Expository Writing Teaching Resources
Whether you call it expository writing, informational writing or writing informative texts in your classroom, it's important for students to learn to write in a manner that shares straightforward information on a certain topic to educate their reader. It's a skill that will serve them well throughout their education and well into adulthood.
Getting your students started with informative writing this school year? The Teach Starter team of teachers has put together everything you need to teach this core writing type to your elementary writers, including printable worksheets, writing prompts, writing templates, and more.
Each resource in this collection has been thoroughly reviewed to ensure it's ready to be used in your classroom, and you'll find editable options so you can make the adjustments you need to meet state-level standards and meet your students where they are.
New to teaching this type of writing or looking for a handy refresher? Read on for a primer from our teacher team, including a definition you can use explain what you mean when you introduce expository or informative writing to your students.
What Is Informative Writing or Expository Writing? A Kid-Friendly Definition
We have always found it is helpful to have a definition handy when we are introducing the different genres of writing to our class. Here's one the ELA teachers on our team use for expository writing:
Expository writing is a type of writing that is created to educate the reader with facts.
This type of writing goes by a number of names, so maybe your district calls it something else. Here's a look at just a few of the names it may be called:
- Expository writing
- Informational writing
- Explanatory writing
- Informative Writing
Informative Writing vs. Persuasive Writing — How to Explain the Difference to Your Students
Informative writing is just one of the many writing styles your students will learn in elementary school, but it's important to establish the clear differences between them.
Take persuasive writing, for example. Like informational writing, it requires becoming educated on the topic a student is writing about, and it involves using facts in writing.
On the other hand, a persuasive writing essay is written to convince the reader of something. In higher grades, it transitions into opinion writing because it takes a side on a topic rather than remaining impartial.
That's not true of an expository writing piece, which takes a "just the facts, Jack" form.
What Are the 5 Elements of Informative Writing?
As you dive into teaching informational writing, there are 5 elements you'll want students to focus on explaining to the reader. They're often called the 5 Ws:
- Who
- What
- When
- Where
- Why
Students may also include a sixth element, which explains "how" something happened.
5 Informative Writing Examples to Share With Your Students
You may want to start your students off on your informational writing unit with examples to help familiarize them with this sort of writing. Fortunately, informational writing is found all around us in daily life.
Students have almost surely read more than a few examples of expository writing along the way, but they may not have known what to call it.
Some examples that students will likely recognize include:
- Procedural or "how to" texts such as instruction manuals or recipes
- School cafeteria menus
- Road signs
- Event flyers
- This description of informative writing!
Consider challenging students to bring an example of informative writing to class as a form of homework!
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Describing Animal Adaptations - Informative Writing Prompt Worksheets
Write to describe animals and their adaptations with a printable pack of informative writing worksheets.
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Sequence a Procedural Text – Cut and Paste Worksheets
Use these procedural writing examples to teach your students about sequencing instructions in a logical order.
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How to Wash Your Hands Flipbook
Use this “How to Wash Your Hands” procedural writing activity to help familiarize your students with the structural elements of procedure texts.
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Procedural Writing Templates – "How to" Prompts
Get your students to write procedural texts with this set of differentiated procedure writing prompt templates.
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Procedural Writing Graphic Organizers
Get your students to write procedural texts with this set of 10 differentiated graphic organizers.
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How to Stay Healthy – Procedural Writing Project
Get your students writing high-quality procedure texts with this fun “How to Stay Healthy” procedural writing project.
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Procedural Writing Prompt Task Cards
Need some procedural writing ideas? Download these task cards to use as a writing center activity during your procedure writing unit.
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Dogs Make The Best Pets - Reading Comprehension PDF
Assess 3rd grade reading comprehension skills with a printable Reading Comprehension Test using an opinion text.
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Rainforest Bird Craft & Writing Template
Pair a fun bird craft and informational writing to create a fun jungle-themed bulletin board.
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How to Make Fairy Bread Flipbook
Use this “How to Make Fairy Bread” procedural writing activity to help familiarize your students with the structural elements of procedure texts.
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How to Make Hot Chocolate Flipbook
Use this “How to Make Hot Chocolate” procedural writing activity to help familiarize your students with the structural elements of procedure texts.
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How to Make a Pizza Interactive Activity
Use this “How to Make a Pizza” procedural writing interactive activity to model the purpose, structural elements and language features of procedure texts.
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How to Plant a Garden – Procedural Writing Project
Get your students writing high-quality procedure texts with this fun “How to Plant a Garden” procedural writing project.
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How to Make Waffles - Procedural Writing Project
Get your students writing high-quality procedure texts with this fun “How to Make Waffles” procedural writing project.
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Procedural Writing Posters
Display this set of 5 procedural writing anchor charts in your classroom during your procedural writing unit.
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How to Make an Ice Cream Sundae Interactive Activity
Use this “How to Make an Ice Cream Sundae” procedural writing interactive activity to model the purpose, structural elements and language features of procedure texts.
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How to Brush Your Teeth Flipbook
Use this “How to Brush Your Teeth” procedural writing activity to help familiarize your students with the structural elements of procedure texts.
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Procedural Writing Flipbook
Get your students to write a procedure text using this easy-to-compile flipbook scaffold.
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Build a Procedure Text – Cut and Paste Worksheets
Use these different examples of procedure writing to teach your students about the structural features of procedure texts.
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Animal Characteristics - Write the Room Activity
Help your young students read and write about features of animals with a printable Animal Characteristics Write the Room activity.
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Polar Bear Craft Template
Pair a polar bear craft and informational writing to create a fun winter animals bulletin board.
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Penguin Craft & Writing Template
Research and write about penguins and their adaptations, then create a fun penguin craft to display student work.
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Animals That Adapt - Research Project & Report
Strengthen your students' understanding of conducting research with an Animal Adaptations research project.
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Authors Who Inspire - Speechwriting Task
Research and celebrate an inspiring author during Read Across America Week with this speech-writing task.
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Interactive Build A Snowman Sequencing Activity
Practice sequencing and writing procedural texts with an interactive How to Build a Snowman game.
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How to Decorate a Christmas Tree - Year 1 Procedural Writing
Practice sequencing and writing procedural texts with an interactive ‘How to Decorate a Christmas Tree’ slide deck and differentiated writing prompts for 1st grade.
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How to Build a Snowman - Procedural Writing Worksheets
Explain how to build a snowman with a pack of printable procedural writing worksheets
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Weathering and Erosion – RACES Writing Strategy Worksheets
Combine reading, writing and science with two worksheets about weathering and erosion using the RACES writing strategy for text evidence.
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How to Make a Sundae - Informational Writing Craftivity
Inspire students to write informational text with a fun, summer-themed end-of-year writing assignment and craft.
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My Family Fire Escape Planning Worksheet
Plan ahead and encourage families to develop a fire escape plan with a pair of printable fire escape planning worksheets.
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Firefighters Writing Worksheets for 1st Grade
Draw and write about what firefighters wear and what they use to do their jobs with a pair of printable firefighter writing worksheets for 1st grade.
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Firefighters and Fire Trucks Worksheet Pack - Adjectives
Describe firefighters and fire trucks using descriptive adjectives with a set of printable Community Helper worksheets for Kindergarten.
- Expository Writing Templates
- Expository Writing Worksheets
- Expository Writing Posters
- Expository Writing Word Walls
- Expository Writing for Kindergarten
- Expository Writing for 1st Grade
- Expository Writing for 2nd Grade
- Expository Writing for 3rd Grade
- Expository Writing for 4th Grade
- Expository Writing for 5th Grade
- Expository Writing for 6th Grade