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Writing Mini-Lessons for 2

nd

Grade

The First 30 Days


*or 60 Days Be Responsive to Your Students Needs.

Teaching writing is a passion of mine. Years ago, a colleague and friend observed me teach a
writing lesson. After the observation, she said, Is that all you do? The answer was and still is the
same yes! This packet of mini-lessons will help you establish a classroom of passionate and
proficient writers without much, if any, preparation.

Clip Art: http://www.thistlegirldesigns.com/shop/


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Supplies needed:
Whatever you use to model writing: chart paper, document camera, computer,
and/or overhead projector
Writing notebooks for mini-lessons: one per person, including you. I use
composition notebooks.
Writing notebooks for writing: one per person, including you. I use Google Docs.
Spiral notebooks or composition notebooks work well too.
Copies, as needed.

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Suggested lesson format:


Writing Mini-lesson: 10-15 minutes
Students Write: 20 minutes
This can be choice or assigned. If students finish an assigned topic, they
free write, revise, or edit. Writing never stops in your classroom. During this
time, confer with students. Important: Tell them one positive thing about
their writing, and give them ONE thing to work on.
Authors Chair: 10 minutes
Two or three students share a snip-it from their writing with the class. I have
a one-page limit if its double-spaced. For single-spaced pieced, they only get
to read half a page. Students respond with positive comments.

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Preface:
If you dont have enough time built into your schedule, dont worry. Just fit
the lessons into the schedule that you have. Youll be surprised what 10-15
minutes a day of modeling writing will do for your class. Dr. Rich Allen,
author and brain-based consultant, says, If youre not modeling, youre
teaching something else. This concept is especially true in writing.
Remember to MODEL writing every day.
Writing is talking on paper. If a child tells you that he doesnt know what to
write about, simply respond with this statement, Thats so sad. It looks like
you wont be talking today. J
Simply said, write ALOUD in front of your students for about 10 minutes
each day. If you dont finish a lesson, dont worry. Simply pick up the next
day where you left off. If you add on to your writing, students will add on to
their writing. If you revise your writing, students will revise theirs. These
lessons can easily stretch into 60 days, and itll be time well spent.
Essentially, were teaching the same concepts over and over anyway.
Take time to SHOW students whats going on inside your head. When I was
a first-year teacher, my principal said to me after observing a math lesson,
The difference in a mathematician and a good math teacher is that a good

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math teacher can teach others how to teach math. Youre a good math
teacher.
Ive always laughed about how that was a backhanded compliment, but I
agree wholeheartedly with him. I believe the same holds true for teaching
writing. If writing comes naturally to you, it may be harder for you to teach
others how to write. If it doesnt, you may be the best writing teacher out
there.
Regardless of how easily writing comes to you, be sure to share the thinking
that goes on inside your head with kids. Well, be sure its school appropriate!
Some things you may want to keep to yourself. J Its okay to get stuck. If
that happens, let your students help you figure out what youre going to write
next.
This packet is designed to get you started writing aloud with your students.
You can use the lessons as they are written, or you can modify them to best
meet your students needs. You can use a computer with a projector,
document camera, chart paper, or an overhead projector
when modeling. Just be sure the students see you writing.

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Lesson One:
Pre-assess:
Before you begin teaching writing, instruct students to write to a prompt. Do not give
them a rubric or any other directions.
Two that Ive used are:
Tell about a fun time you had with family or friends.
Pretend you are an animal. Tell about a day in your life.
Instruct students to follow the steps of the writing process. I allow about 30 minutes
and then collect what they finish.
Since this is a pre-assessment, youll know all you need to know about their writing
whether or not they finish. I have my students do this in their writing journals. Its a
wonderful first piece. Then, have them write to the same prompt around Christmas and
again at the end of the year. Their growth should be phenomenal.

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Lesson Two: I can talk on paper. (The time spent gathering ideas will be well worth it in
the long run!)
Create a list of things you like to talk about in front of students. Be sure to
include fiction and nonfiction topics when creating your list. Once youre finished,
students create their own list in their writing mini-lesson notebooks.
My list looks like this:
Family: Jack, JT, Kyle, Mom, Dad, Monica, Brenda, Lucille
Close Friends: Emalie, Lori
Students: All of them!
Pets: Annie, a toy poodle, and Remington, a lab mix
Vacations: New York City, New Hampshire, Eureka Springs, San Antonio,
Mount Zion National Park, Chicago, Glacier National Park, Yellowstone
National Park
Hobbies: Harley Davidson, gardening, farm life, horses, building houses,
shopping
Social Studies: Landforms, Rights of Citizens, Native American People,
Peaceful Resolutions
Science: Magnetism, Sound, Rocks, Soil, Life Cycle
Fictional Characters: Cherilyn, a wise older sister, and Monique, an annoying
little sister (Note: My name is Cheryl Lynn, and Im the little sister in real life.
My older sisters name is Monica. My students love these fictional stories.
J)
Students spend their writing time creating their own list of writing ideas.
Have them circle suspect spelling words.

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Lesson Three: I can talk on paper.


Model sharing your writing list with classmates with the music/mix/meet
strategy.
Have students get the list they made the previous day and a pencil. Play music
and have students walk around the room. Stop the music and instruct students
to find a partner or trio. Trios are important so no one feels left out. Take a
minute and talk about the importance of feeling included.
Once they have their groups, have them take turns sharing items from their list
one at a time - until they run out of items or you decide its time to move on to
another group.
Encourage them to add ideas from classmates to their own list of writing ideas.
Play music again and have students find a new partner or trio. Repeat this for
about 5-10 minutes depending on their on-task behavior.

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Lesson Four: I can talk on paper!


Create a class list of ideas on a large Alphabox (see reproducible) and post them
somewhere in the room. Have students get out their list from the previous day.
Collect their ideas. Then, when students dont know what to write about, you can
refer them to the list.
Lesson Five: Writing is talking on paper.
Model talking about something from the list. Writing is talking on paper. Gather
the students on the carpet and tell them a story. Mine might go something like
this:
One day I was in St. Louis working with teachers when a stray dog showed up at our house in
Buffalo. My husband, Jack, gave it food and water and went to bed. Jacks a big ole softie when it
comes to animals. The next morning, the dog was still there. That dog is Remington, our beloved mix.
Hes such a good dog! Hes about forty-five pounds and kind of looks like an Irish Settler, but hes
black.
Remington doesnt have a mean bone in his body and loves to spend time with us. One of his
favorite things to do is ride our four-wheeler. Im always afraid hell fall off because he insists upon
standing up on the platform behind the seat. Sometimes well look outside and see him sleeping on the
platform hoping that well take him for a ride. I usually feel sorry for him and tote him down to the pond
so he can take a swim. We never need to give him a bath because he swims in the pond about ten
months out of the year. We have fish in our pond that we feed several times a week. Remington loves
to swim while were feeding the fish. He gobbles up the fish food while swimming. Its funny to watch.
Im so glad Remington chose to live with us. Hes such a good dog!

When you finish telling your story to the class, talk about what it would look like
if you wrote it on paper. Then, have students find a partner and take turns
talking about something on their writing list.
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My Writing Ideas
A

XYZ

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Lesson Six: I can talk on paper.

Images are worth a thousand words. Model cutting out pictures you like from
childrens magazines and talk about the stories you could write to go along with
the images. After you model creating yours, students create their own. They can
glue these images into their writing notebooks. My friend and colleage, Emalie
Lindsey, had her students glue the images on the front of their composition
notebooks along with pictures they brought from home of their pets, favorite
items, and family. Later that day, she Mod Podged the covers for durability.

If you dont have magazines, you can search for images online. Once you find
the images you want, place them in a word document and copy them for
students. Since I have 12 computers in my room, I save the document on the
students computers, and they can cut and paste the images they choose into
their own documents.
If you search correctly, you can find appropriate images that you have
permission to use and copy legally! Heres how:
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Google search images.


Click on the gearbox.

Then, click on Advanced Search.


Scroll down to Usage Rights and click on Free to Use or Share.

Remember to continue to add on to these lists as the year progresses. Revisit these
lists as students run out of things to write about. If you spend enough time at the
beginning of the year establishing writing is talking on paper, you may never have
this problem.
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Lesson Seven: I can write complete sentences.


Sentences start with a capital letter and end with punctuation. They also have a
subject and a verb. Model writing sentences for the students on an anchor chart.
I went to a movie.
o Who went to a movie? I did.
o What did I do? I went to a movie.
o Subject Noun: I (Really its a subject prounoun. J)
o Verb: Went
My dog barked at the mailman.
o Who barked at the mailman? My dog.
o What did my dog do? He barked at the mailman.
o Subject Noun: Dog
o Verb: Barked
The little girl danced in the rain.
o Who danced in the rain? The little girl.
o What did the girl do? She danced in the rain.
o Subject Noun: Girl
o Verb: Danced
Model writing several examples similar to the ones above. Choose topics from
your class Alphabox. Then, have students practice saying sentences to a partner
from their topic list. Dont worry about having them identify subject nouns and
verbs yet just encourage them to say complete sentences.
*Remember to have your students write EVERY day after the mini-lesson. I generally let them free write in a journal. While
theyre writing, youre conferring with students. I try to get to five students each day. Then, allow a few students to share
in authors chair. Ive used this Writers Workshop approach for years and it works! Sometimes I have students practice
what I modeled before they are allowed to free write.

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Lesson Eight: I can write complete sentences.


Refer back to the sentences you wrote the previous day. What do you notice
about them? Guide them to point out that each sentence starts with a capital
letter and ends with punctuation. Remind them that each sentence has a subject
and a verb. The sentences also make sense.
Model writing several sentences for your students.
A tiny kitten played with a ball of yarn.
o Who played with a ball of yarn? A tiny kitten.
o What did the kitten do? It played with a ball of yarn.
o Subject Noun: Kitten
o Verb: Played
My kids played on the slip-and-slide in the backyard.
o Who played on the slip-and-slide in the backyard? My kids.
o What did my kids do? They played on the slip-and-slide in the backyard.
JT and Kyle traveled to Montana this summer.
o Who traveled to Montana this summer? JT and Kyle
o What did JT and Kyle do? They traveled to Montana.
Model several examples similar to the ones above. Choose topics from the class
Alphabox. Have students practice saying sentences to a partner from their topic
list. Depending on your class, this might be a good time to have them write a
couple of sentences in their writing notebook for a formative assessment check.
If you dont feel that most are mastering this, repeat the lesson tomorrow. Dont
assess until youre fairly sure most are mastering it. If you dont feel theyre
mastering talking in complete sentences based on informal observation, reteach
this a different way.

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Lesson Nine/Ten: I can write several sentences. Repeat this lesson until most of the students have mastered this.
Begin an Editors Checklist. Youll add on to this as the year progresses. Post it
so the students can see it in the classroom.
o Name and Date
o Sentences make sense.
o Capitals at the beginning of a sentence
o Punctuation at the end of a sentence

Write a sentence that the students will have questions about. This is a great way
to get them to combine sentences. Consider indenting the sentence because
youll be turning it into a paragraph soon.
o I had the best dinner ever last night.
Ask students what they want to know about my dinner. Guide them to ask
questions. As they ask questions, answer them. Model writing the answers to the
questions on an anchor chart.
o Student: What did you have?
I had shrimp scampi with a baked potato and a salad. The cheese
biscuit was so good!
o Student: Where did you eat?
I ate at Red Lobster.
o Student: Who did you eat with? (If you want to use proper English, say,
With whom did you eat?)
I ate with my husband, our kids, and my parents.
o Student: Why did you eat out?
We ate out to celebrate my husbands birthday.
Write sentences that will spark students interest.
o I had so much fun last night.

What did you do?

Where did you do it?

Why did you do it?

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Lesson Ten/Eleven: I can combine sentences and sequence information. Repeat this lesson
until most of the students have mastered this.

Refer back to your writing from yesterday.


o I had the best dinner ever last night. I had shrimp scampi with a baked
potato and a salad. The cheese biscuit was so good! I ate at Red Lobster.
I ate with husband, our kids, and my parents. We ate out to celebrate my
husbands birthday.
Ask your students how this sounds as you read it aloud. They should say choppy.
Model rewriting it:
o Last night, I had dinner at Red Lobster with my husband, kids, and
parents. We celebrated my husbands birthday. I had shrimp scampi with a
baked potato and a salad. The cheese biscuit was so good!
Compare the two pieces. How are they alike? How are they different?
Whats missing from the second example? Guide them to recognize that its
missing a closing sentence. Add one.
o Last night, I had dinner at Red Lobster with my husband, kids, and
parents. We celebrated my husbands birthday. I had shrimp scampi with a
baked potato and a salad. The cheese biscuit was so good! Red Lobster is
one of my favorite places to eat. I cant wait to go there again.

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Lesson Twelve: I can circle suspect spelling words. Repeat this lesson until most of the students have mastered
the editors checklist.

Add to the editors checklist.


o Name and Date
o Sentences make sense.
o Capitals at the beginning of a sentence.
o Punctuation at the end of a sentence.
o Circle suspect spelling words.

Model writing aloud in front of your students. Choose a topic from the Alphabox
you made earlier in the year. Be sure to add items to the Alphabox as the year

progresses so students never run out of things to write about.

o Point out when capitalizing the first word in a sentence and end
punctuation. Talk about how the sentences make sense. When you come
to a big word stretch it out when spelling it. Talk about the spelling, and
circle the suspect spelling word so you can look it up later when you edit.
Consider repeating this lesson for several days. I will probably spend a week or

two modeling writing from our class Alphabox while talking students through our
Editors Checklist. You can make this interactive by allowing students to circle

the capital letters and ending punctuation after you write aloud. You may want to
model looking up suspect words in the dictionary. My students will have personal
dictionaries from our Word Work block. This is a good time to teach students
how to add words to their personal dictionaries.

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Lesson Thirteen: I can organize my writing.


Introduce students to this graphic organizer. Omit the dialogue and simile part of
the organizer for now. Some advanced readiness students may be ready for
them soon. Theres a reproducible in this packet for you.

Eventually students will:


First, write a topic sentence. Immediately, write a closing sentence. Then, add
transition words and details. Have students copy this into their writing minilesson books or copy the picture and have them glue it into their books.
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Lesson Fourteen: I can add a topic and a closing sentence/sentences to my writing.


Model writing topic and closing sentences from your list of writing ideas. Dont
worry if theyre boring. This is just preplanning. Well spice them up later with a
grabber and better vocabulary if we actually use them.
Examples:
Topic Sentence: Jack and I took a vacation to New York City.
Closing Sentence: That was the best vacation ever! I wonder where we will go
next year.
Topic Sentence: Annie, my toy poodle, is the best pet ever.
Closing Sentences: Im so happy my husband bought Annie for me for Christmas.
I cant imagine my life without her.
Topic Sentence: Eating out keeps your kitchen clean.
Closing Sentences: If you want to keep your kitchen clean, consider eating out
at a restaurant. Then, youll have more time to play with your kids.
Topic Sentence: Helping your parents clean the kitchen is wonderful family time.
Closing Sentences: Helping your parents clean the kitchen is wonderful family
time. Plus, youll end up with sparkly dishes and polished silverware. Its a win-win
situation for all involved.
After you model several, have students write some topic and closing sentences
in their writing journals.

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Lesson Fifteen: I can add a topic and a closing sentence/sentences to my writing.


Allow students to share examples from the previous lesson. Be sure to glance at
them first to ensure they are strong and appropriate examples.
Model writing one or two more from your class list of writing ideas.
Topic Sentence: Branson, Missouri, is a fun place to visit.
Closing Sentences: Branson, Missouri, is a fun place to visit. I cant wait to go
again.
Topic Sentence: Lori Elliott and I have been good friends for many years.
Closing Sentence: Im glad Lori Elliott is my good friend. Im looking forward to
many more years of close friendship with her.
Remember, these are just for the graphic organizer. We can spice them up later
with grabbers or descriptive language.

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Lesson Sixteen: I can add temporal words/phrases to my writing.


Brainstorm a list of transitional words and phrases. Students should add these
to the next clean page in their writing notebook while you create an anchor chart
to hang in the classroom.
o First,
o Shortly after that,
o Meanwhile,
o Soon,
o Along the way,
o Before long,
o Earlier,
o After all of that,
o Later on,
o Eventually,

o An hour later,
o Without delay,
o Immediately,
o At that very moment,
o At last,
o Next,
o Later that same day ,

o During all of this,


o As soon as ____,
o Not a moment too soon,
o While this was happening,

Read Cinderellas Big Foot by Laura North and Martin Remphry. If you set up
your free teacher account at www.getepic.com, you can project the book for
your students. Simply search for it. It has several temporal examples in it. Point
them out to students as you read. If theyre not already on your list, add them.
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Lesson Seventeen: I can add temporal words to my writing.


Model creating a prewriting graphic organizer complete with a topic sentence,
closing sentence, and temporal words. Remember to model writing the topic
sentence first and immediately follow it with the closing sentence.
Mine might look something like this:
Topic Sentence: Remington, our beloved rescue dog, loves spending time with us on the
farm.
First,

Next,

Finally,

Closing Sentence: Im glad Remington loves spending time with us on the farm because
we love spending time with him too!

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Lesson Eighteen: I can add details to my writing.


Refer back to the graphic organizer you started yesterday. Talk about how you
have the beginning and end but need to add details to the middle. Its the middle
that makes the writing interesting. Its important to add details, details, details,
and MORE details, details, details to your writing. Its all about the details! The
graphic organizer is just a place to collect a few details. Later, well stretch them
out into an interesting story.
Topic Sentence: Remington, our beloved rescue dog, loves spending time with us on the
farm.
First,

Next,

Finally,

*Four Wheeler

*Swims in pond

*Sleeps on the couch at night

*Runs in front

*Eats fish food

*Likes to snuggle

*Rides on back

*Likes us to watch him

*Sneaks in bed

* 93 acres
Closing Sentence: Im glad Remington loves spending time with us on the farm because
we love spending time with him too!
Have the students create a graphic organizer of their own.

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Lesson Nineteen: Writing is talking on paper.


Refer back to the graphic organizer you made the previous day. Use it to guide
your talking. Turn it into a personal narrative story.
Have students get out their graphic organizer from the previous day. Use
Inside/Outside Circle to form partners. Students practice telling a personal
narrative story from their organizer to their partners. Remind them to include
temporal words when telling the story along with their topic and closing
sentences. Their graphic organizer should be their guide.
I recommend doing this over the course of a week or two. Students should make
several graphic organizers to keep in their writing notebooks. Then, they will have
guides for future writing. During writing time, let students talk. After all, writing
is talking on paper.

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Lesson Twenty: Writing is talking on paper.


Refer back to the graphic organizer you made a couple of days ago. Talk about
how it aligns to the skills youre supposed to teach in 2

nd

grade. Share I Can

statements with your students. Look a writing piece that you modeled previously.
Point out what a 3 looks like. Have students take a minute to self-assess. Talk
about their self-assessment when you confer. You may agree or disagree with
them.

Writing Scoring Guide


3

I can effectively talk on paper.

I am learning to talk on paper.

I need to talk on paper.

I can effectively organize my

I am learning to organize my writing.

I need to organize my writing.

I can maintain a clear focus in my

I am learning to maintain a clear

I need to stay focused in my

writing.

focus in my writing.

writing.

I can effectively use temporal

I am learning to use temporal words

I need to use temporal words in my

words in my writing.

in my writing.

writing.

I can effectively use correct

I am learning to use correct

I need to use correct capitalization,

capitalization, verb usage, and

capitalization, verb usage, and

verb usage, and punctuation in my

punctuation in my writing.

punctuation in my writing.

writing.

I can use the correct spelling of

I am learning to use the correct

I need to use the correct spelling of

words in my writing.

spelling of words in my writing.

words in my writing.

writing.

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Lesson Twenty-One: I can use adjectives to spice up my writing.


Adjectives answer these questions:What kind? Which one? How many?
Adjective Cheer:
o Snap twice on right hand and then twice on left hand. Then, clap twice. Finally
make twisting motions. Practice this a few times to get the rhythm down.
o Now, add words.Snap twice on right hand while saying, What kind? Snap
twice on left hand while saying, Which one? Clap twice while saying, How
many?Make twisting motions and say, ADJECTIVE.
Create a list of nouns generally things you can touch.
After you have a list of nouns, go back and add adjectives to the nouns by
asking the questions, What kind? Which one? How many?
o Brown dog
o Red dog
o Soft dog
o Fluffy dog
o Sweet dog
o Ferocious dog
o Guard dog
o This dog
o That dog
o Three dogs

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Lesson Twenty-Two: I can use adjectives to spice up my writing.

Read Cinderellas Big Foot by Laura North and Martin Remphry again. This time,
go on an adjective hunt. Write down the adjectives. You dont have to collect
them all. Start with the ones before nouns. Theyre the easiest to spot. See if
students remember the temporal words lesson you did with this book previously.
This is a good time to spiral your teaching.

Lesson Twenty-Three: I can write to a prompt.


Teach students to pick out key words in a prompt. Then, restate the prompt
using those important words for the topic sentence. Write the closing sentence
next. Then, add temporal words. Dont add the details yet. Thats the lesson
tomorrow.
Link to download lesson:
https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Writing-Prompt-Pretend-YouOwn-a-Pet-Store-172617

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Lesson Twenty-Four: I can add details to my writing.


Show them the similes but tell them they dont need to know how to add similes
to their writing yet. Itll peak their interest. Briefly explain them anyway. Some
may surprise you and start adding them.

Lesson Twenty-Five: I can add a grabber to my topic sentence.


Brainstorm how to make the topic sentence more interesting. Sometimes you can
use a question like, Have you ever owned a pet store? Whats the grabber in
this example? (refer to PowerPoint)

Lesson Twenty-Six: I can stretch out my graphic organizer by adding adjectives and
spicy words to my writing.
Continue going through the writing PowerPoint with the students pointing out
how you expanded the graphic organizer into an interesting narrative.
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Lesson Twenty-Seven: I can write interesting pieces.


Continue going through the PowerPoint with the students. Compare the boring
slide with the interesting writing. How are they alike? How are they different?
Use a Venn Diagram to make an anchor chart to display for future reference.
Lesson Twenty-Eight: I can produce compound sentences in my writing.
Compound Sentence
A compound sentence includes two complete sentences that are combined with a
conjunction. Be sure to place the comma BEFORE the conjunction when you
combine two complete sentences.
Compound Sentence Cheer
o Two little sentences
(Pretend to hold a sentence in each hand.)
o Squish them together
(Bring hands close together where theyre almost touching.)
o Comma and, comma but (let them giggle), comma or
(Use your right hand to draw a comma in the air.)
o Compound sentence!
(Make a fist with your right hand and use it to tap your left hand.)
Model several examples of compound sentences. Write them on an anchor chart.
o There is a climbing tree in my backyard, and there is a fishing pond in my
front yard.
o Cheryl talked to her momma on the phone, and she cooked dinner at the same
time.
o I want to go to the mall with my mom, but I have to grade my papers first.

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Lesson Twenty-Nine: I can capitalize holidays in my writing.


Brainstorm a list of holidays. Write them on an anchor chart. Talk about how they
are proper nouns and should be capitalized. Spend a few minutes reading them in
proper English with a British accent. J
Model writing a paragraph. Refer to the Editors Checklist posted in the room.
Add your name and date. Think aloud as you write. Im going to indent the first
paragraph.
Celebrating holidays is always fun. I love to celebrate them all, but Christmas is
my favorite.
o Continue thinking aloud as you write. I capitalized Christmas because its
a holiday. What do you notice about that sentence? Yes, its a compound
sentence. Lets review our cheer: Two little sentences, squish them
together, comma and, comma but, comma or, compound sentence. Who
can find the first sentence? Who can find the second sentence? Who can
find the conjunction or word that joins the sentences together? Now lets
go back and reread the paragraph before we continue writing.
o

Celebrating holidays is always fun. I love to celebrate them all, but


Christmas is my favorite. We always have a large family gathering at
Grandmas house. She always makes a mouth-watering turkey complete
with all the fixings. After dinner, we open presents. The little kids always
get to go first. I love watching their surprised faces when they get
unexpected items. I enjoy celebrating holidays, but Christmas will always
be my favorite.

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Lesson Thirty: I can use similes in my writing.


Similes make me smile! Especially when you talk like a valley girl.
Like, yeah.
As if.
Have some fun with this. Let your students walk around and practice using like and as
in their sentences. Then, talk about how similes use like and as to compare one thing to
another.
Write a list of similes on chart paper. Encourage students help you come up with more.
They need to write these in their writing notebooks too.
Here are some examples:

as pretty as a picture

as flat as a pancake

as light as a feather

as refreshing as a dip in a pool

like a fish out of water

like a fish in water

like a ballerina dancing in the wind

like a kid in a candy store

Follow up lesson: Model adding similes to your writing. Youll spend the rest of the year
spiraling back to these lessons, reteaching as needed. Remember to think aloud as you
write in front of the students. As Rich Allen says, If youre not modeling, youre
teaching something else.
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Topic Sentence:

Temporal Words:

Detail:

Detail:

Detail:

Detail:

Detail:

Detail:

Detail:

Closing Sentence:

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Simile:

Detail:

Simile:

Detail:

Writing Scoring Guide


3

I can effectively talk on paper.

I am learning to talk on paper.

I need to talk on paper.

I can effectively organize my

I am learning to organize my writing.

I need to organize my writing.

I can maintain a clear focus in my

I am learning to maintain a clear

I need to stay focused in my

writing.

focus in my writing.

writing.

I can effectively use temporal

I am learning to use temporal words

I need to use temporal words in my

words in my writing.

in my writing.

writing.

I can effectively use strong

I am learning to use strong

I need to use strong vocabulary in

vocabulary in my writing.

vocabulary in my writing.

my writing.

I can effectively use figurative

I am learning to use figurative

I need to use figurative language in

language in my writing.

language in my writing.

my writing.

I can effectively use compound

I am learning to use compound

I need to use compound sentences

sentences and appositives in my

sentences and appositives in my

and appositives in my writing.

writing.

writing.

I can effectively use correct

I am learning to use correct

I need to use correct capitalization,

capitalization, verb usage, and

capitalization, verb usage, and

verb usage, and punctuation in my

punctuation in my writing.

punctuation in my writing.

writing.

I can use the correct spelling of

I am learning to use the correct

I need to use the correct spelling of

words in my writing.

spelling of words in my writing.

words in my writing.

writing.

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References and Research-Based Citations

Allen, R. (2010). High-Impact Teaching Strategies for the XYZ Era of Education. Boston,
MA: Pearson Education, Inc.

Allen, R. (2008). Green Light Classrooms: Teaching Techniques that Accelerate Learning.
Corwin Press.

Allington, R. (2006). What Really Matters for Struggling Readers: Designing ResearchBased Programs. Second Edition. Boston, MA: Pearson Education, Inc.

Arens, A., Loman, K., Cunningham, P., Hall, D. (2005). The Teachers Guide to Big Blocks.
Greensboro, NC: Carson-Dellosa Publishing.

Cunningham, P., Hall, D., Cunningham, J. (2000). Guided Reading the Four-Blocks Way.
Greensboro, NC: Carson-Dellosa Publishing

Fisher, D., Frey, N. (2007). Checking for Understanding: Formative Assessment Techniques
for Your Classroom. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.

Kagan, S., Kagan, M. (2009). Kagan Cooperative Learning. San Clemente, CA: Kagan
Publishing.

Hollas, B. (2005). Differentiating Instruction in a Whole-Group Setting. Peterborough, NH:


Crystal Springs Books.

Jensen, E. (2006). Enriching the Brain: How to Maximize Every Learners Potential. San
Francisco, CA: John Wiley & Sons.

Jensen, E. (2003). Tools for Engagement: Managing Emotional States for Learner Success.
San Diego, CA: The Brain Store.

Jensen, E. (1997). Brain Compatible Strategies. San Diego, CA: The Brain Store.

Marzano, R.J. (2007). The Art and Science of Teaching: A Comprehensive Framework for
Effective Instruction. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum
Development.

Marzano, R. (2006). Classroom and Assessment and Grading that Work. ASCD. Alexandria,
VA

Marzano, R.J. (2001). Classroom Instruction That Works: Research-Based Strategies for
Increasing Student Achievement. ASCD.

Tomlinson, C. (1999). The Differentiated Classroom, Responding to the Needs of All Learners.
Danvers, MA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.

Clip Art: https://www.thistlegirldesigns.com

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