Week 4: Writing “how-to instructions”

In this lesson, students write instructions explaining how to use their inventions. They will acknowledge that a writer must be very specific when giving instructions, especially considering this will be an unfamiliar item that a person is using for the first time.

Learning outcomes

Students will write instructions explaining how to use their inventions, while attending to seemingly obvious details.

Teacher planning

Time required

• 30 minutes for the whole group lesson
• 45 minutes for the writer’s workshop

Materials needed

• Student inventor’s logs and science notebooks

Student handouts

Pre-activities

Students should have completed earlier Invention Convention lessons.

Activities

Part one

1. The teacher will have available supplies to perform a seemingly simple task like making a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, cutting a snowflake, or drawing a picture of a house. For the purpose of this lesson, the sandwich idea will be used.
2. In front of the class, the teacher will present all items needed to make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. The teacher will then say, “Raise your hands and give me instructions on how to make this sandwich.” During this activity, the teacher must literally follow the directions the students give. For example, a student will probably say, “Put the peanut butter on the bread.” The teacher should set the jar of peanut butter on the bread. The purpose is for students to realize how specific their words must be in order for a person to follow their directions, especially for unfamiliar items like their inventions.
3. Once students have the idea of how to state specific directions, they will be ready to write their own directions for their own inventions.

Part two

1. The teacher should remind students that they must be very specific when writing their “how to directions.” The teacher will give each student a how to plan. The students will write their own directions for using their inventions.
2. The teacher will provide and work with students to generate a list of transition words, appropriate for this activity. Some examples include:
   • First
   • Second
   • Third
   • After
   • Next
   • Later
   • During
   • While
   • Finally
   • Then
   • When
   • At last
   • As soon as
3. The teacher will remind students to use a comma after each transition word and transitional phrase.

Assessment

Once the how to instructions have been written and the invention has been created (probably during weeks 5 and 6,) the teacher will assign each student a partner. Each partner, without help, will follow the directions listed on the how to plan. If the partner is not able to follow the directions to successfully use the invention, the inventor will need to revise the directions to be more specific.

Modifications

Working with a teacher in small group instruction, ELLs can complete this task while being introduced to ordering transition words such as first, then, next, last, later, after that, eventually, finally, etc. The teacher will show the student that the words “first,” “last,” and “finally” must be used in specific places, while the other words are interchangeable. Using the modified ELL how to plan, students can select an ordering transition word and then convey the direction through a picture and/or writing, depending on their language ability.

Supplemental Files: 

Plan for writing how-to instructions (MS Word)

Plan for writing how-to instructions (PDF)

Modified plan for writing how-to instructions for English language learners (MS Word)

Modified plan for writing how-to instructions for English language learners (PDF)