What do fall, ooey-gooey s’mores and an old yellow dog have in common? It encapsulates my sixth-grade English lesson plans for this past week, which were all about procedural writing. Procedural writing is one of the most widely read texts that adults and students alike use and will use in their day-to-day lives. From recipes to instructions, how-to guides, and rules, procedural writing is all around us. This week’s 7 Elements of Procedural Writing delves into this particular form of expository writing by showing you how it can be both enjoyable and thought-provoking.
Procedural writing simply means informational writing that demonstrates how to do something in a step-by-step way. Kids are already very familiar with procedural writing by helping family members cook by using recipes, figuring out how a toy works using instructions, and learning classroom rules. Therefore, procedural writing makes for a friendly and non-intimidating writing piece for students, as well.
This past week, my sixth graders learned all about procedural writing and even wrote their own how-to guide. We read a wonderful picture book, utilized our current novel, and even ate a yummy fall snack to further emphasize this type of informational writing.
To start off, we discussed how procedural writing is something students know all about. We activated prior knowledge by going through various examples students are familiar with, such as various recipes and instruction manuals.
Next, we read the book More and More Microwave S’mores (How to Goodness) by Tami Parker.
While reading this adorable and simple procedural writing picture book, we examined it for tips on how to write our own procedural writing. As we read page-by-page, the students noticed the following elements:
After reading all about how to make some delicious s’mores, our tummies were rumbling and we had a better idea of how to tackle our own writing ideas. We went back over the seven elements and made a list of various transition words we saw and could use in our own writing.
Then, I walked my students step-by-step through my own example of procedural writing using the seven elements above. I educated students all about the southern delicacy of a mayonnaise and banana sandwich and how to make this food, step-by-step. I grossed them out but definitely got their attention.
We utilized our seven elements of procedural writing to then tackle an assignment from our current novel.
We are reading Old Yeller by Fred Gipson, and in the book, there are many examples of procedural writing. From how Mama makes soap to how Travis hunts squirrels, Old Yeller makes for a wonderful mentor text to learn procedural writing. I had students choose a how-to example from the novel and rewrite it in their own words, using the seven elements of procedural writing above.
If you are interested in the Old Yeller procedural writing assignment, please check out the unit here!
Even if you are not currently reading this particular novel, students could use Old Yeller as a mentor text to learn procedural writing.
I also challenge you to look through your current read-aloud or novel study to see if you could use it as a mentor text for procedural writing!
Once students summarized and practiced procedural writing using the mentor text of Old Yeller, they then completed their own example using the seven elements.
Some students wrote about how to make grilled cheese sandwiches or how to put a saddle on a horse. Others wrote about how to play a certain game or how to make a particular craft. Their writing pieces were super informative. I gave students an opportunity to share their writing pieces with the class and we all learned a little something that day, including some of the students’ favorite food concoctions like bananas with applesauce. Yummy!
Lastly, to wrap up this fun and simple writing mini-unit, we then re-read our More and More Microwave S’mores (How to Goodness and enjoyed our very own microwave s’mores. We finished off the week with this awesome treat.
If you are interested in incorporating this adorable picture book into a mini-unit, we have what you need.
Product Description: Our PowerPoint / PDF presentation will walk your students through the procedural writing process that Tami used herself to write her own published book, More and More Microwave S’mores. As your students go through the PowerPoint / PDF instructions, they will see the exact steps she used to write the procedural book. More and More Microwave S’mores is an instructional guide your students can follow as they create their own published work.
Also included with this PowerPoint / PDF is a printable graphic organizer, along with writing papers for your students to use to create their rough draft, and then more writing papers to create their own published book.
We also have a newly released S’mores Bulletin Board that you could even pop those published procedural writing books on! Plus, it comes with some adorable graham cracker marshmallow writing papers, along with a Google slide to share with your students. Check that out here.
Procedural writing is an effective form of communication because it helps the reader understand what’s happening by following a clear structure. This makes it easier for the reader to follow along and learn more about the subject matter.
It is an informative genre that students are familiar with already and therefore, can make for a fun and non-intimidating writing assignment. By incorporating prior knowledge, analyzing a how-to-make s’mores picture book, and mentor text of Old Yeller, students were able to summarize examples and then adequately write their own published work. This may just be the perfect mini-unit to close out fall, especially with those ooey-gooey s’mores treats!
