Nothing takes a toll on a teacher’s heart more than seeing her class struggle. On the other hand, empowering student achievement can bring great joy.

Whether your students arrived to 5th grade unprepared for the course material, they have stresses outside of school, or your lesson plans just aren’t getting through to them, you’ll know when it’s time to optimize your teaching strategy.

English writing is one of the most challenging subjects to teach.

Instead of hesitating over how you will help your students catch up to speed, dig in and remind yourself that there are no magic tricks. It takes skill to nurture each child’s development and help them to discover their writing voice.

The fifth grade is also an exciting time for students who are learning to write more complex assignments. Writing instruction at this stage of a child’s education focuses on:

• Writing conventions
• Research
• Revision and editing

You need a practical strategy to elevate student writing achievement. By practical, we mean, simple, effective, and economical. Here’s a preview of what this blog offers:

Teacher Tips To Improve 5^th Grade Writing

1. Encourage More Reading:
   Schedule class time at the library, and keep a collection of paperbacks in your classroom.

2. Make Writing Fun: 
   Incorporate games into your lesson plans that get students thinking about words and context.
   
   
3. Add Spark To Your Classroom: 
   Children are more likely to grow as writers in a pleasant and motivating writing environment.

4. Assign More Papers: 
   Assigning more papers – and giving feedback – is the secret to how to teach kids to write.

Evolving your teaching methods can have a positive impact on your class. Read on to learn more about these simple secrets for how to improve 5^th grade writing skills.

Tip #1: Encourage More Reading

The library is a valuable resource for 5^th graders. Often, you can schedule class visits with your school or local library so that students can learn how to find books they need to write papers, learn about subjects on their own, and read for pleasure.

Accompany your class during these library sessions, and help your students develop a life-long love of libraries. Borrowing books and reading as much as possible will help students to become proficient writers.

Another strategy to get your students reading more is to keep a small collection of paperbacks in your classroom. If you search thrift stores, used book stores, and community library sales, you can often find children’s paperbacks for pennies.

These will come in helpful during silent reading periods, which you should practice with your class every day. Students can choose out books from your collection if they don’t have one handy to read.

Tip #2: Make Writing Fun

Anyone who’s taught a group of 5^th graders knows that they can be full of energy, laughter, and emotions. After all, they’re children. Sitting at a desk working all day is a recipe for a fidgety, unhappy class.

Here are some examples of fun writing activities you can do with your class:

• Create comic strips
• Complete themed word searches
• Do crossword puzzles as teams
• Fill in Mad Libs as a class

By incorporating these activities into your lesson plans, you’ll help students to see writing as more than just a subject their teacher says they have to learn.

Writing can and should be fun. Students who understand this at a young age will find the path to success in high school and college writing.

Tip #3: Add Spark To Your Classroom

By enlivening your classroom and lesson plans, you can create an ideal space for your students to learn writing skills.

You may consider decorating your classroom with writing-themed bulletin boards and giving students a space to track their achievement.

Experts advise implementing three central strategies to create a pleasant and motivating environment in your classroom.* Try the following methods:

• Give extended opportunities to write
• Create routines where students plan, draft, revise, and edit their work
• Offer individual assistance and feedback

The key is to inspire students to improve and set out a clear way forward. Students should feel comfortable being challenged and encouraged to explore.

Tip #4: Assign More Papers

“I know you’ve heard it a thousand times before. But it’s true – hard work pays off. If you want to be good, you have to practice, practice, practice.” – Ray Bradbury

The best writers advise young students to practice writing as much as possible. In 5^th grade, children should learn how to compose and revise papers.

The more they write, the more easily students will find their writing voice.

Students should complete writing assignments in many different subject areas. For example, they can write a summary of a science project, or they can write a report on a historical event. Conducting research and writing about a particular topic will also increase their knowledge in that area.

One problem stands out for 5^th grade teachers with limited bandwidth for grading papers: Students need feedback to learn what they do well and what needs improvement in their writing.

You may be thinking – “How am I going to score more papers on top of my lesson plans and all of the work I already have to grade?”

If scoring assignments takes you hours each week, consider using a paper grader tool for teachers.

By promoting more reading, fun word games, a motivating environment, and writing practice in your classroom, you can take your students to the next level of academic excellence.

As a teacher, you invest so much of your time and emotional energy into each student’s success. Every day brings its rewards and challenges. Putting new teaching strategies into play helps keep each school year fresh and full of possibility.

It’s time to decide what’s best for your 5^th graders. What will you do to help them become better writers?

GraderAide is the most advanced scoring system for written assignments available to teachers. To learn more, visit www.graderaide.com.

*A Path to Better Writing, Evidence-Based Practices in the Classroom” Steve Graham & Karen Harris; The Reading Teacher vol. 69 Issue 4 pp. 361-362 https://www.uen.org/core/languagearts/writing-collection/downloads/PathBetterWriting.pdf