Happy New Year! The return from winter break in January offers the perfect backdrop to get students thinking about their academic and personal goals for the year. I love to take the time to challenge my students to think about their work so far and where they hope to be by the end of the school year. I like to begin the year with a New Year’s resolution essay writing unit where we work on goal-setting and resolve to do things that will help us to be an even better version of ourselves.
There are plenty of unique ways to teach essay writing, but I have found success with the BING BANG BONGO essay template. The concept is easy for students to understand. Here is an overview of the steps:
- Identify your topic, and brainstorm the three main points or ideas you will use to craft your essay.
- Introduction with a Topic Sentence. What is your piece about? What three pieces of information do you want to share with the reader based on the topic of your piece?
- BING Paragraph 1: What is the first idea you shared in your topic sentence? Your first sentence should introduce that first idea. Follow this with two or three supporting sentences, and close the paragraph with a concluding sentence.
- BANG Paragraph 2: What is the second idea you shared in your topic sentence? Two or three supporting sentences should follow the opening sentence in introducing that second idea. Close the paragraph with a concluding sentence.
- BONGO Paragraph 3: What is the third idea you shared in your topic sentence? Again, clearly state the third idea in your opening sentence and write two or three supporting sentences. Close the paragraph with a concluding sentence.
- Conclusion: Concluding Sentence: Bring your piece to a close. Restate the purpose of the essay, but do not add any new information. Make sure you complete your thoughts so the reader walks away with a full understanding of your points.
If you are interested in a complete essay writing resource that is based on the BING, BANG, BONGO strategy, check out my New Year’s Resolution Essay Writing Toolkit, which can be used as a printable unit or integrated in Google Classroom.
To kick off the brainstorming process for this lesson plan, I start by discussing commercials students have noticed on TV. Typically, they will confirm they have seen lots of commercials for gym memberships and weight-loss companies. I ask them why they think these are so prominent during January, and they respond that people are often setting goals at the beginning of a new year.
From there, we create a brainstorm cloud where students list ways they could improve themselves. Some examples are: practicing harder, putting more effort into school work, listening more to a parent, being more responsible, etc. Depending on the suggestions you receive, it can also be helpful to explain the difference between setting a goal and achieving a dream.
Next, I have the students decide on the three goals they want to work on. Those get added to their brainstorm organizer, and we then move on to writing.
Next, we move on to creating our topic sentences. Sometimes it is best for teachers to share examples of their own topic sentences first, so students understand how to begin organizing their writing. I usually model my own resolutions in front of the class so we can go through the thought process together. My three goals for this project were: saving more money, being less quick-tempered, and saying only respectful things about others.
Once you establish topic sentences, show students how your BING paragraph (in my case) would be all about saving money, my BANG paragraph would be all about being less quick-tempered, and my BONGO paragraph would be all about saying only respectful things about others.
Students always LOVE to hear the stories behind my resolutions, and you’ll never face a shortage of suggestions to help you achieve your resolutions!
In addition to having three strategies, I require each paragraph to include an opening sentence introducing the resolution and a concluding sentence bringing the paragraph to a close.
On the second day, I like to review our previous instructions and get to work on our introductions and conclusions. Some teachers may find this strategy backwards, but I have found it can be tricky for students to find a place to begin. With each of their body paragraphs completed, students have a better grasp of how they need to grab the reader’s attention and then bring the work to a close.
I often use the example of crime and drama shows when discussing the introductory paragraph. Often, the writers open the show with a shocking image or event to grab the audience’s attention and keep them glued to the show. This is the same type of statement we want to make with the first sentences in our resolution essay.
For the conclusions, I share how we are bringing the piece to a close and sending the reader on their way. This is NOT the time to share new information, but instead to give the reader the chance to reflect on what we have shared. At this point, the students will have completed their organizers and are ready for the first draft of their resolution essay.
As part of the review process, I typically have a writing conference with each student. The focus here is: mechanics-CUPS-capitalization, usage/grammar, punctuation, and spelling. We also discuss organization and the use of transitions in their sentences. Here is an example editing chart, which is included in the Resolution Essay Writing Toolkit from above.
After all edits are in place, students rewrite their final drafts and publish them on their Chromebooks or display them in the classroom. Not everyone will be interested in sharing their resolutions, so choose which format makes the most sense for your group.
Essay writing is a skill that students can learn in the middle grades and will carry with them through college. Sadly, this wasn’t a skill I learned until high school, but with common core standards, writing extensive or elaborate pieces is now a requirement for our students at all levels, specifically in the middle grades.
For this reason, I created the Resolutions Made Easy writing resource. I wanted to help my students construct a thorough essay that required them to write 5-paragraphs effectively and successfully. It provides all the materials you need to walk students through the brainstorming, drafting, editing, and publishing stages.
It takes my students about five class periods to complete the entire process, depending on how quickly they are able to type their papers. It may take your students more or less time.
If you are looking for more writing activities and resources, be sure to check out my ELA resources for a variety of inexpensive, print-and-go ideas. If you are considering my essay writing toolkit, be sure to check out my January ELA Bundle which includes the writing toolkit and three additional units that you might like to try during this first month back from break. The New Year is the perfect time to refresh your classroom and experiment with new lesson formats to keep your students engaged.
