15 teaching ideas for essay writing

A brief lesson in clarity!  For a quick, fun starter, remind students how important it is to be clear in their explanations.  Get them to write a brief, clear explanation for something simple such as how to tie a shoelace or a tie. Then see if their partner can follow their explanation.

Mat mates.  Encourage students to make their own ‘criteria mats’, for use when writing.  The laminated mats provide a checklist to achieve a C (or any other level/grade).  They could remind students to use PEE paragraphs, to provide evidence for each point they make, and to return regularly to the question.

Frankenstein essays.  Divide the class into groups and give each group a different essay question.  Each member of the group must write one paragraph – the paragraphs are then ‘stitched’ together and must make a coherent whole!