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CCSS ELA Standard: 2.W.1

Write opinion pieces in which they introduce the topic or book they are writing about, state an opinion, supply reasons that support the opinion, use linking words (e.g., because, and, also) to connect opinion and reasons, and provide a concluding statement or section.

Order and Chaos: Recipe or Instinct?
Order and Chaos: Recipe or Instinct?
Two cooks make the same dinner. One follows the recipe to the exact gram. The other just throws things in by feel. Whose food turns out better — the ordered cook or the chaotic cook?
Gr 1-8
Order and Chaos: The Perfect Heartbeat
Order and Chaos: The Perfect Heartbeat
A heartbeat sounds steady, but a perfectly regular one is a warning sign — healthy hearts speed up and slow down a little. Is a healthy heart ordered or chaotic?
Gr 1-8
Order and Chaos: The Shuffle
Order and Chaos: The Shuffle
To shuffle a deck you follow exact steps to make the cards random. Are you creating chaos, or doing something very orderly?
Gr 1-8
Order and Chaos: No Traffic Lights
Order and Chaos: No Traffic Lights
One town runs its intersections with signals. Another has no lights at all — drivers just work it out. Which town’s traffic is more orderly?
Gr 1-8
Order and Chaos: The Snowflake
Order and Chaos: The Snowflake
A snowflake builds a perfect six-sided pattern, and no one designs it. Did that order come from inside the water, or from outside in the cold?
Gr 1-8
Systems: Grandpa’s Axe
Systems: Grandpa’s Axe
Grandpa’s axe broke, so he put on a new head. Years later the handle cracked, so he replaced that too. Now no original piece is left. Is it still the same axe, or a new one?
Gr 1-8
Systems: The Thermostat
Systems: The Thermostat
A thermostat fights to keep a room the same — open a window and it just cranks the heat to undo you. In a system that pushes back like that, can you ever really change just one thing?
Gr 1-8
Systems: Watch vs. Forest
Systems: Watch vs. Forest
A watch stops dead if one tiny gear breaks. A forest can lose a whole species and barely notice. Which is the better-built system — the one where every part matters, or the one where no part is essential?
Gr 1-8
Systems: The Traffic Jam
Systems: The Traffic Jam
Picture a jam where no one crashed and no one even stopped on purpose — everyone crawls for an hour, then it clears for no reason. Did anyone actually cause this traffic jam?
Gr 1-8
Systems: Pull One Thread
Systems: Pull One Thread
A sweater is really one long thread looped a thousand times. Pull the right loose end and the whole thing unravels in seconds. So is a system like that strong or fragile?
Gr 1-8
Change: The Caterpillar’s Bargain
Change: The Caterpillar’s Bargain
To become a butterfly, a caterpillar doesn’t just sprout wings — inside the cocoon it dissolves into liquid first, almost nothing left, then rebuilds. Would you trade everything you are now to become something far greater?
Gr 1-8
Change: The Sealed Jar
Change: The Sealed Jar
You love a flower so much you seal it in a jar to keep it exactly as it is, forever. A month later it’s brown and crumbling. Did sealing it stop the change, or just hide it?
Gr 1-8
Change: The Tree’s Scar
Change: The Tree’s Scar
A nail got hammered into a young tree. The tree didn’t push it out — it grew around it, sealing the nail inside a knot of new wood. Was that change the tree healing, or the tree getting damaged?
Gr 1-8
Change: One Domino
Change: One Domino
You nudge one domino. It tips the next, which tips two more, which tip four, until a thousand have fallen. Did you cause one change, or a thousand?
Gr 1-8
Change: Canyon vs. Earthquake
Change: Canyon vs. Earthquake
It took a river six million years to carve the Grand Canyon. An earthquake can drop a cliff into the sea in ten seconds. Which one changed the land more — the slow river or the fast quake?
Gr 1-8
Earth’s Layers: Who Contributes The Most?
Earth’s Layers: Who Contributes The Most?
Earth’s layers will disagree about which one contributes the most to the planet’s success.
Gr 1-8
An Under-Appreciated Planet
An Under-Appreciated Planet
Students write from the point of view of the most under-appreciated planet.
Gr 1-8
Holiday Shuffle – Day vs Date
Holiday Shuffle – Day vs Date
Wouldn’t some holidays be better on a certain day of the week? Should Thanksgiving have a set date?
Gr 1-8
Not Like The Others: Rivers
Not Like The Others: Rivers
Four rivers. One doesn’t belong. But which one? That depends on your argument.
Gr 1-8
Not Like The Others: Cephalopods
Not Like The Others: Cephalopods
Four cephalopods. One doesn’t belong. But which one? That depends on your argument.
Gr 1-8
Not Like The Others: Flowers
Not Like The Others: Flowers
Four flowers. One doesn’t belong. But which one? That depends on your argument.
Gr 1-8
Not Like The Others: 19th Century Presidents
Not Like The Others: 19th Century Presidents
Four 19th century presidents. One doesn’t belong. But which one? That depends on your argument.
Gr 1-8
Not Like The Others: 20th Century Presidents – Group B
Not Like The Others: 20th Century Presidents – Group B
Four 20th century presidents. One doesn’t belong. But which one? That depends on your argument.
Gr 1-8
Not Like The Others: 20th Century Presidents – Group A
Not Like The Others: 20th Century Presidents – Group A
Four 20th century presidents. One doesn’t belong. But which one? That depends on your argument.
Gr 1-8
Robot Writing: Volcano
Robot Writing: Volcano
Read three pieces of writing from three different robots about the same beautiful painting of a volcano. Who wrote it best?
Gr 1-5
Robot Writing: Acropolis
Robot Writing: Acropolis
One painting of ruins. Three robots. Three pieces of writing. Who wrote it best?
Gr 1-5
Robot Writing: The Bridge
Robot Writing: The Bridge
One painting of a bridge. Three robots. Who wrote it best?
Gr 1-5
Robot Writing: Orchestra
Robot Writing: Orchestra
Read three pieces of writing from three different robots based on a beautiful painting and decide who wins!
Gr 1-5
Not Like The Others: African Nations
Not Like The Others: African Nations
Four African nations. One doesn’t belong. But which one? That depends on your argument.
Gr 1-8
Not Like The Others: US National Parks
Not Like The Others: US National Parks
Four US national parks. One doesn’t belong. But which one? That depends on your argument.
Gr 1-8
Not Like The Others: Types of Diseases
Not Like The Others: Types of Diseases
Four diseases. One doesn’t belong. But which one? That depends on your argument.
Gr 1-8
Not Like The Others: Birds of the Desert
Not Like The Others: Birds of the Desert
Four desert birds. One doesn’t belong. But which one? That depends on your argument.
Gr 1-8
Not Like The Others: Penguins
Not Like The Others: Penguins
Four penguins. One doesn’t belong. But which one? That depends on your argument.
Gr 1-8
Not Like The Others: Microstates of Europe
Not Like The Others: Microstates of Europe
Four of the tiniest countries in Europe. One doesn’t belong. But which one? That depends on your argument.
Gr 1-8
Not Like The Others: Microorganisms
Not Like The Others: Microorganisms
Four microorganisms. One doesn’t belong. But which one? That depends on your argument.
Gr 1-8
Tournament: 8 Wonders of the Solar System
Tournament: 8 Wonders of the Solar System
Which location is the most wondrous place in the solar system?
Gr 1-8
Not Like The Others: Ants of the World!
Not Like The Others: Ants of the World!
Four ants from around the world. One doesn’t belong. But which one? That depends on your argument.
Gr 1-8
Animal Adaptation Tournament
Animal Adaptation Tournament
Which animal has the most interesting, most valuable, or strangest adaptations?
Gr 1-8
Parts of Speech Tournament
Parts of Speech Tournament
Which part of speech is most useful? Interesting? Strange?
Gr 1-8
Not Like The Others: Types of Volcanoes
Not Like The Others: Types of Volcanoes
Which of these types of volcanoes is not like the others?
Gr 1-8
Not Like The Others: Types of Rocks
Not Like The Others: Types of Rocks
Igneous, sedimentary, metamorphic — and one that doesn’t fit. But which one? Depends on your argument.
Gr 1-8
Not Like The Others: Snakes of the Rainforest
Not Like The Others: Snakes of the Rainforest
Four rainforest snakes. One doesn’t belong. But which one? That depends on your argument.
Gr 1-8
Not Like The Others: Deserts
Not Like The Others: Deserts
Which of these deserts is not like the others?
Gr 1-8
Not Like The Others: Rainforests
Not Like The Others: Rainforests
Which of these rainforests is not like the others?
Gr 1-8
Not Like The Others: Stars
Not Like The Others: Stars
How is each of these stars not like the others?
Gr 1-8
Not Like The Others: US States
Not Like The Others: US States
How is each of these states not like the others?
Gr 1-8
Not Like The Others: Mountains
Not Like The Others: Mountains
Which of these mountains is not like the others?
Gr 1-8
Not Like The Others: Birds of the Tropical Rainforest
Not Like The Others: Birds of the Tropical Rainforest
Which of these four birds is not like the others?
Gr 1-8
Not Like The Others: Branches of the US Government
Not Like The Others: Branches of the US Government
How is each part of the United States Government not like the other parts?
Gr 1-8
New Uses for a Paperclip
New Uses for a Paperclip
So what are some new ways to use a paperclip?
Gr 1-8
Not Like The Others: Natural Disasters
Not Like The Others: Natural Disasters
Four natural disasters. One doesn’t belong. But which one? That depends on your argument.
Gr 1-8
Not Like The Others: States of Matter
Not Like The Others: States of Matter
How is each of the states of matter not like the others?
Gr 1-8
Not Like The Others: Countries
Not Like The Others: Countries
How is each of these four countries not like the others?
Gr 1-8
Not Like The Others: Charlotte’s Web
Not Like The Others: Charlotte’s Web
Four Charlotte’s Web characters. One doesn’t belong. But which one? That depends on your argument.
Gr 1-8
Not Like The Others: Creatures of the Tundra
Not Like The Others: Creatures of the Tundra
Four tundra creatures. One doesn’t belong. But which one? That depends on your argument.
Gr 1-8
Not Like The Others: US Presidents
Not Like The Others: US Presidents
Four US presidents. One doesn’t belong. But which one? That depends on your argument.
Gr 1-8
Not Like The Others: Planets
Not Like The Others: Planets
Which of these planets is not like others? Well, it sure looks simple at first. But each option could be the one that doesn’t fit in.
Gr 1-8
Propaganda and Logical Fallacies
Propaganda and Logical Fallacies
Let’s see how propaganda techniques can make even something great seem bad.
Gr 1-8
Academic Love Letters
Academic Love Letters
What if Kylo Ren wrote a love letter to Abe Lincoln or the Sahara Desert wrote one to the Moon?
Gr 1-5