End of Year Ancient & World History Persuasive Writing Activity

This low prep end of year activity is a great way for students to show what they learned about ancient or world civilizations during the school year. Using their knowledge of the ancient world, students write a persuasive letter to their families about which civilization is the best one for them to live in because the world is ending and they have the opportunity to go back in time to save themselves. A Google Drive™ compatible version is also included.

✓ Please note:

* This resource is included in a money-saving bundle with 3 other End of Year Social Studies writing activities; you can find it HERE.

* It's also available in a money-saving Prehistory & Ancient History Bundle with 4 other resources, which you can find HERE.

Resource at a Glance:

★ What will students learn?

* How to write a persuasive letter about 1 of the ancient or world history civilizations they learned about during the school year.

★ Who is it for?

* All students, including English Language Learners.

★ How does it help teachers?

* It helps you evaluate what your students learned in a course about the civilizations in the ancient world or in world history.

* Students get to practice persuasive writing and writing friendly letters.

* Graphic organizers help students compile information, pre-write their ideas, and write their final products.

* An assessment checklist is included so you can quickly assess your students’ work.

* Printable and digital versions let students to do the persuasive writing activity in-person classes or remotely.

* Directions for implementing an optional speaking activity are provided in case you’d like your students to practice making speeches.

What educators who have used this resource say about it:

♥ "I really enjoyed hearing students's stories. After learning about the different civilizations, it was so interesting to hear where they would want to live and why! I will definitely be using this again in May!!" -- Misty B.

♥ "Great project! Students enjoyed sharing where they would want to live. Excellent summative assessment." -- Lori M.

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What you get in this product:

In the PDF File:

★ Cover (1 page)

★ A table of contents for quick reference (1 page)

★ A Notes to the Teacher section with background information (2 pages)

★ Directions on how to access the Google Drive materials (1 page)

★ List of ELA Common Core standards addressed (1 page)

★ Lesson objectives (1 page)

★ RAFTS pages, in color and in black-and-white (1 page each for a total for 2 pages)

★ Directions for students (1 page)

★ The writing prompt, in 2 versions--one with a section for listing all the civilizations studied and one with blank space for notes of any kind (2 pages)

★ A graphic organizer for writing notes about three civilizations (1 page)

★ A graphic organizer for writing notes about a selected civilization (1 page)

★ A pre-writing organizer to write about a selected civilization in a logical, sequential way (2 pages)

★ A model of a friendly letter (1 page)

★ A lined page with a border for writing the first draft (1 page)

★ A blank page with a border for writing the first draft (1 page)

★ A lined page with a border for writing the final copy (1 page)

★ A blank page with a border for writing the final copy (1 page)

★ A checklist to assess the finished product (1 page)

★ Copyright, social media & credits information (1 page)

In the Google Drive Materials:

★ Cover page (1 slide)

★ RAFTS writing prompt page (1 slide)

★ Directions for students (1 slide)

★ The writing prompt (1 slide)

★ A graphic organizer for writing notes about three civilizations (1 slide)

★ A graphic organizer for writing notes about a selected civilization (1 slide)

★ A pre-writing organizer to write about a selected civilization in a logical, sequential way (2 slides)

★ A model of a friendly letter (1 slide)

★ A slide for writing the first draft (1 slide)

★ A slide for writing the final copy (1 slide)

★ A checklist to assess the finished product (1 slide)

More Info:

Students select one of the ancient or world history civilizations they studied and then explain its positive features, justifying their decision as to why that is the one they should time travel back to. Students must also discuss a few of their selected civilization's negative features and explain why they do not outweigh its good points, which gives them practice in writing counter claims. The writing prompt is in RAFTS format (Role, Audience, Topic, Format, Strong Verb).

This resource includes graphic organizers for taking notes about civilizations, a model of a friendly letter, a checklist for assessing the final product, pages for writing the first draft and final copies, and explanatory notes to the teacher. You can use this end of year resource with both your English Language Learners and your native English-speaking students.

The writing activity can be done in class or for homework; if done entirely in class, it will take 3 - 4 periods, depending on how much time you allocate for note-taking, pre-writing and revising. Directions for an optional oral presentation component are also included, if you would like to give your students practice in giving speeches.

Pages with lesson objectives, a list of ELA Common Core standards addressed, and a sample WIDA Model Performance Indicator are provided for your convenience.

You can use this resource remotely in 2 ways:

a) When teaching synchronously or asynchronously online, use the Google Drive version. If you are using a platform that allows you and your students to talk with each other in real time, you can have your students do the optional speaking activity — students can prepare their presentation at home and then deliver it to the class when everyone is online.

b) For students to do on their own: Photocopy the student pages (without or without the RAFTS and Objectives pages) and send the material home. Alternatively, if students have printers, email the pages to them and tell them to print the work out themselves. Tell students what to do and have them email/send you their work when they’ve completed it. Use the included evaluation checklist to correct students’ work. To do the optional speaking activity, students can prepare their presentation at home, then they can record themselves using any presentation program or app that allows them to do that. Students can post their presentations on a class website if it’s set up for that or email their presentations to you.

My students loved this writing prompt and the teachers I shared it with also liked it. Your students will also enjoy reviewing what they learned by writing about the best civilization to time travel back to!

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You might also like these End of Year products:

★ End of Year Persuasive Writing Activity: English/English Language Arts

★ End of Year Persuasive Writing Activity: Science

★ End of Year Persuasive Writing Activity: American History, Late 1400s - 1800

★ End of Year Persuasive Writing Activity: U.S. Geography

★ End of Year Persuasive Writing Activity: World Geography

Or buy all 4 Social Studies End of Year products in a BUNDLE and save 20%:

★ End of Year Persuasive Writing Activities: Social Studies BUNDLE

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Thank you and happy teaching!

Common Core Standards © Copyright 2010. National Governors Association Center for Best Practices and Council of Chief State School Officers. All rights reserved. Any claims of correlation or alignment to the CCSS Standards or WIDA ELD standards are solely those of The ESL Nexus and have not been evaluated or endorsed by the NGA. The ESL Nexus is the sole creator of this product and does not claim endorsement or association with the creators of the CCSS or WIDA standards.

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