Why Use Informative/Explanatory Lessons
Students encounter informative/explanatory writing, or expository writing, in a variety of
contexts in the classroom and throughout their lives. Students will be asked to write
informative/explanatory texts not only during high-stakes assessments, but also throughout their
educational and professional careers.
Informative/explanatory writing helps students
- to increase their knowledge and comprehension of a topic
- to better understand a process or procedure (including instructions or directions for completing a task)
How to Use Informative/Explanatory Lessons
Each six-part process writing lesson takes approximately two weeks to complete. Begin each
writing lesson with whole-class instruction for teaching and modeling the writing process.
At the end of each lesson part, students independently apply what they have learned; and by the
end of the lesson, create their own informative/explanatory composition.
Each lesson contains leveled tips in the sidebars that outline the expectations for each
developmental level of writer. The leveled expectations help you decide how best to adapt the
lesson to meet the needs of each student.
Samples and graphic organizers at each of the four developmental writing levels (beginning, early
developing, developing, and fluent) provide support for the range of students' needs in your
classroom.
Resources with each text type lesson
- Lesson plan
- Graphic organizer sample
- Writing sample
- Graphic organizer
- Revision checklist
- Classroom poster
- Rubric
Some text types have digital writing practice support that takes students through the writing
process online and lets them submit their typed process writing compositions to your In Basket.
Look for additional links that take you to the online practice when it is available for a text
type.
