SESSION 4  |  Grades K-12 / ELL All Levels | HANDOUT

Teach the purpose & impact of grammar

Introduce the trait of conventions

Introduce students to the trait of conventions using the tool box or tool-belt icons (young writer’s tool belt, older writer’s tool belt).

Plan convention mini-lessons in a multi-day series.
PDF template | Google Doc template

JPEG Files of noun and pronoun icons
Noun with the ball | Pronoun on the bench | Pronoun substituting for the Noun | Vague/Confusing Nouns and Pronouns

View a lesson executed in Grade 1 on writing with adjectives.
4-step mini-lesson plan | Oversized Anchor Chart images | Writing-Time Student Handout

Adjectives & Adverbs

• Target close-up details in descriptive writing
• Hold a fall-walk sentence writing contest

Preps, Conjunctions, & Appositives

• Play with prepositions
• 10 Reasons to collect photographs (Read idea #10)
• Display conjunctions with a comma
• Define or describe nouns with appositives

Inner-sentence punctuation

• Demonstrate the power of punctuation
• Practice speaking punctuation
• Use magnetic punctuation for hands-on practice
• Consider whether to quote or paraphrase
• Follow 4 principles to add character dialogue to a story
• Punctuate dialogue with comic strips & candy hearts
• 20 Applications for the comma
• Signal the reader with punctuation
• Use an em-dash in persuasive/argumentative writing

Presentation & Spacing

• Teach the power of word spacing
• 3 Reasons to indent a new paragraph