Are you looking for a fabulous collection of released writing prompts from state writing assessments? Would 114 PAGES of these released writing prompts be enough? If so, you have landed on the right page! Below you will find the finest collection of released writing prompts available. Nearly all the prompts are appropriate for elementary and middle school students, and there are quite a few designed specifically for high school students.

You may also enjoy reading: “Writing Prompt Structure and Keywords for State Writing Tests” and “Elementary Writing Samples, Middle School Writing Examples, Sample Essays.” If you are looking to improve student writing FAST, be sure to check out the “Pattern Based Writing: Quick and Easy Essay” page.

What types of writing are students asked to write on state writing tests? What types of prompts will you find in the collections below? 

On state writing tests you will find descriptive, expository, persuasive, informative, narrative, imaginative, summarize, and response to literature writing prompts. In the collections of released writing prompts below, you will find examples of all of these different types of writing prompts. (Note: You will not find many examples of “summarize” and “respond to literature” prompts. These types of prompts are built around a reading passage connected to the prompt. As such, I have included a few examples of these types of prompts at the bottom of this page.)

What is The Value and Benefit of Released Writing Prompts?

The value and benefit of these writing prompts can be far-reaching. Spending just a little time dissecting and analyzing these released writing prompts will have a very large payoff. The truth of writing assessments is that many students are off track before they even place their pencil on the paper. Many students completely miss the mark on what they are supposed to write. They write about what they thought they were supposed to write about, or they write about what they wish they had been asked to write about. It is SO FRUSTRATING to see good writers miss the purpose and intent behind a writing prompt and get a poor score.

In other words, these released writing prompts from state writing assessments have more benefit than simply providing interesting topics to write about. (Once again, be sure to read “Writing Prompt Structure and Keywords for State Writing Tests.” As well, check back for upcoming posts dealing with state writing assessments.)

Directions: Open up a second browser and copy and paste the links below into your address bar.

Collection 1: The first collection comes from a very good book called Blowing Away the State Writing Assessment Test. You can find the released writing prompts section of this book on the internet in PDF format (follow the link below.) You can buy the complete book used for $2 + shipping on Amazon. It’s a great deal and you will find at least a few ideas that will help you understand state writing assessments. This collection of writing prompts is 33 PAGES. These prompts are designed for elementary, middle, and high school students.

http://educationnorthwest.org/webfm_send/664   (copy and paste the link into your browser)

Collection 2: If you teach 3rd-5th grade, you are going to love this collection! This collection is from Florida’s fourth grade writing assessment, the FCAT. It’s just four pages, but it contains many, many excellent narrative, expository, and persuasive writing prompts.

http://www.putnamschools.org/departments/title1/FCAT_Sec_Prompts.doc   (This is a Word .doc, so you will be asked to save it. Remember, copy and paste the link into your browser.)

Collection 3: Here is another fabulous collection from the Pennsylvania Department of Education. It’s 47 PAGES and has released writing prompts from the sixth grade, ninth grade, and eleventh grade writing assessments.

http://www.chambersburg.k12.pa.us/curric/K-12%20Curriculum%20CD/Language%20Arts/Resources/Writing.Asses.Rel.Writing.Prompts.pdf   (copy and paste the link into your browser)

Collection 4: Here are released prompts from the California Writing Standards Test for Fourth Grade. It’s 12 pages.

http://k6englishlanguagearts.rusd.k12.ca.us/Documents/Reading-Writing%20Workshop/Grade%204%20Theme%204%20Writing-%20CST%20Prep.pdf   (copy and paste the link into your browser)

Collection 5: Here is a collection from Oregon. It’s 10 pages and includes prompts for elementary, middle, and high school students.

http://www.ode.state.or.us/wma/teachlearn/testing/samples/2009_10/writing_sampleprompts_2009.pdf   (copy and paste the link into your browser)

Collection 6: Here is a collection just for high school students. It’s from the Georgia High School Writing Test and it’s 7 pages.

http://www.doe.k12.ga.us/DMGetDocument.aspx/GHSWT%20Released%20Prompts.pdf?p=6CC6799F8C1371F6778017113C51AA891E0791CED9D2C650F3271928E7627F14&Type=D   (copy and paste the ENTIRE link into your browser)

Summarize and Respond to Literature Prompts

Once again, you will not find many of these types of prompts in any of the collections above. As such, I wanted to give a few examples of what they look like.

Respond to Literature Example Prompts

• Read the story. What message about life is the author trying to communicate to the reader? Be sure to use specific examples from the story to support your answer.

• Based on the story “Down and Out, but Not Done,” how can the reader tell that life during the Great Depression was a struggle? Use specific examples from the passage to support your answer.

• Do you think “Time for Tea and Crumpets” is a good title for this story? Why or why not? Be sure to use details from the story to support your answer.

Write a Summary Example Prompt

Write a summary of the article. Be sure to:

• state the main idea or ideas of the article
• tell the important details that support the main idea
• use your own words when writing your summary .

Important Note: Good writing prompts are not a substitute for effective writing instruction, so here is a plan for writing success. First, download these writing prompts and then immediately check out “Pattern Based Writing: Quick and Easy Essay.” Every day more and more teachers are discovering how much quicker and how much easier teaching writing is once they understand Pattern Based Writing!

Most writing prompts across all of the 50 states look very much alike. They have a similar structure, they use similar language, and they involve similar situations. While it’s true that writing prompts do change across grade levels, it’s also true that fourth grade writing prompts looks quite similar to high school writing prompts. In fact, the “writing situation” may be exactly the same, but with more complex language and writing requirements for high school students.

After learning some tips and tricks regarding the writing prompts found on state writing assessments, be sure to get 114 pages of free State Testing Released Writing Prompts here. Also, if you are looking to bring about true writing success for elementary students or struggling middle school writers, be sure to check out the “Pattern Based Writing: Quick and Easy Essay” page.

State writing assessments usually ask for one of these eight types of writing:

1) Narrative (A realistic story or an imaginative story)

2) Expository (Explain + Inform = Expository)

3) Persuasive (This is expository writing with an agenda.)

4) Inform (The facts… just the facts!)

5) Imaginative (This is actually a narrative.)

6) Descriptive (Descriptive writing tasks are less common than the above types of writing.)

7) Summarize (Read a passage and then summarize what you have read.)

8) Respond to Literature (Read a passage and then answer the question using evidence from the text. This kind of writing is usually a little bit expository and a little bit persuasive.)

Note: In the collections of released writing prompts mentioned above, there are few examples of prompts for “Summarize” and “Respond to Literature.” As such, I have provides a couple samples of these prompts at the bottom of this page.

Prompt Length and Structure

Most state writing prompts will be two or three sentences. (This is especially true in elementary school.) Even though the prompts are quite short, they are often written in multi-paragraph form. Each sentence is written in a separate paragraph. In other words, each sentence will be written on a separate line.

Naturally, the wording and the requirements of the writing tasks get a little more complex with each grade. That being said, most prompts can be used across many different grades with only slight modifications to the language of the prompt.

The Two Parts of the Writing Prompt

Most writing prompts contain two parts. These two parts are:

1. The writing situation – The writing situation gives a little background on the topic that students will be writing about. Example: Many people own pets.

2. The writing task – The writing task contains the specific directions. These directions will often include keywords that identify the “mode of writing” being asked for. Example: Write a persuasive essay convincing your principal to extend recess time.

Some states have short 1-2 sentence prompts, while other states have longer 5-8 sentence prompts. Here is a fourth grade writing prompt from the Kentucky state writing assessment. It is six sentences, which is quite long for a fourth grade writing prompt. Kentucky seems to have longer prompts than most states. (Note: Even in high school, few writing prompts are longer than 6-8 sentences.)

Example: Kentucky – 4th Grade Writing Prompt (6 sentences)

Situation: The local newspaper is having a “Good Friend” contest.  To enter your friend, you must think of an event in your life when your friend did something with you or for you that showed what a terrific friend he or she is.

Writing Task: Select your friend.  (Remember, a friend could be a child your age or a grownup.)  Choose an event that shows how your friend is a good friend to you.  Write a letter to the newspaper that tells about that event so that people will know why your friend deserves to win.

Keywords for Writing Prompts

As mentioned, most writing prompts have a similar structure and use similar language. As such, certain words will be found in most every writing prompt. These words are almost always performing the same job. For example, if you see the word “principal” in a writing prompt, you can be 99% sure it is going to be a persuasive writing task.

We all know that keywords are often used to trick students, so don’t read too much into them. However, at least one of the keywords below will be found in most every prompt. It is worthwhile to point out these types of words and phrases and have students learn to spot them.

Writing Situation Keywords

• Imagine one day (Narrative)
• Imagine that (Narrative)
• Imagine you have (Narrative)
• Think about (Narrative or Expository)
• Think of someone (Inform or Expository)
• Think of a time (Narrative)
• What is your favorite (Expository)
• Your school principal is considering (Persuasive)
• Your school has some (Persuasive)
• Your school is (Persuasive)
• It is important that people (Persuasive)
• Sometimes classrooms (Narrative or Expository)
• You suddenly realize (Narrative)
• Pretend that (Narrative)
• Have you ever (Narrative)
• Everyone has a favorite (Inform or Persuasive)
• Your school newspaper is (Persuasive)
• Your parents want to (Persuasive)
• If you could be (Narrative or Expository)
• Select a (Inform)
• Identify a (Inform)
• Most people (Inform)
• Many public places do not permit (Persuasive)
• Do you agree or disagree? (Persuasive)
• Suppose that you (Narrative)
• Most students have a (Expository)
• Everyone enjoys (Expository)
• Think about the kinds (Inform)
• You have been named (Narrative)
• Your principal (Persuasive)
• The students at your school (Persuasive)
• Based on the story (Respond to Literature)

Writing Task / Writing Directions Keywords

• Write a story (Narrative)
• Describe it (Descriptive)
• Your assignment is Write about this person (Inform or Expository)
• Write to explain why (Expository)
• Explain what animal (Expository)
• Make up a story (Narrative) Tell a true story (Narrative)
• Explain the (Expository)
• Write an article for (Inform or Expository)
• Write a persuasive letter (Persuasive)
• Write a narrative about (Narrative)
• Write to persuade your classmates (Persuasive)
• Write a letter to (Persuasive)
• Write a persuasive essay (Persuasive)
• Write a speech to convince (Persuasive)
• Urge your readers (Persuasive)
• From your own experience, tell about (Narrative)

Intended Complexity and Confusion

Memorizing keywords is rarely a good use of time. State tests are usually sophisticated enough to discourage these types of shortcuts. For example, narrative writing prompts often use the word “imagine,” however, many other kinds of prompts also use that word as a set up for the situation.

Example: Imagine you have just been elected class president. Write a letter to your fellow students urging them to keep the schoolyard clean.

This example shows a persuasive writing task, yet uses the word “imagine” in describing the situation. Many students associate the word “imagine” with a story. One can be sure the wording is no accident.

Another monkey wrench thrown at students is that writing prompts in state writing tests often have students write for a transactive purpose. A transactive purpose is authentic writing with a real-world purpose.

For example, many state writing tests require students to write a letter to someone or write an article for the school newspaper. (Note: The prompt above asks students to write a persuasive letter. Many teachers may teach letter writing and they may teach persuasive writing, however, it never occurred to them to have students write a persuasive letter. Of course, it shouldn’t make a difference, yet it does.) Transactive purpose!

Response to Literature and Summarize Writing Prompts

As promised, here are a few examples of “respond to literature” and “summarize” writing prompts. Be sure to get the 114 pages of State Testing Released Writing Prompts here. Once again, you won’t find many examples of “respond to literature” and “summarize” writing prompts even in those 114 pages.

Respond to Literature Prompts

Here are three examples:

1) Read the story. What lesson does the author want the reader to learn? Be sure to use specific examples from the passage to support your answer.

2) Based on the story “When the Tiger Comes Home to Roost,” how can the reader tell that life in the jungle is dangerous? Use specific examples from the passage to support your answer.

3) Do you think “The Most Important Question” is a good title for this story? Why or why not? Use details from the story to support your answer.

Write a Summary Prompt

Write a summary of the article. Be sure to:

• state the main idea or ideas of the article
• tell the important details that support the main idea
• use your own words when writing your summary .

If you want your students to be prepared for state testing – this year and every year – check out Pattern Based Writing: Writing Success for Elementary and Middle School Students!

Spring Compare and Contrast Essay

• Spring in an agricultural society of the past vs. spring in a modern technological society.
• Spring and Easter traditions in different parts of the word.
• Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter.
• Easter when I was real young vs. Easter now that I am an old kid.
• What I saw all winter and what I see as spring emerges.
• Spring in different parts of the country and the world.
• Compare and contrast famous spring poems by William Shakespeare, William Blake, Robert Frost, and Robert Louis Stevenson.
• Spring arriving compared to spring exiting.
• Winter fashions vs. spring fashions.
• Easter compared to Christmas.
• My teacher in winter vs. my teacher in spring.

Spring Cause and Effect Essay

• What happens in spring and what makes it happen?
• What are the causes of the changing seasons and what are the effects?
• A beautiful spring day and how it affects both people and animals.
• What makes the plants start growing in spring?
• How more hours of daylight and sunshine affect people.

Spring Persuasive Essay  

• State academic testing should be abolished. It always seems to come in spring!
• Spring is a time of rebirth and rejuvenation.
• Spring vacation should be extended by 3 days. Even my teacher says so!
• After the long cold winter indoors, class should be held outside… occasionally. At least we should get to go on a nature walk.
• Spring has a feeling. You should get the spring fever!
• Easter is the most important holiday of them all.
• Spring should be animal appreciation season.

Spring Process Essay or How-To Essay

• How to make a pine cone bird feeder and attract tons of colorful birds.
• How to decorate Easter eggs.
• How to complete an awesome spring cleaning.
• How to plant a garden.
• How to hide Easter eggs that will never be found.
• How to dress when you are not sure how warm or cold it will be.
• How to have a great spring vacation.
• The life cycle of a butterfly.
• How to make an Easter basket.
• How to prepare for the upcoming standardized tests.

Spring Informational Essay

• Fun Easter activities.
• The truth about the Easter bunny. The history of the Easter bunny.
• History of Easter.
• Spring through the ages.
• Spring traditions.
• Facts about spring.
• The symbols and symbolism of spring.
• The mythology of spring.

Spring Narrative/ Personal Narrative Essay

• Spring, an analogy of my life as I grow and change.
• What I did on my spring break that made everyone green with envy!
• My first Easter memory.
• Spring memories.
• Springtime on the farm.
• Our annual Easter egg hunt.

Spring Descriptive Essay

• Describe the energy of spring.
• The sights, sounds, and smells of spring.
• Easter breakfast.
• The first day of spring.
• New life awakens.
• What spring means to me.

Spring Five-Paragraph Essay

• Three reasons I love spring.
• Three signs of spring.
• Three spring vacation activities.
• Testing time, spring vacation, and Easter.

Spring Story Ideas

• The Easter bunny slept in!
• Clash of the Seasons – Spring vs. Winter
• Spring’s rise from the darkness of winter.
• A baby deer in spring.
• The spring that almost never came. Where is the groundhog?
• The Annual Animal Spring Celebration Party!
• A spring miracle.
• Funny happenings on the first day of spring.
• The day after spring.
• The spring I learned to write fantastic essays in under 30 minutes! Really! (Click here)

Happy spring!

Should you help your child with writing? YES. The Office of Educational Research and Improvement (OERI) suggests that you help your child with writing. OERI believes you, a parent, can make a big difference. You can use helping strategies that are simple and fun. You can use them to help your child learn to write well–and to enjoy doing it!

Helping your child with writing will help your child to:
• Do well in school
• Enjoy self-expression
• Become more self-reliant

You know how important writing will be to your child’s life. It will be important from first-grade through college and throughout adulthood.

Unfortunately, “many schools are unable to give children sufficient instruction in writing.” There are various reasons: teachers aren’t trained to teach writing skills, writing classes may be too large, it’s often difficult to measure writing skills, etc.

Study after study shows that students’ writing lacks clarity, coherence, and organization. Only a few students can write persuasive essays or competent business letters. As many as one out of four have serious writing difficulties. And students say they like writing less and less as they go through school.

Things to Know about Student Writing

Writing is more than putting words on paper. It’s a final stage in the complex process of communicating that begins with “thinking.” Writing is an especially important stage in communication, the intent being to leave no room for doubt. Has any country ratified a verbal treaty?

One of the first means of communication for your child is through drawing. Do encourage the child to draw and to discuss his/her drawings. Ask questions: What is the boy doing? Does the house look like ours? Can you tell a story about this picture?

Most children’s basic speech patterns are formed by the time they enter school. By that time children speak clearly, recognize most letters of the alphabet, and may try to write. Show an interest in, and ask questions about, the things your child says, draws, and may try to write.

Writing well requires:
• Clear thinking. Sometimes the child needs to have his/her memory refreshed about a past event in order to write about it.
• Sufficient time. Children may have `stories in their heads’ but need time to think them through and write them down. School class periods are often not long enough.
• Reading. Reading can stimulate a child to write about his/her own family or school life. If your child reads good books, (s)he will be a better writer.
• A Meaningful Task. A child needs meaningful, not artificial writing tasks. You’ll find suggestions for such tasks in the section, “Things To Do.”
• Interest. All the time in the world won’t help if there is nothing to write, nothing to say. Some of the reasons for writing include: sending messages, keeping records, expressing feelings, or relaying information.
• Practice. And more practice.
• Revising. Students need experience in revising their work– i.e, seeing what they can do to make it clearer, more descriptive, more concise, etc.

Pointers for Parents in Helping Their Child Write Better

In helping your child to learn to write well, remember that your goal is to make writing easier and more enjoyable.

Provide a place. It’s important for a child to have a good place to write–a desk or table with a smooth, flat surface and good lighting.

Have the materials. Provide plenty of paper–lined and unlined–and things to write with, including pencils, pens, and crayons.

Allow time. Help your child spend time thinking about a writing project or exercise. Good writers do a great deal of thinking. Your child may dawdle, sharpen a pencil, get papers ready, or look up the spelling of a word. Be patient–your child may be thinking.

Respond. Do respond to the ideas your child expresses verbally or in writing. Make it clear that you are interested in the true function of writing which is to convey ideas. This means focusing on “what” the child has written, not “how” it was written. It’s usually wise to ignore minor errors, particularly at the stage when your child is just getting ideas together.

Don’t you write it! Don’t write a paper for your child that will be turned in as his/her work. Never rewrite a child’s work. Meeting a writing deadline, taking responsibility for the finished product, and feeling ownership of it are important parts of writing well.

Praise. Take a positive approach and say something good about your child’s writing. Is it accurate? Descriptive? Thoughtful? Interesting? Does it say something?

Things to Do to Help Your Child Write Better

Make it real. Your child needs to do real writing. It’s more important for the child to write a letter to a relative than it is to write a one-line note on a greeting card. Encourage the child to write to relatives and friends. Perhaps your child would enjoy corresponding with a pen pal.

Suggest note-taking. Encourage your child to take notes on trips or outings and to describe what (s)he saw. This could include a description of nature walks, a boat ride, a car trip, or other events that lend themselves to note-taking.

Brainstorm. Talk with your child as much as possible about his/her impressions and encourage the child to describe people and events to you. If the child’s description is especially accurate and colorful, say so.

Encourage keeping a journal. This is excellent writing practice as well as a good outlet for venting feelings. Encourage your child to write about things that happen at home and school, about people (s)he likes or dislikes and why, things to remember or things the child wants to do. Especially encourage your child to write about personal feelings–pleasures as well as disappointments. If the child wants to share the journal with you, read the entries and discuss them–especially the child’s ideas and perceptions.

Write together. Have your child help you with letters, even such routine ones as ordering items from an advertisment or writing to a business firm. This helps the child to see firsthand that writing is important to adults and truly useful.

Use games. There are numerous games and puzzles that help a child to increase vocabulary and make the child more fluent in speaking and writing. Remember, building a vocabulary builds confidence. Try crossword puzzles, word games, anagrams and cryptograms de- signed especially for children. Flash cards are good, too, and they’re easy to make at home.

Suggest making lists. Most children like to make lists just as they like to count. Encourage this. Making lists is good practice and helps a child to become more organized. Boys and girls might make lists of their records, tapes, baseball cards, dolls, furniture in a room, etc. They could include items they want. It’s also good practice to make lists of things to do, schoolwork, dates for tests, social events, and other reminders.

Encourage copying. If a child likes a particular song, suggest learning the words by writing them down–replaying the song on your stereo/tape player or jotting down the words whenever the song is played on a radio program. Also encourage copying favorite poems or quotations from books and plays.

In order to transform your child into a confident author, be sure to check out the “Pattern Based Writing: Quick and Easy Essay” school and home study program.

• Is your instruction geared to helping your students become the next great American novelist?
• Is your primary goal to make sure that your students never leave a dangling participle or split an infinitive?
• Do you hope to develop a passion for writing?
• Is your goal to help develop the writing skills your students will need to be successful in middle school and high school?

All of this is much more likely if your students learn how get an assignment… break it down, organize their thoughts and then quickly start and finish the assignment. There should be very little hesitation from start to finish. These skilled and confident writers have the ability to write fast… and get the assignment done.

Every year I teach much more than what I just described, but first I get students ready for success by creating fluent writers who can… write fast.

Writing Fluency

According to studies (among them the National Reading Panel’s report on “Teaching Children to Read”) fluent readers tend to good readers. Fluency is one of the five important areas that bring about reading success. That makes sense. In fact, it also makes sense in writing. Fluent writers will likely be good writers. My experience is that fluent writers also make happy students! So much of school… involves writing.

Portfolios vs. a Timed Writing System for Monitoring Student Growth

Portfolios have many great benefits… and I am not against them in any way. However, portfolios do not show objective apples to apples comparisons. They are apples to oranges comparisons… and often apples to hamburgers comparisons.

First, and foremost, different amounts of time allowed produce different results. Kids know this when looking at portfolios. Somewhere in the back of their mind they know these are not apple to apples comparisons… so they are not really sure exactly how much they have progressed.

You may have heard the old musing that a monkey left in a room with a typewriter for eternity will eventually type out “Hamlet.” Let’s face it… eternity is a long time. Students don’t have an eternity to get an assignment done. Students also know it makes more sense to do good work quickly instead of spending an eternity trying to get one writing assignment perfect.

Furthermore, kids don’t want to spend all day on their homework. They don’t want to be the last one finished… every single day. Show students ways to become efficient writers… and they are happy.

The timed writing system I use is a high-octane portfolio system where students see real and objective growth. It’s a simple system that quickly lets students compare apples to apples.

The Timed Writing System: Principal Approved!

Using this system my bulletin board always shows excellent and objective student progress. It was so successful that my principal once suggested (or requested) that I put it back up when I had taken it down and was maintaining the timed writings in a portfolio as compared to being displayed.

The way I use the timed writing system has changed a little with the creation of the “Pattern Based Writing: Quick and Easy Essay” system. However, this timed writing system is very effective with or without “Pattern Based Writing.”

Before “Pattern Based Writing” the progress in the students’ writing was always steady and consistent. Over the course of a year, the progress was substantial, and admirable. It was a very accurate representation of the gradual, consistent progress that can be achieved with good writing instruction, and a lot of hard work!

Now, I get the results A LOT faster. Within a month most elementary and remedial middle school writers will be saying, “I can’t even read what I was writing before.”

Of course if your students aren’t making great progress in their writing… this timed writing system will reveal that as well. If this is the case… I would suggest you get “Pattern Based Writing: Quick and Easy Essay.”

The Timed Writing System Directions

1. Students do a 5-minute prewriting and a 20-minute essay.
2. Staple each student’s first timed writing to a piece of construction paper and post them on a bulletin board using pushpins so that they can easily be removed and updated. (Most years I have students illustrate a picture that goes side by side next to the writing on the same piece of construction paper.)
3. After a certain amount time, and after a certain amount of instruction, we do another timed writing. Staple the new writing to the front of the old. Students evaluate their progress and then the writing is returned to the bulletin board.

Simple Benefits

You may be surprised how simple the system is. You’re right, it is. I created this simple system very early in my teaching career. Teachers would ask, “Why are you timing the writing?” I can’t say I was aware of the term “writing fluency” but I did know that the students I taught MUST write faster in order to have success in school.

What I discovered was that when students see OBJECTIVE progress… progress they can see with their own eyes… without anyone having to point it out in a “manipulative” way… they begin to like writing more… and they are willing to invest more.

All teachers want their students to see growth. Quite simply, students become motivated when they see growth. However, “you telling them” is not the same as “them telling you.” Do you have a system where students gleefully proclaim the growth… without being prodded? If not, give this “Timed Writing System” a try! Also be sure to check out the complete writing program.

I once taught a 5th grade G.A.T.E. class at a very affluent school for the final two months of the school year.  It was my off-track vacation time and their teacher could not finish the year. I had never seen students like these before. These kids openly, in fact brazenly did the math when receiving an assignment. They cared about the writing assignment exactly as much as the math told them to care about it.

These are the two “MATH QUESTIONS” that came out of their mouths NON-STOP:
1. Is this graded?
2. How much of our grade is it?

Depending on the answers to those two questions they would quickly determine how much they were going to invest in the assignment.

They would decide:
• I better get started on it now and I better do a great job. Also, I had better check my work for careless mistakes.
Or
• I can goof off for 7 minutes and then quickly dash off the assignment. I’ll probably get an A, but if I get a B, it’s not that important because this one grade shouldn’t affect my overall grade.
Or
• This isn’t graded? Hey, Joe, what are you doing after school?

If it wasn’t graded… they didn’t care about the assignment. (It is different when a class has experienced multiple teachers but still… I had never done so much grading in my life. I learned a lot from that high-achieving G.A.T.E. class.)

Struggling Students ALSO Do the MATH before they do the WRITING

A lot of inner-city students, remedial students, ESL students, and students with learning disabilities also do the math before they start their writing assignment… and for them, they don’t like how it all adds up.

For them… it adds up to failure… so why get started?

I teach lots of kids in this latter category and I learned early in my teaching career that I have got to get them writing and I have got to get them writing fast. Quite simply, teaching students how to get an assignment, break it down, and then start and finish the assignment changes “the math” for them.

After they are “writing fast” I can layer all kinds of fantastic writing instruction on top of these core writing skills. With these core writing skills firmly in place, students seem to respond about 50% better to all the other writing instruction I layer on top.

With these core skills in place “THE MATH” has changed so students invest more. They are just like the G.AT.E. kids!

THEN ADD LAYERS OF DEPTH

Acting with an Accent… in Writing?

In acting, an actor creates the character and then layers on the accent.  The accent is just like a hat or a costume that the actor will layer on over his character. The character is supposed to be a real person, not an accent. What makes up a person who he is? It is all the things the person says, does, thinks, feels, and believes. In other words, the accent is not the character. The accent is simply a layer put on top of a person.

Poor actors think the accent is the character. With these actors it is very easy to see the accent. In fact, that is often all you can see. This makes it very difficult to see a real person underneath that accent.

Most of the writing tips, writing tricks, and writing tools that are taught in school, really should be layered on top of a solid foundation.

The heart of teaching elementary students (and remedial writers in upper grades) how to be successful writers has to do with four aspects of writing:

1. How to organize and structure writing
2. How good writing is about good communication
3. How to break down an assignment and get started
4. How to get the job done in the time allowed

Once students are comfortable with these skills, layering on more tips and tricks is easy!

Good writers and successful students have mastered how to receive an assignment, break it down, organize their thoughts and then quickly start and finish the assignment. In short, they can write fast!

Be sure to read the next blog post on “Teaching Children to Write FAST Using the Timed Writing System.”

• In High School, I was “taught” to write five-paragraph essays (and when I say “taught,” I mean “forced.”) The five-paragraph essay was the only form allowed in Sophomore English class.
• I hope it’s not taught anymore.
• -my daughter hated it. She would have crying fits each and every time.

Global warming, the budget deficit, budget cuts, taxes, conservatives, liberals, rap music… yes people get very emotional over hot topics. I just was not aware that the five-paragraph essay fell into this category.

Five-Paragraph Essay Advice given… but was it Taken?

When taking the CBEST test to become a teacher, an experienced teacher told me, “Just write a five-paragraph essay. Don’t write about anything you care about. Introduction, three paragraphs, conclusion… that’s it. Nothing more! Remember, don’t write about anything you care about!”

Did I follow that advice? No. I’m not going to write about something I don’t care about. However, half way into the CBEST essay section, those words of… advice… came echoing through my frustration. I was lost. I was in over my head. I was in a heated state of passion… and I was going to prove my point. Hmm, what is my point? Where am I headed? How am I going to finish this? What am I trying to say?

Well, I got out of that jam… and I’m happy to say I received a great grade. My position is that writing about something you care about always pays off. However, that advice stuck in my mind long after that test and influenced how I taught writing once I became a teacher. 

Wikipedia Describes the Five-Paragraph Essay

The five-paragraph essay is a form of written argument. It is a common requisite in assignments in middle school, high school, and university and sometimes elementary school. The format requires an essay to have five paragraphs: one introductory paragraph, three body paragraphs with support and development, and one concluding paragraph. Because of this structure, it is also known as a hamburger essay or a three tier essay. Recently, a simpler version of the five paragraph essay, called the Painted EssayTM, has been designed as a pedagogical tool for elementary school teachers. The Painted EssayTM combines the traditional structure of the five paragraph essay with color, activity and oral practice to teach younger students about the relationship among the components of a well written piece.

The five-paragraph essay format is also applied to speech making, with some college classes teaching the five-paragraph format, along with an organized system of outlining and pre-writing the speech.  

That’s the five-paragraph essay in a nutshell! That does not seem like it should get anyone hot under the collar. What cause is there to be against teaching the five-paragraph essay? Before you answer that question… ask yourself these questions:

1. Are you also against paragraph form?
2. Are you also against beginning, middles and endings?
3. Are you also against introductions, bodies, and conclusions?
4. Are you in favor of rambling and pointless essays?

Based on what the Wiki says… as well as my personal answers to those four questions, I am taking a stand. THE FIVE-PARAGRAPH ESSAY MUST BE TAUGHT! There… I said it!

Teaching the 5-paragraph essay teaches students that:

1. They must write in paragraph form.
2. They must have a beginning, middle and ending.
3. A beginning, middle and ending is essentially the same thing as an introduction, body, and conclusion.
4. They cannot ramble. They must be headed in a direction and get there.

The five-paragraph essay is the easiest, fastest, and best way to teach all this. It teaches GOOD THINKING. I have to admit, I’m not as much a fan of “five-paragraph essay writing” as I am a fan of “FIVE-PARAGRAPH ESSAY THINKING.”

So the Remaining Issues are:
• When?
• For how long?

1. When must the 5-paragraph essay be taught?
2. For how long must students write in 5-paragraph essay format?

The 5-paragraph essay is “essays for beginners.” All students past a certain age should be able to write a 5-paragraph essay at the drop of a hat. What is that certain age? I think it should be mastered in elementary school, but only because it CAN be mastered in elementary school. It definitely should not be an issue in high school for any student.

Even though the 5-paragraph essay is “essays for beginners” it is okay if there is still a strong emphasis put on it in high school and in college. That’s fine… but in high school and in college it should be the equivalent of knowing your multiplication tables. Students should be able to whip one out in nothing flat.

The five-paragraph essay is a tool. It is not an end in itself. The greatest benefit that comes from being able to write “the five-paragraph essay” is the awareness of “five-paragraph essay thinking.”

 “Five-paragraph essay thinking” provides value for a lifetime. Whether you are giving a speech or…  whatever task one is doing… being aware of how things tie together, where you are headed, and how you will wrap things up… will always be “in style.”

If your students write three paragraphs, seven paragraphs or fifteen paragraphs… with “five paragraph essay thinking” GREAT! If you will only accept five paragraphs, nothing more or less, your students will eventually feel as the people at the top of this page felt.

In short “five paragraph essay THINKING” is always rewarded and in style. Do you know how to teach your students to THINK in five-paragraph essay format? (“Pattern Based Writing” does!)

1. The topic has not been assigned. Students choose the topic.

2. The topic has been assigned. Students must follow the directions and stay on topic.

Teachers must find the right balance between these two methods when giving assignments.

These ideas will help when you do assign the topic… however they are especially helpful when your students’ topics have not been assigned. These methods are great for eliminating that sinking feeling that students feel when they do not know what to write about.

The Topic has Been Assigned

This is covered extensively in Pattern #13 and Pattern #14 of the “Pattern Based Writing: Quick and Easy Essay” writing program. Students learn TWO specific strategies for making sure that their writing starts “ON TOPIC” and finishes “ON TOPIC.” Students learn to focus on and follow DIRECTIONS.

The Topic Has Not Been Assigned

Freedom! Students have more freedom, and that means students have a lot more decisions to make. Students sometimes are not quite so thrilled when they discover that the responsibility for these decisions is… theirs.

If the topic has not been assigned, how are students supposed to come up with a topic? Where do good ideas come from? Will any idea do? Or does it have to be a great idea? All of these will be answered below and in the process… your students will become idea machines.

How to Come Up with Great Ideas: It Just Came to Me

Many of the world’s greatest ideas have come to people when they were not trying to come up with them. People ask, “How did you come up with that idea? It’s amazing!” And the other person replies, “It just came to me.”

Here Are Some Places Where Ideas May Just Come to Students

• hiking in the mountains
• taking out the trash
• taking a shower
• laying in bed right before falling asleep
• walking their dog
• grocery shopping with their mom
• stuck in traffic
• cleaning their room
• doing chores
• running an errand
• eating breakfast
• sitting in their backyard looking up at the stars
• daydreaming in class (It happens from time to time, so let’s put it to use.)

Each of the above activities is an activity that keeps a person busy, but does not require great focus or concentration. Often when a person is faced with a difficult decision or problem, someone will say, “Just sleep on it.” It is very likely the next day they will have come to a decision. This shows how so many of the great ideas come to us when we do not have the pressure or stress of trying to come up with a great idea.

The mystery writer Agatha Christie once said, “The best time for planning a book is while you’re doing the dishes.” I rest my case!

Three Ways to Save that Great Idea for Later: Harness Those Quiet Times and Harvest a Bounty of Great Ideas!

What will students want to save? Here are a few ideas!

• Interesting words or phrases
• Colorful descriptions
• Things that happened
• Things people said
• Things they saw
• Ideas for stories
• Inventions
• Things they wonder about
• Things that seem impossible
• How they or someone else felt
• How to solve a problem 
• Something that was strange
• Something that was incredible

1. Scratch It

Many, many writers always have a pen and some scratch paper close at hand. Most any movie or television show where a writer is on screen, sooner or later, you will see the writer reach into his or her pocket, take out a pen and paper, and say, “Oh, I have got to write that down.” They know they can’t afford to wait until it is time to write, to come up with those great ideas.

Provide students with a “Scratch It Idea Sheet.” This is a handy way to make sure students always have a piece of paper handy to get down those great ideas.

One of the best places to keep a pen and paper handy is right next to the bed at night. The poet Carrie Latet said, “If I’m trying to sleep, the ideas won’t stop. If I’m trying to write, there appears a barren nothingness.” In other words, get students in the habit of not waiting until it’s too late. Let’s see how many of those great ideas your students can save.

What do students do with their collections of great ideas? They can create a piggy bank of sorts for great ideas. “The Idea Bank” Use a box or container and cut a slit or hole in the top. Have students decorate them to reflect their unique personality. At the end of the day, slide all of those scraps of paper with all those great ideas they have collected throughout the day in through the top. They will be amazed at how many ideas they have collected when they sort through them a month, or even a week later.

In order to save these great ideas for eternity, have students transfer them to the computer. Have students list the ideas in the order they get them, or they can organize these great ideas into categories using “a table.”

2. Record It

Another common way to capture all those great ideas is it to carry around a voice recorder. These days many cell phones and mp3 players also have the ability to be used as a voice recorder to store all those great ideas. Have students transfer these to paper or the computer.

3. Journal It

One last and very common technique that writers use is to keep a “Writer’s Journal.” In this journal they write down great and even not so great ideas that come to them. The journal gives the writer plenty of space to explore their many ideas. This then helps them decide which ideas they would like to turn into essays or stories. It also provides a writer a safe place to write in freedom, freedom from evaluation, judgment, and grades. It’s a place to write, but not a place where one must be correct. It’s a place for ideas!

But not all paragraphs are good… let alone perfect. In fact, it doesn’t take much to make a seemingly good paragraph go bad. I have rounded up two paragraphs that I am sad to say have gone bad. One we can salvage… the other is just plain bad. That second one has no future. We will simply have to scratch it and start over.

This Paragraph Can Be Saved

If you have even one detail that is not about the topic sentence, then it IS NOT perfect. Notice how “Detail B” is out of control off doing his own thing. “Detail B” is not talking about the “topic sentence.”  The solution with this paragraph is to edit or revise.

Detail B has gone bad!

Example:
Over the weekend my family and I went to the park. I played on the swings with my little sister until she was all tuckered out.  I hope next weekend I can see the new “Space World” movie.  The best part of the park was the wonderful picnic my mom packed. Going to the park with my family is always a lot of fun!

Warning! Danger! This is a Bad, Bad Paragraph

This is a collection of disconnected sentences. Some may claim that it is a paragraph… but it is not. It tries to be one… but it can’t. It’s an imposter…. a fake. There is no main idea to this paragraph. This will be difficult for others to read. It’s sad to see good sentences turn so bad… start over.

So sad...

Example:

Over the weekend my family and I went to the park. It was fun. I want to see the new “Space World” movie. My birthday is next week. I hope one day my parents let me have a dog. Well, that’s all I have to say.

Be sure to read the next post which is “Biggest Teacher Mistakes in Teaching Paragraphs.” Hint: Don’t spend too long teaching paragraphs!

(“Pattern Based Writing: Quick and Easy Essay” spends just the right amount of time on paragraphs before making the jump to complete essays!)

Teaching writing… in the world of teaching… is “controversial.” So few teachers really feel they know how to teach “writing” well. Everyone feels they teach “grammar” just fine, but writing… This feeling of uncertainty creates defensiveness and high emotions.

But even in the world of teaching writing… just the mention of “Writer’s Workshop” will get people all worked up. I know of one teacher’s forum on the internet in which a VERY heated debate over Writer’s Workshop has lasted for years. Tempers rise, accusations fly… and then finally someone says, “What exactly is Writer’s Workshop? I don’t get it…”

Writer’s Workshop: A History of Controversy

Let’s face it, “Writer’s Workshop” was born in the adult world and has been transferred over to the world of elementary and middle school writing. “Writer’s Workshop” in the adult world can bring up vivid images of hippy-communes and groups of beatniks writing in Greenwich Village. (I’ve seen some classrooms that use Writer’s Workshop which aren’t much different!)

Writer’s Workshop Works… But Only for Some Kinds of Teachers

Some teachers swear by Writer’s Workshop… others swear AT Writer’s Workshop. I think it’s good to understand a few different “kinds of teachers” as it will help you to decide if Writer’s Workshop is for you. I hate to categorize teachers, but when it comes to Writer’s Workshop, some will have great success and others will completely flop.

“To thine own self be true!”
                                             William Shakespeare

Two out of these four kinds of teachers will have success with Writer’s Workshop.  Which two do you think it will be?

1. flowery teachers
2. brass-tacks teachers
3. flowery talking teachers who are really brass-tacks teachers
4. brass-tacks talking teachers who are really flowery teachers

Answer: Teachers number 3 and 4.

Here’s Why:
1. flowery teachers – School and teaching writing is not about running a hippy commune where “it’s all good.” We are teaching students to be successful at school. Sooner or later being successful at school involves doing things correctly. With a flowery teacher who is not keeping an eye on results, too many kids will slip through the cracks and won’t MASTER the skills needed to be successful students.
2. brass-tacks teachers – This teacher wants results. They want results that can be measured and measured now. Writer’s Workshop will be an exercise in frustration for them. They will not have the patience to watch “progress over time” and “developing the love for writing” is not something they consider to be measurable.
3. flowery talking teachers who are really brass-tacks teachers - These teachers will have the greatest success with Writer’s Workshop. They buy into the philosophy and are firecrackers when it comes to monitoring what students are doing.
4. brass-tacks talking teachers who are really flowery teachers – These teachers will have success because at their heart they want kids to enjoy school. Writer’s Workshop will be a fun change of pace for their students. They will run a tight-ship during Writer’s Workshop and they will get results. It will be effective… but it will come a little bit at the expense of students developing a true love for the art of writing.

Be sure to check back for:
1. What Exactly is Writer’s Workshop? 
2. Tips, Tricks, Pros and Cons of Using Writer’s Workshop in the Classroom