Unit Plan 4 (Grade 5 ELA): Small-Moment Narrative Writing

Focus: Narrative structure (orienting reader, event sequence, closure)

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, writers zoom in on a small, meaningful moment and craft a personal narrative that orients the reader, unfolds with a clear event sequence, and ends with a purposeful closure. Students will rehearse leads, structure scenes, use dialogue, description, and pacing, and apply conventions for clean, publishable writing. By Friday, each learner will draft and revise a coherent narrative that shows what happened and why it mattered.

II. Objectives and Standards

Learning Objectives — Students will be able to…

1. Orient the reader by establishing a situation, narrator, and setting; organize a logical event sequence (W.5.3a).
2. Use narrative techniques—dialogue, description, and internal thoughts—to develop events and characters (W.5.3b).
3. Manage transitions and pacing across scenes (W.5.3c).
4. Use precise words/sensory details to convey experiences and tone (W.5.3d).
5. Provide a conclusion that follows from the narrated experiences (W.5.3e).
6. Plan, revise, and edit to strengthen writing; attend to conventions (capitalization, punctuation—especially for dialogue—and spelling) (W.5.5, L.5.2).

Standards Alignment — CCSS Grade 5

• W.5.3a–e, W.5.5, L.5.2

Success Criteria — student language

• My opening tells who, where/when, and what’s beginning.
• Each scene moves in order and uses transitions (later, meanwhile, after that…).
• I used dialogue, description, and thoughts to show what happened.
• My ending reflects on the moment or shows how I changed.
• My punctuation and capitalization—especially in dialogue—are correct.