Learning goals
- The learner can explain why brainstorming happens before drafting.
- The learner can generate ideas using a web, list, or freewrite.
- The learner can sort ideas into a beginning, middle, and end.
- The learner can choose a topic and narrow it to one clear focus.
Key ideas
Brainstorming
Brainstorming means quickly writing down all your ideas without worrying about whether they are perfect yet.
Prewriting
Prewriting is everything you do before you start your first draft, like making lists, drawing webs, or sketching an outline.
Audience
Your audience is the person or group who will read your writing, and thinking about them helps you decide what to include.
Narrow your topic
Narrowing means making a big, vague idea smaller and more specific so your writing stays focused.
Worked example
A student wants to write a paragraph but only has the topic 'animals.' Show how to move from that vague idea to a focused plan.
- Brainstorm freely: list any animals that come to mind — dogs, penguins, butterflies, sharks.
- Pick one animal that the student finds most interesting: penguins.
- Narrow further by asking 'What about penguins?' — choose one angle: how penguins keep their eggs warm.
- Sketch a quick three-part plan: opening (introduce penguins), middle (explain egg warming), closing (why this is amazing).
Answer:The student now has a focused topic ('How emperor penguins keep their eggs warm') and a simple three-part plan — ready to draft.
Teaching tips
- Let the child talk out loud before writing anything down — verbal brainstorming often unlocks ideas faster than staring at a blank page.
- A hand-drawn idea web works just as well as a formal outline for younger students; the goal is a visible plan, not a perfect format.
- If a student picks a topic that is too broad, ask one guiding question — 'What part interests you most?' — rather than telling them to change it.