Writing Resources--The 411

Lucy Calkins has published units of study by grade level for reading and writing workshops.  They can be electronically downloaded by grade level and subject (reading or writing) for $10 each at the bottom of the page on this link:

Lucy Calkins's Core Curriculum Units of Study

I think these solve some problems with teaching deep, meaningful units of study as part of the implementation of core curriculum.  That said, our timeframe for teaching these units (which are in a logical order) may differ in Indiana, so we might need to re-sequence somewhat; I'm not sure which ones or when!  Any ideas?

The All Write!!! Consortium's coaches are beginning to consider writing specific lessons to support Lucy's work and our teachers who are interested in teaching through these units.  We would welcome your lessons that you have already developed.  Does anyone have some?  We have posted some units on the All Write!!! website at:

All Write Web Site

We are hoping to post more very soon so that teachers can begin accessing even more helpful ideas.  We are currently focusing on the nonfiction, informational, and persuasive writing units because we believe that many teachers have reasonably mastered narrative writing (or certainly had more exposure to it) over the years.  With the impending PARCC assessments coming soon, we are thinking we would be doing well to be sure that students are taught with spiraled units across the curriculum--with this focus on nonfiction/informational and persuasive writing.  How is your district handling this?


We have several teachers who are trying out the units of study mentioned above (in informational/nonfiction/persuasive writing, as well as the 4th and 5th grades' units on writing on demand [prompts]).  We are hoping to find more touchsone texts and interesting ways to approach these units and embedded lessons.  All sharing is welcome!

Other texts that I have found to be most helpful in writing nonfiction include Linda Hoyt and Tony Stead's book, CRAFTING NONFICTION .

A new book for intermediate grades is due out this winter; I am looking forward to it!  The CD-Rom alone is priceless; this book is written into specific lessons that are well thought out and involve deep teaching over time.

Hoyt and Stead develop these even more in their grade-level specific units that are published by Heinemann.  These are a little pricey but are well worth it, I think!

Explorations in Nonfiction, Kindergarten

Explorations in Nonfiction, Grade 1

Explorations in Nonfcition, Grade 2

What else is helpful with nonfiction, informational, and persuasive writing?