Projecting Writing Unit for Persuasive Writing

Grade: 2 Year: 2018-2019 # of weeks: 5 Dates: End of January-Late March

Step 1: Look through a few mentor texts: Ask yourself these questions: What do you notice
about this type of writing? How can this help shape our primary and secondary goals? As
you look through the texts, make a list of possible ‘teaching points’ for mini-lessons.
Step 2: Look over the New Brunswick Outcomes and Highlight any that you think would fit
within this unit.
Step 3: Teachers write in the genre we want to project. (Can set timer for 10 minutes if
needed)

Primary Goals:
1. Differentiating between main idea and details
2. The purpose of persuasion (state your opinion using facts to convince them)
3. 2.6 paragraph (2 reasons, 6 sentences)

Secondary Goals: Writing Quality, Writing Habits, Revision, Community of Writers, Editing/Conventions
1. Writing Quality: Formal letter format
2. Community of Writers:
3. Revision:
4. Differentiating between a fact and an opinion (research a fact)
5.Writing Habits: Brainstorming various topics, choosing the best one
6.

New Brunswick Outcomes: (Can attach a copy that is highlighted too)

Anticipated Issues:
1. Structural/organizational
2. Explaining/giving examples of reasons
3.

Projection of Possible Mini Lesson Topics: (Depends on the number of weeks you allow.)

Week 1: Immersion What does it mean How do we generate ideas we’re What’s a fact vs.
Idea passionate about? Opinion?--opinions
Students will look at to persuade
Generation are supported by
different letters and someone?
Mentor text: Click Clack, Moo. facts.
books related to
the unit that is set (Brainstorming problems we see in Brain Pop Jr Video
on the table. We Students write a the world / things we wish we for Facts & Opinions
will brainstorm, flash draft: could change)
“What did you Persuasive Letter Give students facts
notice? What do 3.7 Writing to change the world and opinions and
you already know have them
about letters?” agree/disagree.
(posters, ads, etc)
Have students give
their opinion on a
 series of facts.
Using mentor texts:
Example:
I Wanna Iguana

Week 2: Questions into Main Main ideas vs What is a paragraph? (move Building a
Organization
ideas detail/reason to earlier?) persuasive
What is a big idea? paragraph
Talk about how What are the FOCUS: what goes/doesn’t go Main idea
sometimes people smaller ideas that in a paragraph. One
are wondering support the main details/reason
something so a idea? A paragraph is a block of text (2.6 model)
writer will write a that talks about one main
paragraph to Students sort idea.
explain it. sentences into piles
that are “Main Shared writing paragraph—
You need to know idea” and teacher models with familiar
how to turn your “Supporting Detail” main idea (previous unit?). This
question into your might take the place of
main idea. workshop/shorten all of writing
for the day.
Examples:
Why do so many Example: Kids should have a
people drink growth mindset. They need to You should wear
coffee? keep trying to work so they sunscreen to
can learn more. If a math protect your skin!
Many people like problem is hard, they should First, it helps
to drink coffee.— keep going. Also, it helps them prevent a
notice I didn’t give get along with others. If they sunburn. Also, it
you details yet! have a fixed mindset, other makes you not
people might not want to get skin cancer.
Why do kids play work with them. So, students
soccer? should try to have a growth How do we
mindset. organize a
Soccer is such a fun paragraph?
sport! Teach kinesthetic movements
for the parts. (could be an
Stand up, Hand Up, anchor chart?
Pair Up (click link)— Practice with another shared Change wrap-up
this may take the writing paragraph if there’s color to pink
class period time. because of our
highlighter color
choices [Symbol])

Teacher color
codes paragraph
from previous day

Do shared writing
for another
paragraph and
color code
together.

May need to
shorten writing
because of the
length of sitting
time.

Week 3: Adding an Conclusions—how What is a technique this author Move this to

QUALITY
 example or do I restate my main used to persuade you? Mentor week 1
explanation for idea to wrap it all texts.
each up?
(Dear Mrs. Larue + Hey Little Ant)
detail/reason. (2.6) Parts of a Letter
You should wear What are the
You should wear sunscreen to parts of a letter?
sunscreen to protect your skin!
protect your skin! First, it helps Heading –
First, it helps prevent a sunburn. Address & Date
prevent a sunburn. When you put it on, (Formal) Only
When you put it on, it blocks the suns date (Informal)
it blocks the suns rays from burning Greeting/
rays from burning you. Also, it makes Salutation – Dear
you. Also, it makes you not get Body of the letter
you not get cancer. My Closing –
cancer. My grandma didn’t Sincerely (formal)
grandma didn’t wear sunscreen Love (Informal)
wear sunscreen and she had to Signature – Your
and she had to have an operation name
have an operation for skin cancer. So,
for skin cancer. next time you’re
outside, you should
definitely wear
sunscreen!

Week 4: Catch-up/Review Review parts of a Revising Strategy?

paragraph, Punctuation? Transition
movements, and words?
colors.

Have a pre-written
paragraph missing
an element.

Model how to
revise it using the
highlighter colors
when something is
missing.

Example:

Please always use

tissues to get your
boogers out! First, if
you use a tissue, it
helps catch germs.
Without it, you get
germs on your
fingers and get
sick. Also, people
might not want to
shake your hand.
____. So, get a
tissue next time you
have boogers in
your nose!

What am I missing?
This is how I add in
my example/
explanation if it’s
 missing… Teach
them how to add
in with a carrot or
cut and paste---
should not be
rewriting whole
paragraph!

Students can work

to write their own
paragraphs and
highlight the parts
when they finish
one. If a part is
missing, they should
practice adding it
in.

Week 5: Date, greeting, Publishing Celebration

FORMAL
paragraph, closing
LETTER
FORMAT
Writing an address
on an envelope

Other Teaching Possibilities:

Resources/Materials:

Mentor Texts:

I wanna new room

I wanna iguana
Click Clack Moo
Earrings

OPTIONAL Task for Teachers: Create a ‘checklist’ of sorts, that highlights the main goals for
this unit, that you can use with students. Two Benefits: It helps students set goals are for this
type of writing and it can help teachers decide on conferring or small group work.
Reflection on Writing Unit:
Do we feel our students understood Yes, definitely. Students were super passionate
the main purpose of this unit? How and really excited to publish and were even
do we know? more excited to put it into an envelope. Beyond
excited that someone will actually read the
letter. They are really connecting it to the next
unit and are really using the vocabulary, too.
They understand a 2.6 paragraph. Main
idea/details differentiation is good but struggle
with details and examples and differentiating
between the two.

What worked well in this writing unit? Well planned out. Breaking up each part of the
paragraph and breaking it up bit by bit. Starting
with the paragraph and adding more worked
really well. Students had a connection to the
exemplar that they could come back to. They
were also pushing themselves to real life issues
and the audience beyond “I want.” It worked
well to focus on one type of persuasive writing.
Paragraph chant worked very well.

What would we change the next Each class went differently so each class was
time we teach this unit? working on a different minilesson. EAL teachers
(Lessons, etc.) having an idea of where to go with each class
was a challenge. Needed more with reason and
explanation.

Is there anything we would add or Difference between reason and

emphasize in this unit? example/explanation. Immersion lesson?

What did we learn about our They are very passionate and have a lot of ideas
students as writers? of what they would like to see change.

Blown away by the growth from beginning to

end of the unit. Started with one sentence and
kept adding even more details and examples.

What were the authentic Some students wrote about polluting the
connections to our Unit of Inquiry? environment with different transportation and it
overlapped with the next unit about
endangered animals.

What advice would we give to next
year’s team when they teach this
unit?
***Created by Natashya Hays 2018, Erin Kent Consulting - work
inspired by Kath Murdoch
Read above. Definitely use the mentor texts—
click clack moo and I wanna series. Keep the
length of the unit—don't feel like we needed
longer. Maybe plan for the celebration sooner.

***Projection Template created by Natashya Hays 2018, Erin Kent Consulting. Template is inspired
and replicated from work by Matt Glover and Mary Alice Berry.
Example of a 2.6 paragraph

Chocolate is a very popular food to many people.First,

people like it because it is very sweet.You can eat it in
dessert or with fruit so that you can taste the sweet
flavor.Second, when people think of chocolate they think
of love which makes them like it.A lot of times, people give
each other chocolate on Valentine’s Day to show their
love. So, now you know why people just looooooove
chocolate.

Kids should not have to wear a uniform at school.First,

kids like to show their own personality and style.When you
have to wear a uniform, you don’t get to be creative with
your clothes because you have to all look the same. Also,
uniforms are expensive.If families have to buy each kid a
uniform, they might not have money for other important
things like healthy food and books to read. Therefore, I do
not think we should have a uniform at ISNS.