How to Write a Paragraph
Mindprint Rating
Tags
Skills
Mindprint Expert Review
Pros
- Students who struggle with handwriting can focus on learning paragraph structure without the extra burden of writing.
- The app provides a free writing assessment rubric for teachers.
- Provides good guidance for parents who really want to work with a child at home.
Considerations
- There is no way to track mastery or to know which questions and topics were difficult for students.
- Similar to a workbook and not very engaging for students.
- Parents may not feel comfortable assessing a child's writing, even with the rubric.
Mindprint Expert Review
This app, targeted for classroom use but fine for home, provides introductory lessons in paragraph writing typical of a workbook but using touch technology which may make it a more appealing for some students. Chapter 1, What is a Paragraph? and the printable teacher guide including assessment rubric are free to trial, but chapters 2-6, printable graphic organizers, games and puzzles require a purchase. Chapters cover reading passages on paragraph writing, pre-writing, drafting, revising and proofreading. Student activities resemble worksheets with the added benefit of less writing since they drag words to blanks, touch flashcards to flip and study, or touch the sentence that does not belong in the paragraph. Students also may benefit from the immediate feedback on each answer. Students using this app may still need adult support to explain topics and to check understanding, and certainly to assess their independent writing. Overall, this is a fine app that has the advantage of immediate feedback on answers and less handwriting which will be preferable to a workbook for some students.
Academic Benefits
Improves academic skills
- Provides sufficient and varied types of practice problems to maximize understanding and generalization of the targeted skill/concept
- Manufacturer claims alignment with Common Core/Known Standards
- Presents educational concepts accurately
- Explains answers so students can learn from mistakes
- Better for teaching the skill to new or struggling learners
- Better for practicing or refreshing the skill
- Skills are practiced through authentic, meaningful problems (not just rote practice)
Fun
Engaging for the Mindprint recommended age range
- Appropriate for a broad age range to use and enjoy
- Subject matter and problems are relevant, interesting and authentic to students
- Visually appealing to children in the target age range
- Provides virtual rewards or incentives after meeting specified goals or objectives
- Provides a "break activity" between academic problem sets
- Offers ongoing, progressive challenge
- Overall - Enjoyable. Given the option, students would choose this option
Easy to Use
Understandable for children in the Mindprint recommended age range
- Has a free or trial version
- Provides teaching guidance for adults to support the child and set appropriate goals
- Provides an age-appropriate tutorial/first time users can work independently
- Student should be able to use independently after first use
- Has a multi-player option to foster in-person collaboration or cooperation
- Multiple users can save a profile
- Student graduates to the next level or topic only after meeting a benchmark
- Can play without sound and not distract others
- Students can save work between sessions
- Can effectively understand and monitor student's progress (email report or in product)
- Provides options to play in languages other than English/Good for ELL
- Presents information in multiple formats (voice over, pictures and text, etc.)
- Overall - Easy to use
Cognitive Concerns
May not be advisable for students with the following cognitive needs
- Attention
- Promotes purchases or upgrades to students
- Problems or examples are not interesting for the target age range
- Visually distracting with too many pictures, problems or moving objects
- Includes long written questions or text that students must be able to read on their own
- Reading Basics
- Includes long written questions or text that students must be able to read on their own
- Reading Comprehension
- Includes long written questions or text that students must be able to read on their own
- Visual Discrimination
- Promotes purchases or upgrades to students
- Visually distracting with too many pictures, problems or moving objects
Manufacturer Description
Using iPads in your classroom? Strengthen your teaching pedagogy with our complete ready-made lesson plan with pre-assessment, reading passages, and assessment activities.
Download the App FREE of charge and receive the first chapter on us. Unlock the remaining 5 chapters, printables, crossword and memory match game using the easy-to-use In-App purchase. A $39.95 value, yours for only $1.99 per device. No monthly or annual fees, so you can enjoy it for a complete semester or year over and over again. Keep it, use it, enjoy it!
CURRICULUM CONTENT ALIGNED
Meets Common Core State Standards (CCSS)
Bloom's Taxonomy
Learn the essential building blocks of writing a paragraph with our engaging and highly interactive 80 screen-page digital lesson plan. Learning to express ones thoughts in well-written sentences and paragraphs is an essential skill for all students. Designed to make the writing process logical and easy to learn, our lesson provides opportunities for students to complete the prewriting, drafting, revising, and proofreading processes of writing a paragraph. Students will learn how the topic sentence, supporting sentences, and summary sentence come together to form a paragraph. Learn how graphic organizers can help students work through the writing process.
INCLUDES
Teacher Guide
Printables
Before You Read Questions
Reading Passages
Vocabulary Flash Cards
After You Read Questions
Comprehension Questions
Open Discussion Questions
Interactive Activities
Memory Match Game
Graphic Organizers
Crossword
Supporting Video
Ideal for ages 8 and up.