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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Paired Passage Worksheets-Mammals vs. Reptiles
Compare mammals vs. reptiles and add to your reading instruction with leveled nonfiction, compare and contrast passages, and worksheets.
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Reading and Writing Nonfiction Text: Earth Day Close Read Worksheets
Enhance your students' comprehension, vocabulary, and writing skills with this nonfiction Earth Day passage and accompanying activities.
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Lewis and Clark Expedition - RACES Writing Strategy Worksheets
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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United States Patriotic Symbols - Holiday Worksheets
Build and write sentences about patriotic holidays in the United States with a group of six holiday sentence-building worksheets.
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Earth Day Build a Sentence Worksheet
Build and write sentences about Earth Day with a cut-and-paste Earth Day worksheet for kindergarten and first grade.
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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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Imaginative, Opinion and Informative Paragraphs PowerPoint
A 22 slide editable PowerPoint Template to use when teaching your students about the structure of imaginative, opinion and informative paragraphs.
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Write With Your Senses: Daily Descriptive Writing Prompts
Inspire your students to write descriptively using our 20 daily descriptive writing prompts slide deck and graphic organizer.
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Powers of the Legislative Branch Comprehension Pack
Learn about the leaders and responsibilities of the Legislative Branch of the United States government with a reading passage and comprehension worksheets.
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4th Grade Writing Worksheets: Tornado Text-Based Writing
Enhance your students' comprehension, vocabulary, and writing skills using 4th Grade writing worksheets and a high-interest reading passage about Tornadoes.
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Famous Historical Figures - Biography Graphic Organizer Packs
Dive into a research project on key figures in history with a set of Important Historical Figure graphic organizers.
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Note-taking Graphic Organizer
A graphic organizer for students to use when taking notes.
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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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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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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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Spring Writing Prompts for Beginning Writers
Celebrate Spring and encourage creativity with Spring writing worksheets for Kindergarten and first grade.
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Let's Research! Digital and Print Poster Project Templates
Conduct, organize, and display research about books, people, planets, animals, states, and countries with a versatile set of printable and digital poster templates.
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How Do Rocks Form? – Informative Text Structure Sorting Activity
A sorting task to help students learn about the structure of an informative text.
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Assessment Rubric - Procedural Writing
An assessment rubric designed to help teachers to assess students' procedural writing.
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Sequencing Activity - Tyrannosaurus Rex (Informative Text)
A sequencing task using an informative text.
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Developing Informative Writing Skills PowerPoint
A 19-slide editable PowerPoint template to use when teaching your students about the structure and language features of informative texts.
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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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Dinosaurs - Vocabulary Cards and Writing Prompts for Second Grade
Inspire young paleontologists to read and write about dinosaurs with a dinosaur-themed writing center and word wall.
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Bill of Rights - RACES writing response
Practice using the RACES writing strategy and discover the U.S. Constitution and Bill of Rights with a passage, organizer, and prompt.
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Checks and Balances - RACES Writing Prompt Worksheet
Practice using the RACES writing strategy and unravel the mysteries of the U.S. Government system of checks and balances with a passage, organizer, and prompt.
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Henry Ford - RACES Writing Strategy Worksheets
Provide students with Social Studies and Writing instruction using the RACES strategy for constructed response paragraphs.
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Paul Revere Constructed Response Worksheet
Integrate reading, writing, and American history with a constructed response worksheet about Paul Revere and the American Revolution.
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Susan B. Anthony Constructed Response Worksheet
Integrate reading, writing, and American history with a constructed response worksheet about Susan B. Anthony and the women’s rights movement.
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Armstrong vs. Earhart -Differentiated Paired Passage Worksheets
Combine reading and history content with differentiated reading comprehension worksheets.
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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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Reading Comprehension Worksheets-King Midas and the Golden Touch Google Interactive and Printable Resources
Review and practice multiple reading skills using the text “King Midas and the Golden Touch” with these digital and print resources.
- 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