How-to Writing: A Hands-On Lesson Plan for Teaching Process Paragraphs

Discover a fun, hands-on lesson plan for teaching how-to writing! This resource guides students through crafting a perfect process paragraph using a memorable activity: making their own coffee or hot chocolate. Students will learn to sequence steps chronologically, use transition words effectively, and structure a paragraph with a clear topic and concluding sentence. This complete ELA lesson plan includes learning objectives, detailed procedures, assessment strategies, and ideas for differentiation to support all learners. Perfect for elementary and middle school ELA classrooms or homeschooling.

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Lesson Plan: The Perfect Pour - Crafting a Process Paragraph

Materials Needed

  • For Coffee Making (choose one recipe):
    • Simple Drip Coffee: Coffee maker, filter, coffee grounds, water, mug.
    • Fancy Hot Chocolate: Milk, cocoa powder, sugar, whisk, saucepan, mug, optional whipped cream.
    • Instant Dalgona Coffee: Instant coffee, sugar, hot water, milk, small bowl, whisk or hand mixer, glass.
  • For Writing:
    • Notebook paper or a computer
    • Pencil or pen
    • Optional: "Transition Words" chart (see below for examples)
    • Optional: Highlighters (different colors)

Learning Objectives

By the end of this lesson, the student will be able to:

  • Verbally identify the steps of a process in chronological order.
  • Use sequential transition words (like first, next, then, finally) to connect steps in a process.
  • Write a clear, single-paragraph process analysis that explains how to complete a task from start to finish.

Curriculum Alignment (Example ELA Standards)

  • W.4.2d / W.5.2d: Use precise language and domain-specific vocabulary to inform about or explain a topic.
  • W.4.3b / W.5.3b: Use a variety of transitional words, phrases, and clauses to manage the sequence of events.

Lesson Procedure & Activities

Part 1: The Hook - What's a Recipe? (5 minutes)

  1. Ask the student: "If you wanted to teach a friend how to make your favorite kind of coffee, how would you do it? What would happen if you gave them the steps out of order, like telling them to pour the water *after* turning the machine on?"
  2. Explain that a recipe is just a type of process explanation. Today, we're going to become recipe writers by focusing on writing a process paragraph, which clearly explains the steps to do something from beginning to end.

Part 2: The Main Ingredient - What is a Process Paragraph? (5 minutes)

  1. Explain the three key parts of a process paragraph:
    • Topic Sentence: A sentence that introduces the process you are about to explain. (e.g., "Making a delicious cup of drip coffee is a simple process.")
    • The Steps: The sentences in the middle that explain each step in order. This is where we use Transition Words!
    • Concluding Sentence: A final sentence that signals the process is complete. (e.g., "Finally, you can sit back and enjoy your perfectly brewed coffee.")
  2. Briefly show a list of common transition words: First, Second, Next, Then, After that, Before, While, Meanwhile, At last, Finally.

Part 3: The Hands-On Lab - Let's Make Coffee! (15 minutes)

  1. Choose which coffee (or hot chocolate) recipe you will make.
  2. The Task: As the student makes the drink, have them say each step aloud before they do it. The parent/teacher should write these steps down as a simple, numbered list. Encourage "thinking aloud."
  3. Example prompts: "What is the very first thing you need to do?" "Okay, you have the filter in place. What comes next?" "What's the absolute last step before you can drink it?"

Part 4: The Recipe Card - Drafting the Paragraph (15 minutes)

  1. Using the list of steps you wrote down in Part 3, the student will now write their process paragraph.
  2. Step 1 - Topic Sentence: Have the student write a strong topic sentence that names the process. (e.g., "Creating a frothy Dalgona coffee is an easy and fun activity.")
  3. Step 2 - The Steps & Transitions: Guide the student to turn their list of steps into full sentences. For each new step, prompt them to choose a transition word from the list. Encourage using strong verbs (e.g., instead of "put in sugar," try "measure the sugar" or "add the sugar").
  4. Step 3 - Concluding Sentence: Have the student write a closing sentence that provides a sense of finality. (e.g., "In the end, you will have a beautiful and tasty coffee treat.")

Part 5: The Taste Test - Revision & Sharing (5-10 minutes)

  1. The student reads their paragraph aloud while enjoying the drink they made. This helps them "hear" any awkward phrasing or missing steps.
  2. Revision Checklist:
    • Does the paragraph start with a clear topic sentence?
    • Are all the steps included and in the correct order?
    • Did you use at least three different transition words? (Have them highlight the transition words in one color).
    • Did you use strong, specific verbs? (Highlight verbs in another color).
    • Does it end with a good concluding sentence?
  3. Make any final edits based on the checklist.

Assessment

  • Formative (During Lesson): Observe the student's ability to sequence the steps verbally during the coffee-making activity. Note their ability to choose appropriate transition words during the drafting phase.
  • Summative (End of Lesson): The final, revised process paragraph serves as the summative assessment. Evaluate it based on the revision checklist above (clarity of topic sentence, logical sequence, use of transitions, and presence of a concluding sentence).

Differentiation & Extension

  • For Extra Support:
    • Provide a paragraph frame with blanks for the student to fill in:
      "Making ________ is easy if you follow these steps. First, you must ________. Next, ________. Then, you will ________. Finally, you can ________."
    • Offer a smaller word bank of 3-4 transition words to choose from.
  • For an Extra Challenge:
    • Instruct the student to add sensory details to their paragraph. What does the coffee smell like as it brews? What does the Dalgona coffee look like? What sounds do you hear?
    • Have the student write a second process paragraph comparing two different ways to make coffee.
    • Ask the student to design and illustrate a recipe card featuring their finished paragraph.