: I use slides with images and diagrams to explain concepts.
Short Lessons: I use short, engaging activities that help to maintain attention. Visual aids can redirect focus back to the lesson, and the interactive element of activities assists in expending energy in a positive, structured way.
Clear Instructions: By using simple English and reinforcing spoken information with visuals, I make content more accessible for students who struggle to process auditory information.
Interactive Questions: I engage students with questions that they can respond to by using Nearpod.

MATERIALS

For our writing class, your child will need just a few simple things:

Paper or a notebook
A pencil or pen

A tablet with a writing app is also fine if you have one. 

We'll be using a fun website called Nearpod for some activities, but it's not a must. Your child can still enjoy the class using just our videos. If you decide to try Nearpod, don't worry; we'll have easy instructions to follow in the lesson.