Writing About our Favorite Animal

            

             2nd graders in Mrs. Brandner’s class have been doing opinion writing these past few weeks. Their most recent task was to write about their favorite animal. 

            First, they mapped out their ideas. Students organized their thoughts in 3 separate parts: introduction, the body and the conclusion.

The introduction includes what we call a “hook” - something that grabs the reader’s attention right away. Then they briefly  explain what the essay is about.  The body includes 3 reasons why that animal is their favorite. The focus of this part is using transition words. The conclusion just wraps it all up. 

            Once they were done mapping out their ideas, they wrote the rough draft of their 3 paragraph essay.  We showed students a few proofreading marks and showed them how to proofread their paper and notate the things that need to be corrected. 

Then they were ready to write their final copy. As you can see, they really have the process down. Especially considering this is their first time proofreading and editing.