7^th Grade Writing Unit

Houghton Mifflin English (Blue book)

This unit is designed to build on the writing skills the students learned in 6^th grade. They will be graded on the content of the writing as well as grammar. All writing assignments will receive a content grade and a grammar grade. Those two grades will be averaged together for a final grade which will be recorded in the grade book.

Two points will be deducted for every grammar error. This includes capitalization, spelling, commas, subject-verb agreement, and all other skills reviewed during our grammar unit.

Day One:

Personal Narratives: Knowing Who You Are

Read “The Hundred Dollar Bill” pages 51-55

Sequence of events page 59

Writing a good beginning page 62

HW: Write an introduction for a personal narrative about one of the following: a time you were scared, a time you were happy, or a time you were sad.

Day Two:

Supplying Details page 63

Writing Dialogue page 65

Writing a Good Ending page 67

Complete Prewriting Practice page 64

HW: Make a list of 3 interesting things that have happened to you in the past year.

Day Three:

For each of the 3 things that have happened to you, write 1 reason why it would be a good topic and write 2 details that would be important to include.

Eliminate the topics you can’t provide good detail for.

Choose the topic for your personal narrative.

HW: Write the introduction to your personal narrative

Day Four:

Begin writing personal narrative

Day Five:

Turn in personal narrative at the beginning of class

Descriptions

Read “Willow and Ginkgo” page 266

Read “Metaphor” page 267

Read “By The Yangste River” pages 268-270

Review using descriptive language page 276

HW: Prewriting Practice A, page 277, 2-6 – write each one only one time

Day Seven:

Complete Pre-writing Practice page 279 in class

Spatial Order page 280

HW: Prewriting Practice A page 281 – use spatial order to complete. Choose 1 and write a paragraph.

Day Eight:

Return Personal Narratives

Add description to personal narratives and continue with revisions

Day Nine:

Turn in revised personal narratives

Begin friendly letter writing, review page 564

Review how to address an envelope

HW: Writing Prompt page 565

Day Ten:

Persuasive Letters

Review what a persuasive letter is

Begin “If You Can Convince Mom and Dad You Can Convince Anyone” assignment

Day Eleven:

Bring in list of “reasons” from your parents

Write a rough draft of letter

Day Twelve:

Peer edit letters

Revise letters

Take them home and have them signed

Day Thirteen:

Signed letters due from parents

Read a poem by Emily Dickinson (http://members.accessus.net/~bradley/emilypoem.html)

HW: Write a “Letter Poem”