As they practice their persuasive writing, second graders at McKenna Elementary School have been writing to everyone and everything.
In Jaclyn Gardner’s class, students have been working on letter writing. After reading the book “The Day the Crayons Quit” by Drew Daywalt, each young writer had to craft a letter to one of the crayons and convince it not to quit. Students cited examples of why each color was needed, like the blue crayon to draw the sky or yellow to draw the sun. This writing project followed another letter in which they had to persuade a mummy or witch to buy a haunted house.
Ms. Gardner said that in addition to learning the elements of persuasive writing and the need to back up their claims with facts, they also learned about the structure of a letter.
Teacher Allyson Owens had her students write letters of appreciation to McKenna staff members. They learned about the emotional aspect of a letter, and then each child picked one person to write to, including the principal, their first grade teachers, special area teachers, the nurse and security guard.
Ms. Owens added that the students were asked to select an adult at the school who has made a positive impact on their lives and cite those reasons. After penning their letters, youngsters traveled around the school to make personal deliveries.