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Search ThoughtfulLearning.com for a wealth of resources for teaching English language arts, 21st century skills, and social-emotional learning. You’ll find books, online units, minilessons, student models, videos, and much more! Type your search below and add filters to refine the results.
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Student Writing Model
Giving Life
This is a very moving narrative about a difficult experience. Sharing what she learned from this friendship makes an effective conclusion.
Student Writing Model
The Great Paw Paw
Charlotte, the seventh-grade writer of this model, organizes her essay into paragraphs that describe different aspects of her subject. The closing leaves the reader with a clear idea of the important place her grandfather holds in her memory.
Student Writing Model
Friendship
Five paragraphs in the body of this essay—one for each of the senses—provide a clear organization pattern that is easy for the reader to understand. Note that each of the five paragraphs begins with a sentence that repeats the same, simple pattern. This repetition of a sentence pattern provides unity. The use of an extended metaphor—comparing friendship to the making and baking of bread—works quite well and shows that Nate, the sixth grade writer of this essay, is willing to take creative risks.
Student Writing Model
Cheating in America
In this problem and solution essay, sixth-grade writer Nicholas grabs the reader’s attention with some “shocking statistics” that identify the problem. The essay closes with some possible solutions as well as a point to ponder.
Student Writing Model
Summer: 15 Days or 2 1/2 Months?
Jordan wants to have a nice, long summer at the end of seventh grade; her persuasive essay makes that quite evident with several points that support her opinion through the use of statistics, comparison, and expert testimony.
Student Writing Model
The Best Little Girl in the World
The voice of Joanna, the author of this book review, comes through as she reveals her concern for teenagers’ vulnerability to eating disorders..
Student Writing Model
Limadastrin
A response to literature can take many forms other than a book report. Sixth-grader Mark decided to respond in a poem patterned after the poetry he read in the Redwall series of fantasy books. (These stories are about peace-loving small animals who exhibit human characteristics in a medieval setting, facing day-to-day struggles of good versus evil, life versus death.) The author of the Redwall books never mentions where the “Badger lords” come from, so Mark created this fictional place called Limadastrin and describes how one would find it.
Student Writing Model
A Cowboy's Journal
Eighth grader Shelley imagines she is a cowboy in the old West as she writes this journal entry. She includes historical details that add a realistic touch to the writing.
Student Writing Model
Hang Up and Drive
A surprise comparison opens this editorial by eighth grade student Jessie, drawing readers in. Her position on the subject becomes evident early in the essay.
Student Writing Model
What Really Matters
In this feature article, eighth grader Irené informs the reader about spina bifida as she highlights the achievements of a classmate who has the condition. Quotations from the classmate add a personal side to the writing.
Student Writing Model
Linden’s Library
This model is based on an original story submitted by Elise, a sixth-grade writer. Note how she uses dialogue and details to bring her characters to life.
Student Writing Model
How the Stars Came to Be
Sixth-grade student Laura wrote this fantasy in which the “storybook” voice sets the tone appropriately.
Student Writing Model
The Call
Seventh-grade poet Brittany invites her readers to share in a real experience.
Student Writing Model
My Backyard
Kevin, the sixth-grade author of this poem, effectively uses personification to paint a vivid picture of his backyard.
Student Writing Model
I Am Latvia
The author’s approach to this report is fresh and original; speaking as the country makes the paper very readable.
Student Writing Model
The Aloha State
The details in this report are presented in an organized manner, and the writer’s strong feelings for Hawaii come through in her writing voice.
Student Writing Model
The Incredible Egg
Hannah’s seventh-grade science class tried an experiment involving an egg, vinegar, corn syrup, and water. Her observations include not only the outcomes of the different steps in the procedure, but also her personal reactions to the experiment.
Student Writing Model
Dear Dr. Larson
This email query is clear, organized, accurate, and engaging. The author gets right to the point—always a good practice in business writing.
Student Writing Model
The Boy with Chris Pine Blue Eyes
Tenth-grader Lisa’s voice comes through loud and clear in this model. The use of strong details and dialogue—including the author “talking” to herself—makes this a believable essay about a student’s first high school crush.
Student Writing Model
Take Me to Casablanca
The 9th-grade writer of this personal narrative, Emily, uses original word choice to effectively convey a vivid image of the people and environment she encountered on a trip to Africa. The opening paragraphs communicate a sense of excitement that, by the end of the trip, is reduced to disappointment, shock, and guilt.
Student Writing Model
My Greatest Instrument
Lindsey, an adult who uses public speaking in her career, reflects on the childhood experiences that prepared her for success.
Student Writing Model
Snapshots
Before Facebook, Snapchat, and Pinterest allowed us to gather and store images digitally, students kept their memories in photo albums and even shoeboxes. In this historic model, Alita writes about her shoebox collection of memories. Vivid details recreate the feeling of thumbing through pictures.
Student Writing Model
H’s Hickory Chips
Karen, in eleventh grade, shares the details of a Saturday spent working for her family’s business. Her descriptions bring the subject to life, and her ending tells the reader why this work is important to her.
Student Writing Model
Anticipating the Dream
Michelle (grade 11) develops this eyewitness account by answering the “5 W’s and H” about her parents becoming American citizens. The writer also shares her sensory impressions.