If you are teaching writing a 5-paragraph essay with the writing process, then your first step will be teaching students to brainstorm for topics and filling out a graphic organizer. When brainstorming a topic, it is important for students to pick a focused, narrow topic that they know a lot about. When filling out the graphic organizer, it is important for students to include main ideas and details in an organized way.
Modifications: Students who are writing a 3-paragraph essay instead of writing a 5-paragraph essay will need to brainstorm topics also. Special needs students may have difficulty narrowing their topics. For example, they may choose dogs, but this is too broad. You will need to work with these students during this lesson to choose a narrower topic, or you can also give them partners to work with. When doing prewriting and filling out the graphic organizer, students will have a smaller graphic organizer since they are writing three paragraphs. It is helpful if the teacher fills out the main ideas for the student, and then asks them to write details that they want to include in each of the paragraphs. An example might be: Paragraph 1: Introduce topic of Taking Your Dog For a Walk; Paragraph 2: Three Things to Always Remember When Taking Your Dog For a Walk; Paragraph 3: Conclusion and Why it is Important to Take Dogs for a Walk.
