National Endowment for the Humanities
Emulating Emily Dickinson: Poetry Writing
High schoolers analyze mood and voice in Emily Dickinson's poem, "There's a Certain Slant of Light." After the analysis, students write a poem of their own emulating the Dickinson poem, and then write a one-page essay describing what...
Curated OER
Reading: Classroom Words
There are 10 classroom words located at the top of this instructional activity. Kindergartners match the word to the object in the picture, they write that word on the line near that object. This is a great way for them to recognize...
Literacy Design Collaborative
The Scarlet Letter and Hester Prynne
Is Hester Prynne a virtuous woman? To conclude a unit study of Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter class members craft an argument essay in which they use the standards listed in Proverbs 31 from the Bible to judge Hester's virtues.
Curated OER
Report Writing Exercise
There's specific language that is commonly used with each type of writing. With report writing, the writing is direct, clear and focused. Writers categorize 14 different phrases common to this style of writing and place them under the...
New York City Department of Education
Grade 4 Literacy in English Language Arts: A Call to Action
You have the power! Scholars learn that they have power of the pen in their writing. After reading and viewing various sources about standardized testing, they express their own opinions about the testing by writing letters to the...
Curated OER
Letter L
Young scholars will have fun learning about the letter "L" with the activities in this lesson plan. The author suggests reading "Lightning Bug" from the McGraw-Hill reading book. However, you may find other poems that are fitting for...
Curated OER
Writing a Letter
In this writing letters worksheet, students review the purpose and tone for writing a letter. Students brainstorm three goals to achieve when writing a letter of complaint. Students then circle the sentence examples that would be most...
Curated OER
Requesting Information
Young scholars create a letter requesting information from a local vocational agency using word processing software. They send the finished letter to the Office of Vocational Rehabilitation.
Curated OER
Message in a Bottle
Students acquire a pen pal in a foreign country and write letters at least twice a month throughout the year to exchange with them. At the end of the year, they write an essay that compares one important difference and one important...
Buck Institute for Education
Project Template for Letter to Parents
What better way to elicit the support of parents and guardians in project-based learning than with a letter directed to them that details the project, the activities involved, and suggestions for how they can support their learner. The...
Core Knowledge Foundation
Second Grade Skills Unit 2: Bedtime Tales
A unit covering second-grade skills reviews 16 letter-sound correspondences, tricky words, and punctuation. Readers provide context for examining story elements, and pupils participate in close reading and write narratives retelling a...
Core Knowledge Foundation
Kindergarten Skills Unit 9
This unit explores uppercase letters and tricky high-frequency words. Over 23 lessons, scholars review decodable and high-frequency words, examine and practice writing uppercase letters, and work with a new tricky high-frequency word....
Core Knowledge Foundation
First Grade Skills Unit 3
Four weeks, 19 lessons—this unit covers five new vowel spelling patterns, tricky words, spellings, verb tenses, reading fables and exploring the writing process. Lessons offer review, an introduction to the concept, skills practice,...
Curated OER
Writing Formal and Informal Letters
Third graders write a thank-you note and a formal letter of request that included relevant information, such as a return address, date, inside address, proper salutation, body, closing, and signature. They write an imaginary letter to...
Curated OER
Celebrity Letter Writing Assignment
Students create a biographical portfolio of the three important people. They write letters of request, asking for autographs of people in assorted fields. Students are explained that an autograph could be one of the following: A...
Curated OER
Argument of Policy
After investigating different policies within the school district, young reformers select a policy they would like to change. They then investigate the policy, and craft a letter in which they advocate a change to the policy. For guided...
Workforce Solutions
Thank You Letters
An important step in the job search process is sending a thank you note to any professional that has been of help. First, pupils discuss the etiquette of thank you notes, then draft a practice letter.
Curated OER
Letter Dd: Glue and Write
Cut, paste, and write worksheets are great for employing motor skills, kinesthetic action, and core practice. Kids cut and paste five pictures on their page, that begin with the letter D. They practice writing an upper and lower case D...
Curated OER
Creative Writing: Children's Building Blocks
Your class can participate in a writing program involving four building blocks. By exploring words, sentences, writing forms, and story organization, they improve their creative writing skills throughout this year-long unit. Early in the...
Curated OER
Understanding Paragraph Basics
Full of informative, helpful, and accessible activities, a language arts packet is sure to be a valuable part of your writing unit. It's versatile between reading levels and grade levels, and focuses on the most efficient ways for your...
Curated OER
Our “Civilized” Society
The Scarlet Letter is the anchor text in a four-week unit that examines Hawthorne's novel through the lens of the intolerances found in a supposed civilized society. In addition to their reading, class members watch clips from TV shows,...
Benjamin Franklin Tercentenary
From Ben’s Pen to Our Lives
What would Ben do? Jumping off from the pseudonymous letters Ben Franklin fooled his older brother into publishing when he was still a teenager, young literary lovers dive into acting, writing, and addressing a local issue with wit and...
Student Handouts
Happy Father's Day! Handwriting Practice
This Father's Day will be extra special with a personal, hand-written note from your young writers! Pupils practice writing "Happy Father's Day" in cursive writing and print with this set of handwriting worksheets.
Barbara Kowal
Winter Picture Test: Spell and Write
Scholars prove their vocabulary and spelling proficiency with a winter-themed picture test. Young learners study six pictures accompanied by a variety of letters that must be put in order to spell out the images' name.