Unit Plan 12 (Grade 5 ELA): Cohesion, Transitions, and Conclusions
Grade 5 opinion writing unit: strengthen organization, master sentence control, use varied transitions, and craft clear, audience-focused conclusions with polish.
Focus: Organization; sentence control; strong closings
Grade Level: 5
Subject Area: English Language Arts (Writing, Language)
Total Unit Duration: 5 sessions (one week), 45–60 minutes per session
I. Introduction
This week polishes opinion writing so it flows logically and finishes strong. Students will tighten organization, use purposeful transitions within and across paragraphs, control sentence boundaries (no fragments/run-ons), and craft conclusions that follow from their reasons and keep the audience in mind. By Friday, each writer revises a draft to read smoothly, link ideas clearly, and end with a memorable, aligned closing.
II. Objectives and Standards
Learning Objectives — Students will be able to…
- Provide a concluding statement/section that follows from the opinion presented (W.5.1d).
- Plan, revise, and edit writing—focusing on cohesion, transitions, and closure—with peer/teacher feedback (W.5.5).
- Apply conventions during editing: correct capitalization, punctuation (commas with transitions/series), and spelling (L.5.2).
Standards Alignment — CCSS Grade 5
- W.5.1d, W.5.5, L.5.2
Success Criteria — student language
- My paragraphs are in a logical order and connected with varied, precise transitions.
- My sentences are complete and punctuated correctly; commas help clarity (series, after transition words).
- My conclusion restates the claim, synthesizes key reasons, and speaks to my audience.