Types of Writing Teaching Resources
Explore the different types of writing with your students this school year with printable RACES writing strategy worksheets, constructed response activities, graphic organizers and more teacher resources created by teachers for teachers.
This collection of curriculum-aligned teaching resources has been carefully reviewed by our expert teaching team to make sure every resource is classroom-ready — so we can make your lesson planning easier!
New to teaching the types of writing, or just looking for new ways to engage your students? Read on for a primer from our teacher team!
What Are the Different Types of Writing? 4 Main Writing Genres to Share With Students
If you're introducing the different types of writing — or different genres of writing — to your students, it can help to have some basic descriptions of each type at hand. That's exactly what our teacher team has put together for you!
When we sit down to write any text, we have a goal for writing. Sometimes we're looking to tell a story. Sometimes we want to share information. Other times a piece of writing is created to persuade the reader.
The goal or purpose of a text, as well as its audience, helps us determine what type of writing we need to create.
There are many different genres of writing that students will encounter as readers and writers over their lifetimes, but let's start with the four main types of writing that we cover in elementary and middle school.
1. Narrative Writing
Narrative writers tell stories, making up characters and creating different settings for their readers. The goal of this type of writing is to entertain the reader.
2. Persuasive Writing
If you're trying to convince a reader of something, you'll need to engage in persuasive writing. This type involves trying to convince a reader to take a specific action or to agree with your point of view.
3. Descriptive Writing
When we want to describe something to a reader, the type of writing we create is called descriptive writing. In this genre, we use vivid details to paint a picture in the reader's mind.
4. Informative Writing
If your goal is to create a piece of text that provides the reader with facts or instructions about a specific topic, the type of writing to choose is informative writing.
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Lewis and Clark Worksheet - RACES Writing Strategy
Practice using the RACES writing strategy for text evidence with a Lewis and Clark Passage, graphic organizer, and worksheet.
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Boston Tea Party - RACES Writing Strategy Worksheet
Integrate reading, writing, and American history with a worksheet about the Boston Tea Party using the RACES writing strategy for text evidence.
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Amelia Earhart Constructed Response Worksheet
Use this passage, second grade writing prompt, and worksheet to help students write a constructed response paragraph about Amelia Earhart.
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Narrative Plot Structure - Story Mountain Template
Use a story mountain template to help your students write narrative stories.
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Narrative Story Starter Worksheets - Writing Prompts
Use our printable narrative writing prompt worksheets to boost your students' imaginative writing skills.
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Biography Timeline Worksheet
Download this biography timeline template to help students organize key life events for a person's biography with a clear, structured format.
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Elements of Poetry Teaching Slides
Explore the key elements of poetry with your students using this comprehensive and age-appropriate slide deck perfect for your poetry writing unit.
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Groundhog Day Writing Craftivity
Celebrate Groundhog Day in the classroom and show off your predictions with a printable Groundhog Day Craft.
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Biography Cube
Research and create an interactive biography for a historical figure.
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Narrative Writing Prompts Worksheets
Download these engaging narrative writing prompts worksheets that spark creativity and make story planning easy for your students.
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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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Roll to Create a Groundhog Story
A fun, hands-on Groundhog Day activity using a die and a chart to create a narrative text.
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Visual Narrative Worksheets
Download these visual narrative worksheets that help students create and analyze their own stories using sets of images.
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Information Text Graphic Organizers
Get your students to plan and write informational texts with this set of 6 differentiated graphic organizers.
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Influential Black Leaders - Research Project
Help your students learn about and recognize some of the most influential Black leaders in history with Black History Month Research Project.
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Spring Writing Prompts for Beginning Writers
Celebrate a new season with Spring writing worksheets for primary grades.
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All About Groundhogs Graphic Organizers
Print a free Groundhog Day informational graphic organizer to bring the holiday fun into your writing activities.
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Sensory Chart Graphic Organizer
A graphic organizer for students to use when categorizing sensory details.
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Persuasive Writing Planning Template
A planning template to use when writing a persuasive or opinion text.
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Writing Information Texts Teaching Slides
Teach your students the features of information reports using this detailed slideshow targeted at upper elementary school students.
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Sentence Starters for Writing Slides
Spark creativity with our sentence starters for writing slides that provide your students writing prompts across three writing genres.
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Fairy Tale Writing Templates
Use these structured pages to support storytelling and writing of fairy tales with your students.
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How Do Rocks Form? – Informative Text Structure Sequencing Activity
Help students learn about informative text structure and how rocks are formed with an engaging cut-and-paste sorting activity.
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OREO® Opinion Writing Poster
Help students remember the structure of opinion texts with this fun OREO® acronym.
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PEEL Paragraph Structure Poster and Worksheets
Explore the acronym PEEL to help with paragraph technique during opinion writing lessons.
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Barack Obama - Biography Activity Pack
Learn about the life and contributions of Barack Obama with a comprehensive pack of Presidents’ Day Worksheets.
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Winter Writing Prompts for Beginning Writers
Celebrate winter and your growing writers with Winter writing worksheets for Kindergarten and first grade.
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Soccer vs. Football -Differentiated Paired Passage Worksheets
Differentiate reading instruction with nonfiction texts, compare and contrast activities, and response to text writing opportunities.
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Writing Informative Texts – Teaching Presentation
A 33-slide, editable PowerPoint template to use when teaching your students about informative writing.
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My Research Project - Pennant Banner
Create a pennant banner for students to record and display their biography research.
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Readers Theater – Play Writing Template
A template for students to use when writing their own Readers Theater script.
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What Causes the Seasons? Informative Text Writing Task
Use this scaffolded writing task to have students write about how seasons change.
- Types of Writing Templates
- Types of Writing Worksheets
- Types of Writing Posters
- Types of Writing Games
- Types of Writing Word Walls
- Types of Writing Projects
- Types of Writing for Kindergarten
- Types of Writing for 1st Grade
- Types of Writing for 2nd Grade
- Types of Writing for 3rd Grade
- Types of Writing for 4th Grade
- Types of Writing for 5th Grade
- Types of Writing for 6th Grade
- Types of Writing for 7th Grade