Once students enter middle school, they're expected to write more than they ever have before. We all know that math builds on itself each year, but so does writing. Students who aren't confident in the very basics of writing will find themselves overwhelmed and frustrated when entering middle school. The goal of this class is to review the basics of writing so students will feel more confident in their abilities as a writer. After all, writing is about communicating and everyone is capable of communicating! 

This class will start off with students receiving a lot of hands-on assistance with assignments. As the class goes on, students will start doing more independent work. Students will receive detailed feedback on their writing assignments to help them improve their writing. The feedback will include a few things they did well, as well as a few things they could improve. This class will NOT focus on editing, grammar, or spelling. These things can act as a stumbling block for students who are not confident in their writing skills.

Class 1:
Introduction to the class
Informational Essay - What is an informational (expository) paragraph?
Read an informational paragraph.
Brainstorming activity - Write a list of things you know a lot about or really like.
Parts of an informational (expository) paragraph - Title, topic sentence, transitions, explain/examples, conclusion
Accordion paragraph activity - Fold a piece of paper like an accordion and label the parts of a paragraph.
Complete a fill-in-the-blank paragraph.
HOMEWORK: Write a paragraph about a chosen topic.

Class 2:
Read an informational essay about a favorite place.
Brainstorm activities - 
Write a list of fun places you have visited.
Why are these places fun to go?
Semantic map - Words to describe those places.
Create a fill-in-the blank essay - We will use the essay we read in class to practice writing our own essay.
HOMEWORK: Work on another fill-in-the-blank essay. Watch the read aloud video on Youtube of "The Important Book." (Link will be provided in class.

Class 3:
Writing activity on description - The important thing about...
Narrative essay - What is a narrative essay? How is it different/similar to an informational essay.
Read a narrative essay in class.
We will create an outline for the narrative essay we read in class.
Brainstorm activity - What do you see? 
Students will decide on a topic for a narrative essay and we will work on writing the outline together in class.
HOMEWORK: Write the narrative essay.

Class 4:
Read two short stories in class.
OREO - How to write an opinion paragraph
OREO activity
Using OREO, students will write a paragraph on which of the two short stories they like best.
OREO paragraph to OREO essay - We will use the OREO paragraph activity to create an outline for an essay. 
Students will review the parts of a 5-paragraph essay.
HOMEWORK: Write an opinion essay.

Class 5:
What is a reading response paragraph?
Read a short non-fiction story and answer questions about the reading.
Practice writing a paragraph to respond to a question.
Practice active reading skills - Read the questions first, underline/circle important information.