A Step-Up-to-Writing Activity

Work with students to make a chart of things they would do if they were president. Make a sample t-chart. Make a green circle and write the opening sentence at the top of the T. Make yellow stars, indicating your key points. At this point you can write one or two words for each key point, or a complete sentence depending on the needs and writing abilities of your students. Older, or more advanced first graders can complete the red dots as well. In this section they give details about their key points. Each detail can be incorporated into its own sentence or used together in a detail sentence on the final draft. Finally, on the bottom make another green circle and go back green by creating a closing sentence that resembles the opening sentence and states what they feel or think about being president. (My kids are actually going to write about living in the White House more than what they would do as presidentjust because Ive had more success with that topic. If you wanted to change it, just change the key words for the key ideas. Once youve made a sample T-chart, have the students complete theirs. Then the students use their completed T-chart to write their paper using their T-chart as a rough draft, organizational guide. The students can make the Washington craft to go with it and use the If I Were President Stationary found in the Presidents Day and Patriotism Unit @ TpT and TN.
Tra ci Clausen 2012

ENJOY! Traci @ Dragonflies in First

chef

bowling

movies

pretty cool ````````` _______________ pizza ```````` o pepperoni dessert `````````` o chocolate cake _______________ `````````` my friend Jon ```````` o _______________ `````````` would come bowl with o _______________ me in my bowling alley. `````````` Alvin & the ```````` o _______________ Chipmunks `````````` o _______________ ``````````
If I were President, it would be First,

Next,

black ball w/flames

every night!

Then,

my family

popcorn & Slurpee

room

I think it would be

amazing ````````

if I were president.

Tra ci Clausen 2012

```````` o _______________ `````````` my room with goo _______________ carts. ``````````

Finally,

I would fill

huge

race my friends

chef

bowling

movies

````````` ```````` o _______________ `````````` o _______________ `````````` ```````` o _______________ `````````` o _______________ `````````` ```````` o _______________ `````````` o _______________ ``````````
If I were President, it would be First,

Next,

Then,

room

I think it would be

````````

if I were president.

Tra ci Clausen 2012

```````` o _______________ `````````` o _______________ ``````````

Finally,