A secret door in the backyard opens onto a magical forest, and 1st grade students write the story of what they find. The sheet models the goal by turning "I saw a bug." into "I saw a tiny, sparkly blue bug!" Four planning questions ask who comes along, what the door looks like, where they go first and the most amazing thing they see. A bank of 12 detail words and a success checklist lead into the story itself. The 3 pages fit Common Core W.1.5.
W.1.5
“With guidance and support from adults, focus on a topic, respond to questions and suggestions from peers, and add details to strengthen writing as needed.”
The four planning questions and the color and size challenge push students to add details before and while they write.
Students read the story idea and the bug example beside a picture of a glowing door that opens onto giant mushrooms.
Four questions, such as "What kind of door is it?", plus a challenge to use two color words and two size words.
A 12-word bank: sparkly, giant, tiny, bright, fuzzy, purple, secret, glowing, bumpy, soft, enormous and quiet.
Three success criteria to check off, then lined space for the forest story.
Grow the bug sentence
Write "I saw a bug." on the board and let the class add one word at a time. Students then do the same with their answer to question 4.
Revision partner
After drafting, a partner asks one question from the plan. The writer adds a detail word to answer it.
Count the colors
Only purple in the bank is a color word, so students need a second color of their own for the challenge. Tell them before they start.
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