Writing Teaching Resources
Teaching writing strategies and the writing process this school year? Explore a comprehensive collection of teacher resources for primary English teachers — all created by teachers!
Stocked with graphic organisers, writing prompts, templates, worksheets and so much more, this collection of printable and digital activities is designed to help you as you help your students become more effective communicators and unleash their creativity and imagination.
Save time on lesson planning with resources that are aligned with the Australian curriculum (including version 9!) and have been through a careful review process by an expert member of our teacher team to ensure they're ready for your classroom and your students!
Are you looking for tips and tricks to add to your teacher toolkit this school year? Read on for a primer from our teacher team, including engaging activities for teaching writing inprimary school and a look at some of the different writing strategies your students will need to learn.
11 Writing Strategies Kids Should Know by the End of Primary School
We can't talk about teaching kids to write without talking about the different writing strategies that can help them do just that!
When it comes to teaching our students to become confident writers who articulate their ideas effectively, here are some of the strategies our teacher team prioritises:
1. Brainstorming
Brainstorming is something we often do in the classroom, and it's a crucial part of learning to generate the ideas that will drive students' writing as they progress through their educational journey. Kids should know how to create a list of potential topics or points related to a particular writing assignment.
With younger students, this is often done as a whole group by writing ideas and points on chart paper. In upper years, students transition over to using text-based materials to generate ideas and talking points.
2. Outlining
Before diving directly into any assignment, our students should be able to create a structured framework or outline. Teaching students how to create this outline will help them organise their thoughts and arguments for penning their essays, reports and research papers.
3. Using Graphic Organisers
Technically graphic organisers are classroom tools, so you may not think of their use as a writing strategy per se. However, learning to use these tools is another means of providing kids with the tools they need to organize their ideas and information before they sit down to write.
These organisers are particularly useful for expository writing — students can use them to outline main ideas, supporting details, and transitions.
Students can also take advantage of story maps when they are working on narrative writing to plot the key elements of a story, such as characters, setting, conflict, rising action, climax and resolution.
Graphic organisers such as the OREO strategy and hamburger paragraph are also great tools for students to use when working with opinion and persuasive texts.
4. Freewriting
Writer's block is the enemy of creativity, and it can easily frustrate young students who don't know where to begin.
When students freewrite, they write continuously without worrying about grammar or punctuation. This writing strategy can be extremely freeing — hence the name! — and helps frustrated writers move past that writer's block, generating fresh ideas.
5. Peer Editing
Learning to review and provide constructive feedback on each other's work is a great writing strategy to employ in your classroom to help students improve their writing quality and enhance their editing skills.
The strategy allows your students to learn from one another, and it arms them with an important tool they can use well into the future — calling on peers to provide a critical eye to a piece of writing.
6. Using Sensory Language
Working on descriptive writing? With this writing strategy, students engage the reader's senses through vivid and sensory language to create a more immersive experience.
7. Including Transitions and Connectives
As students become more proficient in the writing process, learning to use transitional words and phrases allows them to create smooth transitions between sentences and paragraphs. This strategy makes their writing more coherent and polished.
8. Incorporating Evidence
In persuasive, opinion and expository writing, students are taught to support their claims with evidence and examples to strengthen their arguments.
It takes some practice to train your students to use evidence in their writing, so it's often a good idea to start with something simple, like the R.A.C.E.S. strategy.
9. Crafting a Thesis Statement
In expository, opinion and persuasive writing, crafting clear and concise thesis statements that summarise the main point or argument of their essay helps students be more focused and organised in their writing.
This strategy can also have the effect of empowering students to express their ideas confidently and persuasively.
10. Incorporating Introductions and Conclusions
With this strategy, students practice crafting effective introductions and conclusions that grab the reader's attention and leave a lasting impression.
11. Following a Revision Checklist
Teaching your students to use a revision checklist is a strategy that will help them be more self-reflective, evaluating their own writing against the checklist criteria and becoming more aware of their strengths and weaknesses.
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Simple, Compound and Complex Sentences Worksheets
Use this set of five grammar worksheets to teach about the structures of simple, compound and complex sentences.
- Plus Plan
Simple, Compound and Complex Sentences PowerPoint
A 23 slide editable PowerPoint template which introduces the attributes of simple, compound and complex sentences.
- Free Plan
Writing the Alphabet Chart - Tracing
A chart to assist students when learning how to form letters.
- Free Plan
Narrative Plot Structure - Story Mountain Template
Use a story mountain template to help your students write narrative texts.
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Narrative Writing Planning Template Pack
Use this narrative writing planning template pack to help your students plan a fantastic piece of writing!
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Alphabet Handwriting Sheets - Individual
Handwriting sheets for each letter of the alphabet.
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Nouns, Proper Nouns, Verbs, Adjectives, Adverbs and Conjunctions Posters
Enhance student understanding of the 8 parts of speech with these colourful, informative and easily-referenced grammar wall posters.
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Developing Narrative Writing Skills PowerPoint - Year 3 and Year 4
Teach your students about the structure and language features of narrative texts with an engaging interactive Narrative Writing Teaching Slide Presentation.
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A Letter to My Teacher Activity
Get to know your students a bit better using a ‘Letter to Teacher’ template.
- Free Plan
Tracing Numbers 0-20 Handwriting Worksheet
Get your students tracing numbers from 0-20 with this number formation worksheet available in Australian school fonts.
- Free Plan
Narrative Text Structure Posters
A set of 8 narrative text structure posters to add to your classroom narrative writing display.
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Introduction to Personal Recounts PowerPoint
An 18 slide editable PowerPoint template to use when teaching younger students about the structure and language features of personal recounts.
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18 Editing and Proofreading Worksheets – Spelling, Grammar and Punctuation
Use these editing and proofreading worksheets to add daily editing practice to your lesson plans.
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Simple, Compound and Complex Sentences Posters
Use these posters to show your students the attributes that make up simple, compound and complex sentences.
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Developing Persuasive Writing Skills PowerPoint (Year 3 and Year 4)
Teach your students about the structure and language features of persuasive texts with these interactive teaching slides.
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Narrative Sentence Starter Worksheets
Use our printable narrative writing prompt worksheets to boost your students' imaginative writing skills.
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Writing Narrative Texts PowerPoint - Year 5 and Year 6
A 20 slide editable PowerPoint template to use when teaching your students about the structure and language features of narrative texts.
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Writing Persuasive Texts PowerPoint - Year 5 and Year 6
Explore the structure and language features of persuasive texts with these teaching slides.
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Narrative Writing Visual Prompts Presentation
A 19 slide teaching presentation containing visual narrative writing prompts.
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Tracing Numbers 0-10 Handwriting Worksheet
Get your students tracing numbers from 0-10 with this number formation worksheet available in Australian school fonts.
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Year 4 Editing Passages
Use this set of Year 4 editing passages to help your students demonstrate their spelling, punctuation and grammar knowledge.
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Year 5 Editing Passages
Use this set of Year 5 editing passages to help your students demonstrate their spelling, punctuation and grammar knowledge.
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Handwriting Lines with Cat - Dotted Line
Use the cat to help your students set their handwriting out correctly.
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Persuasive Devices Teaching Slides
Explore persuasive language devices with your students using this detailed and age-appropriate slideshow perfect for your persuasive writing unit.
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Writing Paper with Picture Box - Differentiated Templates
Help your students organise and display their writing and artwork using printable writing paper with picture boxes.
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Free Letter Tracing Worksheets - State Fonts
Use letter tracing worksheets to help your students develop their handwriting and fine motor skills.
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Auto-Fill Customisable Spelling Activity Worksheets
Save time making custom spelling lists and spelling practise worksheets with an editable auto-fill spelling worksheet pack.
- Free Plan
Free Lined Paper Printable - A4
Use this free printable lined paper pack to encourage students to write and publish their work in your classroom writing station.
- Free Plan
Narrative Elements Graphic Organisers – Portrait
Encourage your students to write and draw about various story elements with this set of differentiated graphic organisers.
- Free Plan
Printable Paper with Handwriting Lines - PDF
Use these printable red & blue lined handwriting paper templates to develop your students' penmanship skills in the early years' classroom.
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Persuasive Text Writing Prompts - Complete Set
A set of 5 persuasive writing prompts, covering a variety of topics.
- Free Plan
Persuasive Text Structure Posters
Explore the structure of persuasive writing with this set of 15 posters.
- Writing Worksheets
- Writing Templates
- Writing Games
- Writing Posters
- Writing Teaching Presentations
- Writing Labels, Signs & Decorations
- Writing Word Walls
- Writing Projects
- Writing for Preschool/Kindergarten
- Writing for Foundation Year
- Writing for Year 1
- Writing for Year 2
- Writing for Year 3
- Writing for Year 4
- Writing for Year 5
- Writing for Year 6
- Writing for Year 7