Ralph Fletcher & JoAnn Portalupi 
Nonfiction Craft Lessons 
Teaching Information Writing K-8

Writing nonfiction represents a big step for most students, yet when they try to create a report or persuasive essay, they are often anxious and frustrated. Jo Ann Portalupi and Ralph Fletcher created Nonfiction Craft Lessons: Teaching Information Writing, K-8 to help teachers bring the passion from student writing while helping students scaffold their ideas in this challenging genre. The authors divided this book into grade-specific sections for K-2, 3-4, and middle school (grades 5-8) students. These divisions reflect various differences between emerging, competent, and fluent writers. In each section you”ll find a generous collection of craft lessons directed at the genre that”s most appropriate for that particular age. In the K-2 section, for example, a number of craft lessons focus on the all-about or concept book. In the 3-4 section there are several lessons on biography. In the 5-8 section a series of lessons addresses expository writing. Throughout the book each of the 80 lessons is presented on a single page in an easy-to-read format. Every lesson features three teaching guidelines:

Discussion –A brief look at the reasons for teaching the particular element of craft specifically in a nonfiction context. How to Teach It –Concrete language showing exactly how a teacher might bring this craft element to students in writing conferences or a small-group setting. Resource Material –Specific book or text referred to in the craft lesson including trade books, or a piece of student writing in the Appendixes.

This book will help students breathe voice into lifeless ‘dump-truck’ writing and improve their nonfiction writing by making it clearer, more authoritative, and more organized. Nonfiction Craft Lessons gives teachers a wealth of practical strategies to help students grow into strong writers as they explore and explain the world around them.